Biographical Review 



THIS VOLUME CONTAINS BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF 

THE LEADING CITIZENS OF 

LIVINGSTON AND WYOMING 

COUNTIES 

NEW YORK 



"Biography is the home aspect of history" 



BOSTON 

Biographical Review Publishing Company 
1895 



Li 



PREFACE. 



GONTEMPORARY records may be said to be a debt due from every generation to the 
future. So much has the writing of annals and placing them in a permanent form 
been neglected hitherto that an additional burden has fallen on the present, which, besides 
doing its own work, must needs bravely endeavor to make up for things left undone of old. 
Hence this Biographical Review of Livingston and Wyoming Counties, which, thanks to the 
generous co-operation of an appreciative public, we are enabled to place before our readers, 
while finding its subjects mostly among the living, men and women faithfully intent on 
the business of to-day, mentions not a few of their ancestors, near and remote, — emigrants 
direct from the Old World, some who came from Pennsylvania, and more who journeyed 
hither from the rugged hills and wave-washed shores of New England. These pages call 
to mind the toils and endurance of the pioneers who sturdily hewed their way through the 
pathless woods, finding sweet pasture on the tufted hillsides and along the watercourses in 
the valleys for their flocks and herds, and, slowly upturning the sod to the sunshine, made the 
wilderness to smile with the early harvest. Here, too, are the chronicled names and deeds of 
stanch patriots who fought and bled for the " land of the noble free." Such progenitors 
may well claim from their descendants what a wise speaker has termed " a moral and philo- 
sophical respect, which elevates the character and improves the heart." It is the nature of 
personal memoirs like the present to increase in value as the years go by. Wherefore, the book 
should commend itself as of more than passing interest and fleeting worth, — a volume that will 
be prized by children's children for one generation after another. " The great lesson of biog- 
raphy," it has been well said, " is to show what man can be and do at his best. A noble life 
put fairly on record acts like an inspiration. " 




MYRON H MILLS. 



BIOSRAPHIGAL. 




progress to its 



'RON HOI. 1. ICY MILLS, 
M.D., a distinguished and 
honored resident of Mount 
Morris, where he is living 
retired from the active duties 
of life^ has exerted a marked 
influence on the literary, so- 
cial, and political advance- 
ment of Livingston County, 
and has borne a conspicuous 
part in promoting its rise and 
high standing among the 
wealthy and well-developed counties of the 
Empire State. He was born December 8, 
1 820, on the homestead where he now resides, 
and which was then owned and occupied by 
his father. Major-general William A. Mills. 

Dr. Mills is of New England ancestry, and 
comes of pure and undiluted Puritan blood. 
His paternal grandfather, the Rev. Samuel 
Mills, of Derby, Conn., born in 1744, was a 
graduate of Yale College, and prepared for the 
ministry. Attracted by the glowing accounts 
of the beauties and promised wealth and great- 
ness of the Genesee valley, he moved his 
family in 1790-92, and located near the little 
hamlet of Williamsburg, the pioneer settle- 
ment in what is now Livingston County, situ- 
ated midway between Mount Morris and 
Geneseo. Circumstances over which the little 
hamlet had no control placing the court-house 
and county buildings in the town of Geneseo, 
Williamsburg's prosperity and growth were 
summarily checked, its i)opulation gradually 
disappeared, and its individuality was entirely 
lost forever. The Rev. Samuel Mills was the 
pioneer ordained minister in the valley. He 
preached the great truths of the gospel to the 
pioneers in an acceptable manner, after holding- 



church sel'vices in the open air, also in the 
large warehouse in Williamsburg and in pri- 
vate dwellings. He was held in high esteem 
by the early settlers, and his memory is pre- 
served in the religious history of the Genesee 
valley. He was a man of ability, a distin- 
guished scholar, and possessed in a marked 
degree the Christian graces which eminently 
fitted him to preach the great truths of the 
Bible. His cousin, the Rev. Samuel J. Mills, 
of Torrington, Conn., who was born April 21, 
1783, and graduated at Williams College in 
1809, was devoted to missionary work, and 
fully earned the proud title in history of 
"Eather of Eoreign Missions in America." 
The Rev. Samuel Mills's house took fire in 
the night and burned, with all his household 
effects, the family barely escaping. This mis- 
fortune, coupled with the loss of capital in- 
vested in land at inflated prices in the town 
of Groveland, embarrassed and so discouraged 
the good man that he became the victim of 
the disease known as the Genesee, or spotted, 
fever, which caused his death. His remains, 
at the request of James Wadsworth, .Sr. , were 
buried in what has since become the beautiful 
cemetery in Geneseo. No monument, we re- 
gret to say, in the interest of his descendants 
and posterity, designates the grave. Imme- 
diately following his lamented death, the 
family, except his son William A., returned 
to New Bedford. 

General William Augustus Mills, the father 
of Dr. Mills, was born at New Bedford, May 
27> 1777; ^nd some seventeen years later, just 
one hundred years before the summer season 
of the present year (1894), this same sturdy 
infant, grown to a stalwart young man, and, 
having learned that "westward the course of 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



empire takes its way," might have been seen 
with a small bundle of clothing under his arm, 
journeying on foot across the valley from Will- 
iamsburg to Allan's Hill, now Mount Morris, 
there to make a home. His only available 
capital was a robust constitution, a quick and 
active brain, a common suit of clothes, an axe, 
and a five-franc piece of silver. He located 
on land belonging to Robert Morris, and there 
erected a cabin on the brow of the tableland 
overlooking the Gene.see valley, the site now 
being occupied by the residence of Dr. M. H. 
Mills. His only neighbors were the Indians; 
and, learning to speak their language and 
growing familiar with their ways of living, he 
became a favorite among them, and was a fre- 
quent counsellor in their dealings with the 
white people of this vicinity, and even occa- 
sionally arbitrated matters of dispute arising 
among themselves. He kept the chain of 
friendship bright, and retained the most ami- 
cable relations with them, until the Indians, 
by virtue of the treaty of 1S25, sold their res- 
ervations, and left the valley. He always 
treated them with the utmost consideration ; 
and they recognized his friendship and gen- 
erosity by bestowing upon him the name of 
"So-no-jo-wa, " which in their language sig- 
nifies "a big kettle" or generous man, and 
among the few surviving members of the Ind- 
ian tribes now living on the Allegany and Cat- 
taraugus reservation the village of Mount 
Morris is called "So-no-jo-wa-ge " in honor 
of his memory. 

The land on which William A. Mills settled 
was, as before mentioned, owned by Robert 
Morris. At a later period it passed into the 
possession of the Bank of North America, and 
in 181 I was thrown upon the market and sold 
to different purchasers, the bank retaining one- 
eighth interest. Mr. Mills then bought 
twenty acres, paying thirty dollars an acre in 
silver, this being the minimum price he paid 
for property on the Genesee Flats. He was a 
man of inflexible purpose and resolute will, 
energetic and industrious, and not only placed 
his original purchase under cultivation, but, 
as his means increased, bought other tracts, 
and at the time of his death was a wealthy and 
extensive landholder, and one of the most in- 



fluential and prominent citizens of Livingston 
County. Previous to the building of the dam 
across the (lenesee River in this locality, the 
nearest mill was twenty miles distant; and 
much valuable time was lost in performing the 
necessary journeys to and fro. With charac- 
teristic enterprise, Mr. Mills succeeded in 
placing the bill for the erection of a dam 
across the river at this point before the legis- 
lature. The river being navigable for small 
boats, some opposition was brought to bear 
upon the project ; and he was forced to appear 
before the General Assembly in support of the 
measure, which was passed. Thus a valuable 
water-power was secured to Mount Morris, and 
was the immediate cause of new growth and 
prosperity to the town. General Mills was 
the founder of the village of Mount Morris, 
and was as patriotic as he was public-spirited. 
On the breaking out of the War of 1812 he 
organized the first militia company in Living- 
ston County, and from the command of that 
company rose to the rank of Major-general of 
the State militia, his command embracing the 
counties of Livingston, Genesee, Ontario, 
Steuben, Monroe, and Allegany. Many of the 
distinguished men of New York have served on 
the military staff of General Mills, among 
whom we may mention the names of Colonel 
Reuben Sleeper, of Mount Morris, General 
Frank Granger, of Canandaigua, the Hon. 
Daniel D. Barnard and the Hon. Charles J. 
Hill, of Rochester. General Mills was a man 
of unbounded generosity and kindness of heart, 
and extended every possible aid to the strug- 
gling pioneer, frequently making the payments 
due on the little tract of land, which might 
have otherwise reverted to the original pro- 
prietors. While yet in apparent jjhxsical 
vigor, the General suddenly died of heart fail- 
ure, on April 7, 1844, in the sixty-seventh 
year of his age, leaving to his surviving 
children a large landed estate and the mem- 
ory of a life spent in doing good to his fel- 
low-men. 

The union of General Mills with Susannah 
H. Harris, of Tioga Point, Pa., was solem- 
nized in 1803, and of this marriage ten chil- 
dren were born, of whom nine grew to mature 
years, and three are still living, namely; Mrs, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



II 



Elizabeth Hamlin; Mrs. Susan H. Branch; 
and Dr. Myron li. Mills, of Mount Morris. 
Myron H. Mills rccei\ed a broad and liberal 
education, and when a young man began the 
study of medicine and surgery in the office of 
Dr. Hiram Hunt, a valued friend of his father, 
and the family physician. He subsequently 
entered the Gene\'a Medical College, from 
which he received his di])Ioma in 1S44. The 
following year Dr. Mills began practice in the 
city of St. Louis, where he soon won an en\i- 
able reputation as a physician, and was ap- 
pointed a jjractitioner in the City Hospital. 
After the declaration of war with Mexico he 
resigned his position in the hospital, and vol- 
unteered as a private soldier in the company 
being then organized in St. Louis by Captain 
Hudson. At the instigation of influential 
friends, before being musteretl into service, 
Dr. Mills applied for the appointment of As- 
sistant Surgeon in the Lhiited States army, 
going himself to h'ort Leavenworth, the head- 
quarters of General Stephen W. Kearny, five 
hundred miles from St. I^ouis, to whom he 
presented in person his papers, hoping to re- 
ceive his indorsement before applying to the 
Secretary of War for his commission. In this 
he was successful ; and he ser\ed bravely 
throughout the entire war, and at the battle of 
Canada received a wound in the fleshy part of 
the right leg, below the knee. The Doctor, 
having recently graduated from the school of 
medicine and surgery, put into practice the 
knowledge of improved methods that he had 
acquired as a student, and was the first to 
introduce the "flap operation " in amputations 
in the "Army of the West," the circular 
method having been previously used from time 
immemorial; and for this valuable service he 
was promoted by the medical director. Surgeon 
DeCamp, of Baltimore, to the head of the 
medical and surgical department of the army. 
At the close of the Mexican War the regular 
standing army of these States was increased by 
the addition of eight regiments. LTpon the 
recommendation of Brigadier-general Stephen 
W. Kearny, commander of the Army of the 
West, in which Dr. Mills .served all through 
the war, the Lion. William L. Marcy, Secre- 
tary of War, tendered him an appointment of 



Assistant Surgeon in the regular army, which 
he declined, and returned to private life. 
Having again become a resident of Mount 
Morris, he was invited by a special committee 
to deliver an address on "The Mexican War." 
He accepted, giving an eloquent and graphic 
description ; and at the rct|uest of special 
committees he was inducctl to repeat it at 
Nunda and Perry. 

Forty-five years ago, in the month of June, 
1849, when the hillsides were fragrant with 
the breath of roses, Dr. M. H. Mills was 
wedded to Mary E. Mills, the only daughter of 
Hiram P. Mills, of Mount Morris. Theirs has 
been a felicitous marriage, she having found in 
him a devoted husband, and he in her a true 
companion and friend, who has faithfully dis- 
charged the duties of wife and mother. The 
sorrow common to mortals has cast its shadow- 
over their pleasant home, four of the si.x chil- 
dren born of their union having passed to the 
"life elysian. " 

In the .spring of 1S50 Dr. Mills engaged in 
the drug business in Rochester, where for 
a while he carried on a lucrative trade. But, 
finding the occupation uncongenial to his 
tastes, he embraced the first advantageous 
opportunity to dispose of his stock of goods, 
and was subsequently employed in the con- 
struction of public works for the State of New 
York. He was well fitted for that responsible 
position, and received for his services a liberal 
remuneration, which, being well invested, en- 
abled him to retire from the active pursuits of 
life in 1S68, and to enjoy his well-earned 
leisure. In 1863, while a resident of Roches- 
ter, he was ap]5ointed by the Mayor and Com- 
mon Council to represent the city in the 
National Ship Canal Convention, held in Chi- 
cago. In June of that year he served on a 
committee with the Hon. Chauncey M. Depew 
and another man. Mr. Depew was then a 
young man, and had been a member of the 
legislature from Westchester County, New 
York. Remo\-ing in November, 1870, to 
Mount Morri.s, his native place, the Doctor 
bought the parental homestead, which had 
passed from the possession of the Mills family; 
and he has since devoted his energies and 
mone)' to its improvement and adornment. He 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



has improved and enlarged the house, erected 
beautiful and convenient out-buildings, and 
converted the three acres of land surrounding 
the mansion into a veritable jiark. This at- 
tractive home is located at the northern extrem- 
ity of Main Street, and commands a magnificent 
and extensive view of the (jenesee \-alley, the 
situation being one to inspire the pen of a poet 
or the brush of an artist to its highest effort. 

Under the familiar noin dc plume of "Corn- 
planter," Dr. Mills has published a \aluable 
series of articles on Indian history, and has 
besides written the only true and complete 
history of the Mount Morris tract. His ser- 
vices as a public speaker and lecturer are often 
in demand. In 1878 he delivered the address 
of the day before the Wyoming Historical Pio- 
neer Association, at the dedication of their 
"log cabin" at Sih'er Lake, the twenty thou- 
sand people there gathered listening to his 
eloquent words with unabated interest till the 
close of the very last sentence. In February 
of the same year Dr. Mills was induced by 
special invitation to lecture before the literati 
of Dansville on "The Prehistoric Races in 
America," and the intelligent and scholarly 
audience which greeted him was enthusiastic 
in its approval of his utterances. On the 14th 
of September, 1880, the residents of Detroit 
listened to an address given by him to the 
State Association of Mexican War Veterans, 
reviewing the results and benefits of that war 
to the country, and stating the claims of the 
\eteran soldiers upon the government for a 
pension. At the annual meeting of the Liv- 
ingston County Pioneer Association in August, 
1877, at Long Point, Conesus Lake, he held a 
vast audience enthralled for more than an hour, 
even though black and lowering clouds and the 
ominous peals of thunder betokened the near 
approach of a deluging shower, from which 
their only shelter was the w^ide-spreading and 
friendly boughs of the forest trees. At various 
times he has spoken with great acceptance be- 
fore the farmers' institutes and kindred associ- 
ations. Dr. Mills was one of four citizens in 
Dansville and Mount Morris who originated 
the idea of forming the Livingston County, 
New York, Historical Society. At the organ- 
ization of the society at Mount Morris, Feb- 



ruary 13, 1877, the Doctor formulated and 
presented the able and comprehensive constitu- 
tion and by-laws of the society, which were 
adopted. Though in use now eighteen years, 
the society have not found it advisable to 
change them in the slightest particular, except 
in one instance, from the second to the third 
Tuesday in January to hold its annual meeting, 
to accommodate the then secretary. He was 
the founder of the Livingston County Pioneer 
Association. He has ever taken an active 
interest in educational and local affairs, and 
has served as President of the Mount Morris 
Board of Education, and twelve successive 
years as President of the Livingston County 
Historical Society, and is now President of 
the Mills Water-works Company and Railroad 
Commissioner of the town of Mount Morris. 
The system of water-works, which has added 
more than any other enterprise to the welfare 
of the village, was constructed after plans 
submitted to the village trustees and the citi- 
zens of Mount Morris by Dr. Mills, at a meet- 
ing held on the 4th of June, 1879, and has 
greatly improved the sanitary condition of the 
town, besides being most useful for domestic 
purposes and of great protection to the prop- 
erty of its inhabitants. For this enterprise 
and the great benefit and protection to the 
village from destruction by fires and the bless- 
ings resulting therefrom, the citizens are in- 
debted wholly to Dr. Mills, who furnished the 
entire capital. 

In politics Dr. Mills has always affiliated 
with the Democratic party, and, though never 
an aspirant for ofificial honors, has occasionally 
accepted places of trust and responsibility; 
and these he has filled with credit to himself 
and to the honor of his constituents. He is 
thoroughly democratic and simple in his man- 
ners, the honors heaped upon him during his 
career having in no way elevated his pride or 
detracted from his frank and cordial friendli- 
ness in his intercourse with others. 

The home life of the Doctor and his attrac- 
tive wife and their two daughters is replete 
with domestic comfort and happiness. He can 
look back upon many long, useful, and well- 
spent years, by which the community and the 
world are not the losers. A portrait of Dr. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



13 



Mills accompanies this sketch, and will be of 
more than ordinary interest to the readers of 
this volume. 




kRS. RHODINA (KUHN) LAW- 
RENCE, of Springwater, Living- 
ston County, N. Y. , a woman of 
charming personality, quiet and 
unassuming in her ways, amply endowed by 
nature with strong mental powers, a book- lover 
and student, especially interested in history, 
biography, and genealogy, has ever striven to 
promote the educational interests of the com- 
munity in which she lives. Mrs. Lawrence's 
paternal grandfather, Peter Kuhn, emigrated 
from Germany, where the days of his youth had 
been spent, to this country, and settled in 
Maryland, where he carried on farming for a 
time, but later came to this section of New 
York, being among the early pioneers of the 
town of Sparta. 

The parents of Mrs. Lawrence, Jacob and 
Eleanor (Prussia) Kuhn, were well-known and 
prosperous members of the farming community 
of Sparta, N. Y. Of the ten children born to 
them, seven are still living; namely, Jere- 
miah, Joseph, Lovina, Jacob, Mary, Rhodina, 
and Eleanor. Mr. and Mrs. Kuhn were worthy 
Christians, following the teachings of the 
Lutheran church, to which they belonged; 
and both lived to a venerable age, the father 
dying at the age of eighty-three years, and the 
mother at the age of eighty-five years. Mrs. 
Lawrence's maternal grandparents were Chris- 
tian and Anna Maria P'rederika (Kephart) 
Prussia, who emigrated from Prussia to Berks 
Coimty, Pennsylvania, whence they came to 
this State. They raised a family of four sons 
and f(jur daughters. 

Rhodina Kuhn was a rosy-cheeked maiden, 
familiar with book-lore and thoroughly trained 
in the domestic arts, when she became the 
bride of Loren Lawrence, a stalwart young 
farmer (if Springwater, and the son of John 
Lawrence, both being ripe in age as well as 
wisdom, he being thirty-nine and she twenty- 
eight years old. John Lawrence was a native 
of Onondaga County, where he was reared to 
agricultural jiursuits. When a young man, he 



migrated to Livingston County, and, purchas- 
ing a tract of timbered land, reared a "shake" 
cabin as his first domicile in this county, its 
location being in Sparta, where he lived for 
several years before becoming a resident of 
Springwater, where the last days of his busy 
life were passed. He married Mary Thiel, a 
New Jersey girl; and .she bore him eleven 
children, namely: James; Loren; L'a ; Charles; 
Elijah; David; Clarissa, deceased; George; 
Eliza; Mary; and Henry, deceased. 

Loren Lawrence was liorn during the resi- 
dence of his parents on their homestead in 
Sparta, October 30, 1822. When he was 
eighteen years old, his people moved to 
Springwater, he remaining beneath the pater- 
nal roof thirteen more years. He and his 
brother Ira purchased his present homestead 
in 1853, they two keeping bachelors' hall a 
good share of the time, but having occasional 
visits from their sisters. In 1863 Ira Law- 
rence married a young lass by the name of 
Juliette Lewis, daughter of Jacob Lewis; and 
then the two brothers who had lived together 
thirty-eight years had to separate, Ira purchas- 
ing of Collins Gardner the farm in Carney 
Hollow where he still resides. In 1881 
Loren bought fifty-one acres one-half mile 
north of his residence, making in all one hun- 
dred and fifty-six acres. He has labored with 
persevering diligence and energy in its im- 
provement; and his efforts have been crowned 
with success, the farm being well cultivated 
and amply supplied with every convenience for 
carrying on his work after the most approved 
methods. His union with Miss Kuhn was 
solemnized in 1862, and has been blessed by 
the birth of si.\ children, three of whom are 
now living. Nellie married Edmond L. Al- 
bright, a contractor residing in Rochester; and 
they have three children — Lawrence, Harold, 
and Leland. Ulysses Grant, a railroad man 
residing in Rochester, married Sadie Moose; 
and they have one child, Grantyne. The third 
one is William Artman Lawrence, now stay- 
ing at home, carrying on the farm. Mr. Law- 
rence is in all respects a most valuable citi- 
zen of the town, fulfilling his obligations as 
such with fidelity. In politics he is a stanch 
adherent of the Rejjublican party, and in re- 



'4 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ligion is inclined to the Methodist church, of 
which his wife is a faithful member. 

The following interesting reminiscences 
have been kindly furnished by Mrs. Lawrence : 
"My father was born in 1794. He received 
a good English education, was a good writer 
and reader, always figured up the interest on 
his notes, and kept good accounts. He was a 
good singer, too. In 1813 he was drafted, and 
served in the army three months, for which he 
enjoyed a pension in his old age. I have 
heard him tell that they lived in Hagerstown, 
Md. , when he was six years old ; and he saw 
General Washington go through the town. 
After they moved to New York, they stopped 
in what is now the village of Dansville one 
year, then only a country place, with a grist- 
mill, one store, and a blacksmith-shop, visited 
frequently by wild Indians, Grandfather soon 
went on the hills to get him a home; for land 
was cheaper there, and he had a big family to 
support, seven boys and three girls. He at 
first settled on the land now owned by Fred- 
erick Traxler, one mile north of the Lutheran 
church, Sparta Centre. After a good many of 
his children were married, he sold that home 
to Peter Traxler, one of his sons-in-law, and 
bought eighty acres of heavily timbered pine 
land south-west of the church. He built a 
.saw-mill, which stands there yet; and it must 
be sixty-five years old, if not more. It is now 
owned by my brother, I. A. Kuhn, and, with 
an addition where he saws wood and shingles, 
is in running order yet. In 1834 grandfather 
sold the mill lot to my father, and in 1835 
bought and moved on to the farm now known 
as the Daniel Kuhn place, now occupied by 
his daughter, Lucinda Steffa. Grandfather did 
not live to be very old, for he had heart dis- 
ease. He was buried in that beautiful resting- 
place for the dead back of the aforesaid church, 
which ground and that where the church and 
school-house n<iw stand he gave to the public 
for those purposes. Shortly after my father 
moved on the mill place, the community built 
the church, and my father sawed the timbers 
and lumber for the same. 

"I remember seeing Grandfather Kuhn but 
once. I heard my folks tell of his coming to 
our house once on horseback, and his heart 



stopped beating, and he fell off; but the jar 
started his heart again, and he got on his horse 
and came down. It was many years before my 
father got a buggy, and a much heavier one it 
was than they have nowadays. I know I was 
thirteen years old before they would take me 
along to Dansville when they w'ent to trade, 
and I so longed to see a village that I coaxed 
my mother to let me go next time. Grand- 
mother lived many years after her husband's 
death with a family by the name of Krone, who 
worked her farm. She finally lived and died 
with her daughter, Mrs. Betsy Traxler. I re- 
member mother sent me up to see her once and 
take her some very nice rare, ripe peaches. 
Awhile after she had eaten them she asked 
me to light her pipe at the kitchen stove. I 
took it, and went out there and got a little coal 
on. As I could not tell whether it was lit or 
not, after a minute I thought I must draw on 
it till it smoked, and did so, but never wanted 
to light another pipe. 

"Those were the days of mud and stone 
bake-ovens outdoors and bake-kettles and fires 
on the hearth. What big logs they used to 
burn ! They called them back logs and front 
logs, and had smaller wood for between. We 
had the kitchen all to ourselves after supper, 
as the older ones would go into the other room 
to work in the long winter evenings. Mother 
would knit or darn or patch; and sometimes 
two would spin flax or tow on the little wheels, 
or would be doubling or twisting, for we 
didn't have any cotton thread. Everything in 
the line of clothing was either linen or wool- 
len. I remember when they had a tailoress 
come to the house and help make up a piece of 
fulled cloth that my sisters had spun the yarn 
for the summer before. Her name was Ann 
Clemons. She is now the widow of Elisha 
Webster. And old Mr. Shafer came over with 
his kit of tools strung on a stick over his 
shoulder and stayed almost a week, making 
and mending shoes. 

"Folks had to study economy then, but they 
were just as healthy and happy as those that 
have all they desire nowadays; and almost all 
of my neighbors became wealthy. But how 
we did enjoy the long evenings, a-playing by 
the light of the fire in that big kitchen and 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



IS 



eating chestnuts! We played 'pussy wants a 
corner,' blindfold, hide the handkerchief, and 
jumping over the broomstick; and, when it 
was moonlight and the snow crusty, we would 
have a lively time coasting clown hill on the 
hand-sled. Then what times we would have 
with frt)zen heels and toes! We used to bathe 
them with spirits of turpentine, or anoint them 
with gudgeon grease ; that is, the black grease 
that works off the gudgeon under the mill. In 
those days girls did the milking; I think I 
learned to milk in a tin cup, when I was eight 
years old. When I was ten, I knit my own 
stockings and sewed on patchwork. I think 
the school-house was built in 1846; but I went 
to that church to Sunday-school many years 
ago, when children went barefoot and wore sun- 
bonnets and calico dresses. A new calico dress 
was worn to my first Sunday-school picnic. I 
remember well when our folks got their first 
cook-stove over fifty years ago. My mother 
said it was a great deal easier to cook over 
than the fireplace. So after that the fireplace 
was boarded up; and my sisters, getting tired 
of whitewashing all around the walls, began to 
paper the rooms. I should like to tell of the 
sugar camp and what sweet times we had 
every spring, and of the well-curb, — how dif- 
ferent it was from any other I ever saw. But 
my sketch is already too long for the first one 
written by a person si.\ty-one years old." 




born 



^OY P. CAPWELL, of the town of Mid- 
dlebury, Wyoming County, N. Y. , is a 
grandson of Peter and Olive (Bent- 
ley) Capwell. Peter Capwell was 
September 2, 1779, in Massachusetts. 
He was a farmer, and at one time served in the 
War of 181 2 as a private. Olive Bentley was 
born February 15, 1791, and married Peter 
Capwell while yet a young girl. In 1S08 she 
and her husband settled near Dale, Wyoming 
County, he building the first frame house in 
that locality. This worthy couple were closely 
associated through the vicissitudes of many 
years, and were separated by death only for a 
short period of three months ; for Peter Cap- 
well passed away March 10, 1874, and his 
wife, June 30, 1874. They were blessed with 



seven children, namely: William; George; 
Albert; Abigail; Franklin W., the father of 
Roy P.; Hiram; and Olive J. The finst 
homestead and farm owned by Peter Capwell is 
now in possession of Mrs. Etta Quale. 

Franklin W. Capwell came into its posses- 
sion many years ago, and in course of time 
traded it for a farm now occujjied by Roy P. 
Capwell. It consisted of thirty-two acres; 
and Mr. Capwell lived on it until 1878, when 
he bought a more extensive farm situated on 
the town line near Dale. There he built a 
fine house and barn, laid out fine drives, 
planted fruit-trees, and bordered the grounds 
with hedges of evergreen. By the aid of mod- 
ern appliances he connected with the house and 
barn a spring of pure, fresh water, and by 
judicious use of money and labor succeeded in 
making for his family a beautiful residence. 
Besides cultivating his farm, he carried on a 
prosperous insurance business, and was a man 
noted for his great activity in any enterprise 
he undertook. He served as Justice of the 
Peace si.xteen years, and for the same length of 
time was superintendent of the Sunday-school. 
He was for ten years President of the Genesee 
Baptist Sunday-school Association, and for 
twenty-one years Secretary of the Wyoming 
Sabbath - school Teachers' Association. In 
politics he was a Prohibitionist. I-'aithful in 
his duties to his fellow-men, he did not fail to 
see his Lord in the person of the despised and 
hunted fugitive slave. Believing himself jus- 
tified in disobeying a wicked human law, he 
made his house an "underground railway" 
station, where the flying negro always found 
shelter and care. Mr. Capwell died October 
9, 1889. His wife is now living in the com- 
fortable home which he had provided for her. 
They had eight children, as follows: Mary, 
born March 16, 1852, married Rudell Roberts, 
now living in Alabama, Genesee County, and 
has si.x children. George, born November 7, 
1854, died while at college, May i, 1875. 
Roy P. was Ixnii April 8, 1861. Charlotte, 
born April 5, 1866, is a private nurse in 
Brooklyn, N. Y. Fanny, born August 28, 
1867,- married Hadley McVeigh, having one 
child and living with Mrs. Franklin Capwell. 
Abbie, born May 12, 1874, is now attending 



i6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Vassar College. Rose and Lilly, born June 7, 
1872, died when only eight days old. 

Roy P. Capwell was educated at the district 
school, and at the age of twenty-one years 
learned the miller's trade, working three years 
for J. W. Ensign, at York, in Livingston 
County. While there he mastered the trade of 
engineering, and for one year took full charge 
of the engine and machinery at the salt works 
at York. He went thence to Fowlerville, 
Livingston County, had charge of the engines 
of the Bolt and Screw Manufacturing Company 
for one year, and then came home to help his 
father. He married in 1888 Alice L. Avery, 
daughter of Merrill N. and Charlotte (Russell) 
Avery. Her father was born in Augusta, Me., 
April 22, 1826; and her mother, September 
30, 1827. Mr. Avery lived for a while by 
farming and teaming, but later bought a farm 
near Wyoming, built a house, remodelled the 
out-buildings, and greatly improved the land. 
After five years he sold out, and traded in dif- 
ferent farms until 1880, when he settled on a 
farm of one hundred and one acres in the town 
of Warsaw, where he now lives, classed among 
the most enterprising and progressive farmers 
in this part of the country. He and his wife 
have had six children. The eldest, Emma T., 
born April 29, 1852, married Thomas Fisher, 
now living at Pavilion, and died, leaving four 
children — Homer E. , Charles, Grace, and 
Charlotte. George N. , born September 25, 
1854, married Ella Kingden, and lives at La 
Grange. Hattie E., born P~ebruary 2, 1858, 
married Walter B. Ayer.s, of Ohio; and both 
are now deceased. Horace W. , born May 29, 
1863, married Emma Langdon, of Warsaw, 
lives at Pearl Creek, and has one child, Pearl. 
Alice, born July 17, 1866, is the wife of Roy 
P. Capwell. Her twin sister, Annie M. , mar- 
ried Chester G. Hamilton, of Ohio, and is liv- 
ing in the town of Warsaw, mother of one 
child, Walter E. Hamilton. 

Mr. Capwell lives on one of his father's 
farms near Linden, Wyoming County. Some 
years since he bought a Clyde engine, and 
with David Peggs, who owned a thrashing- 
machine, went into partnership in the business 
of thrashing grain and beans. In 1893 the 
partner.ship was dissolved. Mr. Capwell then 



bought a Stevens engine and grain-separator, 
and a Western-house bean-thrasher. He also 
has a set of feed-rollers, and, having fitted up 
a building attached to his house with an engine 
and all appliances for grinding grain for feed, 
is carrying on an extensive business, being 
vv'ell patronized by farmers from far and near. 
Two children have been born to their home, 
namely: Rena Priscilla, August 20, 1893; 
and Avery Will, January i, 1895. Some of 
the sturdy spirit which characterized the life 
of his grandsire, Peter Capwell, must flow 
in the veins of his descendant; for a more 
energetic, prosperous man is rarely found in 
rural communities than Roy P. Capwell. 




R.S. MARY WHALEY PEASE, 
of Avon, N. Y. , who represents one 
of the pioneer families of Living- 
ston County, was born in this town, 
where she now makes her home. Her grand- 
father, John Purchase Whaley, son of Jeremiah 
and Tamson (Purchase) Whaley, was one of the 
earliest settlers of Avon. Erecting in the 
wilderness a log cabin, he bravely toiled to 
clear and cultivate a farm, and, enduring with 
fortitude the hardships of frontier life, remained 
here till his death. His widowed mother, 
whom he brought with him from Massachu- 
setts, died at the Avon homestead in 1805. 
The maiden name of his wife was Elizabeth 
Millimau. 

Their son, Caleb Jeffers Whaley, the father 
of Mrs. Pease, was born in Berkshire County, 
Massachusetts, and was -very young when his 
parents removed to Livingston, where he 
gained his education. He served in the War 
of 1812, in which he volunteered a second 
time, and was wounded on the day the city of 
Buffalo was burned. He died in 1830. His 
wife, the mother of eight children, was Orpha 
Wilkinson, a native of Connecticut. She died 
on the home farm at the age of seventy-seven. 
The following ofificial papers will be read with 
interest : — 

"I hereby certify that C. J. Whaley, a Ser- 
geant in Captain James McNair's company 
of infantry and Lieutenant Colonel Philetus 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



17 



Swift's regiment of United States Volunteers, 
under the act of Congress of February 6, 1812, 
has faithfully discharged his duty as a trusty 
Sergeant for twelve months; and he is hereby 
discharged from the service of the United 
States with hcinor. And, agreeable to said 
act, he has received a musket, bayonet, and 
other personal equipments, as a public testi- 
monial of the promptitude and zeal with which 
he volunteered his service in support of the 
rights and honor of his country. 

"By order of Major-general H. Dearborn, 
commanding the United States army, Phile- 
Tus Swift, Lieutenant Colonel United States 
Volunteers." 

"Given under my hand at Buffalo on this 
tenth day of May, 181 3. 

"James McNair, 

" Captain^ 

"C. J. Whaley was born in Massachusetts, 
Berkshire County. He served in Captain 
David Bigelow's company of New York mili- 
tia, in Lieutenant Colonel Samuel Blakeslee's 
regiment ; has resided in Avon, Livingston 
County, N. Y. ,and has resided here for space 
of twenty-three years past ; and previous 
thereto he resided in Massachusetts, Berkshire 
County. 

"Sworn and subscribed this fourth day of 
March, 1828, before me, William T. Hosher, 
I P 

■'■ ■ "CaLEI! J. WllALEV. 

"I certify that in conformity with the law 
of the United States of the 3d of March, 1819, 
C. J. Whaley, late an P2nsign in the company 
commanded by Captain Bigelow in the service 
of the United States, is inscribed on the Pen- 
sion List Roll of the New York Agency, to 
commence on the thirtieth day of December. 

"Given at the War Office of the United 
States, twenty-ninth day of March, one thou- 
sand eight hundred and nineteen. 

"J. C. Calhoun, 
" Secretary of Il'ar." 

Mary Whaley, daughter of this stanch pa- 
triot, was married when twent}'-three years of 



age to Emery T. Pease, son of Henry Pease, 
of Livonia. Mr. Emery Pease was a man of 
marked business ability, engaging in the flour 
trade in New York City, and also in the for- 
warding business, at an early age. In 1852 he 
went to California, and, erecting flour-mills in 
San Francisco, was very successful, building 
up an immense trade. He remained there till 
1870, when, having returned East on a visit, 
he died in Avon soon after his arrival. Mrs. 
Pease still retains an interest in the California 
business, but has lived at the Whaley home- 
stead since the death of her husband. She is 
much esteemed by the people of Avon, among 
whom she has for so long been a familiar per- 




:THUR M. PRESTON, principal of 
the Attica High School, is a well- 
known and popular instructor of 
Wyoming County, his thorough 
scholarship, energy, and enthusiasm in his 
work being among the chief elements of his 
success. He is a native of the Empire State, 
having been born in the year 1852, in Linck- 
laen, Chenango County, on the same farm where 
his mother was born, and where she resided 
until her death. Mr. Preston's great-grand- 
father on the paternal side was born and bred 
in Scotland, whence in 1785 he emigrated with 
his family to the United States. After living 
for a short time in Stonington, Conn., he came 
to this State, settling in Lincklaen, where amid 
the deep forests he reared a humble log house 
and began the pioneer work of clearing a 
homestead. Reared to habits of industry and 
thrift, he labored in season and out ; and the 
fine farm of three hundred acres which he re- 
claimed from the wilderness is still in the pos- 
session of one of his descendants. 

Eli Preston, son of the emigrant, was born 
in Scotland in 1785. He grew to manhood in 
Lincklaen, and during the larger portion of his 
life was engaged in farming. He married a 
Miss Olin, who was born of Irish ancestors in 
Chenango County ; and they became the par- 
ents of eleven children, of whom four daugh- 
ters and five sons grew to maturity. One 
daughter, Mrs. Betsey Reynolds, of Madison 



i8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



County, and Riley Preston, father of the sub- 
ject of this sketch, are still living. Both of 
the parents lived more than fourscore years, 
and died within a few months of each other. 

At the time of his marriage Riley Preston 
purchased the old home farm of his father-in- 
law, and lived thereon until after the death of 
his wife in 1880, when he removed to P21dred, 
Pa., making his home with his daughter. The 
maiden name of his wife, to whom he was 
wedded in 1843, was I.ucy L. Maine; and to 
them four children were born, one of whom, a 
bright little boy, died at the early age of four 
years. The others are: Kmily A., the wife of 
B. F. Greenman, residing in Eldred, Pa. ; 
Arthur M., the subject of this brief sketch; 
and Nettea, a resident of Boston, Mass. 

Arthur M. Preston acquired the rudiments 
of his education in the district school, and at 
the age of fifteen years entered the Classical 
Institute at DeRuyter, then a famous institu- 
tion of learning, but now e.xtinct, from which 
he was graduated in 1871 as valedictorian of 
his class. The succeeding three years he 
studied with private tutors, and in 1875 began 
his pedagogical career as teacher in a select 
.school at South Otselic, his pupils being 
young men and women who were preparing 
themselves for professional lives. He subse- 
quently spent two years at New Woodstock, as 
principal of the high school, going from there 
to Madison Academy, where he was principal 
for two years, resigning his position to accept 
the principalship of the Silver Creek Union 
School and Academy, a position which he 
filled most satisfactorily for eight years. In 
1892 Professor Preston came to Attica; and 
under his able supervision the high school, 
with its roll-call of more than five hundred 
pupils, and ten able instructors, ranks among 
the foremost schools in the county. Arthur 
M. Preston was united in marriage in 1875 to 
Elsie Woodruff, of Whitney's Point, who died 
si.x years later, leaving him two children: 
Willard D. , now a student at Alfred Univer- 
sity; and Nina M. In 18S3 the Professor 
married Nettie L. Babcock, a daughter of 
H. R. Babcock, of Hamilton. Mrs. Preston 
was educated in Hamilton, being a graduate of 
the union school and of the Hamilton Female 



Seminary, and before her marriage was a 
very successful teacher. One child, a little 
daughter of seven years, brightens and cheers 
their household. Socially, Professor Preston 
is a prominent member of the Masonic frater- 
nity, and has served as Senior Deacon of the 
lodge. Religiously, both he and his wife are 
firm believers in the doctrines of the Baptist 
Church; and he is superintendent of the Sun- 
day-school. 




AMUEL BERGEN, one of the mo.st 
prosperous agriculturists of Living- 
ston County, is a useful and esteemed 
citizen of Blount Morris, where he is 
at present engaged in milling, being the owner 
of the Enterprise Mill. His father, Jacob 
Bergen, was born in the town of Fleming, Ca- 
yuga County, January 22, 1803 ; and his grand- 
father, Christopher liergen, was born in New 
Jersey, being a descendant of emigrants from 
Holland. In 1802 he came from New Jersey 
to this State, making the removal with teams 
to Cayuga County, being one of the early set- 
tlers of the town of Fleming. He was a man 
of much education, and in addition to teaching 
school made himself generally useful in cleri- 
cal work. He remained a resident of Fleming 
for many years, but eventually came to this 
county, where he died at the age of eighty-six 
years. His wife, whose maiden name was 
Jemima Bailey, was born in New Jersey, and 
died in Livingston County, when eighty-five 
years old. She bore him five daughters and 
two sons, all of whom grew to maturity. 

Jacob Bergen was educated in Cayuga 
County ; and, when eighteen years old, he and 
his brother Samuel came to Livingston County 
on a prospecting tour, making the journey to 
and fro on foot, their object being to select 
suitable land for a farm. Each one had fifteen 
dollars in his pocket ; and, securing a tract of 
fifty acres of woodland, now included within 
the boundaries of Mount Morris, they made a 
first payment of thirty dollars, and received an 
article of agreement therefor. Both were sin- 
gle men at that time, and after they had built 
a log house their parents came to keep house 
for them. Jacob was married a few years later ; 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



19 



and he then bought an adjoining tract of land, 
on which a frame house had been built. Mov- 
ing the house to the side of the log cabin, he 
continued the clearing and improving of his 
homestead, and before the time of his decease 
had a valuable and well-cultivated farm. He, 
too, lived to a great age, dying in his eighty- 
ninth year. His sLster, Mrs. Daniel P. 
Sedam, died in 1894, aged ninety-six years. 
His wife, formerly Ann Mliza Amerman, was 
born in the town of Niles, Cayuga County, and 
died in Livingston County in the eighty-second 
year of her age. Seven children were born of 
their union — Samuel, Mary J., Catherine E. , 
Harriet, Robert K., Sarah E. , and Frances C. 

Samuel, the eldest son, was born on May 10, 
1830, received a good common-school educa- 
tion, and on the old home farm in the town of 
Mount Morris was thoroughly instructed in the 
art of farming. He remained beneath the pa 
ternal roof-tree until his marriage, when he 
began housekeeping in a log house, one of the 
first built in the town, and which is still 
standing. After occupying it for three years, 
he built a frame house close by, and there 
lived, engaged in general farming, until 1866, 
when he sold that place and bought a farm on 
the Creek Road, now known as the Dowling 
farm, where he resided two years. Selling 
that, Mr. Bergen bought the Dr. Bogart prop- 
erty at Union Corners, and there continued his 
agricultural labors until the .spring of 18S2, 
when, leaving his son in charge of the farm, 
he removed to the village of Mount Morris, 
and resided on Eagle Street imtil iSSg. He 
then purchased the pleasant house where he 
now lives and carries on a good milling busi- 
ness, in which he has been engaged since 
1882. He is a man of good business ability 
and tact, most honorable and upright in all of 
his dealings, and is well worthy of the resjiect 
universally accorded him. 

The first wife of Mr. Bergen, to whom he 
was wedded December 31, 185 1, was Harriet 
J. Robinson, a native of West Sparta, and the 
daughter of Levi and Desdemona (Denton) 
Robinson. After a pleasant married life of 
nearly ten years she passed away, leaving 
three children — Cora E., Julia D., and John 
R. In February, 1862, Mr. Bergen was united 



in marriage with Marietta Bosley, a native of 
Pavilion, Genesee County, N. Y., being the 
daughter of Edmund and Harriet (Crossett) 
Bosley. Of this union two children have been 
born — Lucia and Minnie. In their religious 
views Mr. and Mrs. Bergen fully coincide 
with the doctrines of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church, of which they are active and es- 
teemed members. Politically, Mr. Bergen has 
been identified with the Independents; and for 
many years he has been deeply interested in 
the temperance movement. 



■<^»^> 



/^JeORGE ROMESSER, a well-to-do 
\ [3 1 and highly respected farmer of the 
town of Sheldon, Wyoming County, 
is a fine representative of those honest and 
hard-working citizens of alien birth who have 
by their own unaided exertions worked them- 
selves up from comparative poverty to prosper- 
ity and influence. Mr. Romesser was born in 
Bavaria, Germany, April 16, 1834, being a son 
of Hyrounymus Romesser, a native of the same 
place, and the grandson of John Romesser, a 
farmer and a life-long resident of Bavaria. 
The latter reared a family of five sons and one 
daughter; and of these Meinrad and the father 
of the subject of the present sketch came to 
this country in 1847, each being accompanied 
by his wife and four children, the entire ex- 
penses of the voyage for the twelve persons 
amounting to five hundred dollars. 

Hyrounymus Romesser was born in 1808, 
and was therefore in the prime of life when he 
crossed the ocean with his family. He and 
his brother bought fifty acres of land, twenty- 
five acres each, paying twenty-one dollais an 
acre, this price including the stock on the 
farm. He labored with persevering energy to 
cultivate his land, living thereon until death. 
The wife who accompanied him to America 
died in October, 1 850, aged forty-two years, 
leaving two sons and two daughters, as follows: 
George, of whom we write ; Jacob, a laborer, 
living in Castile; a daughter, now living in 
Minnesota; and one in Missouri. The father 
subsequently married a lady from Alsace, 
France; and of that union two sons and one 
daughter were born, the latter of whom is now 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



a resident of Missouri, the boys having died in 
early youth of diphtheria. In 1872 the father 
departed this life, leaving but a small proj^erty. 

George Roniesser obtained his preliminary 
education in Germany, where he attended 
school six years ; and after coming to Sheldon 
he was a pupil of the district school three win- 
ters. He began life on his own account at the 
age of fifteen years, working for the farmers 
during the summer seasons, receiving from four 
to seven dollars a month. He continued work- 
ing by the month for eleven years, six of the 
years being .spent in one place, with his wages 
ranging from ten to sixteen dollars a month. 
Industrious and frugal, he saved money, and in 
December, 1863, made his first purchase of 
land, paying one thousand dollars for seventy- 
five acres, on which there stood a partly fin- 
ished house. He has since bought other land, 
and is now the owner of a rich and valuable 
farm, containing three hundred and twenty- 
.seven acres in a body, besides some forty acres 
of timber. Mr. Romesser is extensively en- 
gaged in general agriculture and dairying, 
keeping thirty or more cows, and sending his 
milk to the factory two miles distant. In ad- 
dition to raising grain, hay, and the usual 
crops of this section of the State, he has five 
large orchards, which produce an abundance of 
apples and other fruits, the whole yielding him 
a good income. 

On February 5, 1861, Mr. Romesser was 
united in marriage with Elizabeth Davis, a na- 
tive of Oldenburg, Germany, and a daughter of 
Michael Davi.s. Her father came to this coun- 
try in 1854, bringing with him his wife and 
family, consisting of five daughters and one 
son, another son being subsequently born to 
them on American soil. Mr. Davis bought 
seventy acres of improved land in Sheldon, and 
began general farming; but he died within a 
year. His widow, now an octogenarian, re- 
sides on the home farm. She has six children 
living — two daughters besides Mrs. Romes.ser 
in Sheldon; one daughter in Kansas; and two 
sons, Michael and Joseph, on the farm with 
their mother. Fourteen children have been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Romesser, six sons and 
eight daughters, the living being as follows: 
George, Albert, Mary, Catherine, Anna, 



Frank, Sarah, and Andrew. Six have passed to 
the life immortal; namely, an infant, Frances, 
Josejjh, Rosa, Clara, and Willie. Mr. Romes- 
ser takes an active part in the management of 
local affairs, and has served as Assessor six 
years and Collector two years. In politics he 
is a strong supporter of the principles of the 
Democratic party; and, religiously, he and his 
familv are members of the Catholic Church. 




EWTON S. BARKER, a wholesale and 
retail lumber dealer, carrying on an 

15 V extensive business in the town of 

Nunda, is a man of great enterprise 
and ability, and a conspicuous figure in the 
manufacturing and mercantile circles of this 
section of Livingston County. He is now in 
the prime of life, his birth having occurred 
July 5, 1852, in the town of Nunda, being the 
son of Jesse Barker, Jr., who was born in 
Oneida County in 1812, and the grandson of 
Jesse Barker, Sr. , one of the early .settlers of 
Oneida County. 

Jesse Barker, Jr., gained his livelihood by 
tilling the soil, having been reared on a farm 
and well trained in its labors during his mi- 
nority. In 1834 he, accompanied by three of 
his brothers, came on foot to this county, and 
settled in that part of Nunda that has since 
been known as Barkerstown. After four years 
of incessant toil and wise thrift he found him- 
self possessed of enough money to warrant him 
in buying a fifty-acre farm. On this he built 
a comfortable frame house, and there he and 
his good wife reared their family and lived 
until called to their eternal home. He mar- 
ried Jane Bradley, the daughter of James 
Bradley. She was a girl of twelve years 
when she came to Nunda with her father 
and two brothers. Of this family the only 
living representative is Alonzo Bradley, of 
Avon. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Barker 
five children were born, as follows: Elizabeth; 
Emory, who died at the age of sixteen years ; 
Esther, who died when thirty-six years of age; 
Amelia; and Newton S. , of Nunda. The par- 
ents were held in esteem throughout the com- 
munity, and were faithful members of the 
Methodist church. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



The subject of this sketch spent the days of 
his boyhood and youth on the home farm, ac- 
quirinf^ in the mean time a substantial educa- 
tion in the district schools and a practical 
knowledge of agriculture. While continuing 
his farming pursuits, he began dealing in lum- 
ber on a small scale, meeting with such profit- 
able results that he was encouraged to build- a 
saw-mill and manufacture lumber. This busi- 
ness Mr. Barker has gradually enlarged until 
he is now one of the most extensive wholesale 
and retail lumber dealers of this section of the 
county. 

In 1 8/4 Mr. Barker was married to Miss 
Mary Clute, the daughter of James and 
Amanda (Eldridge) Clute. The name of 
Clute has long been prominent in the annals of 
Livingston County, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Barker, Thomas Clute, of Gibsonxille, having 
been for many years agent for the Indians, and 
also land agent for the "white woman," Mary 
Jemison, who was the owner of a large tract of 
land, lying partly in this and partly in Alle- 
gany County. She is said to have been the 
daughter of white parents, and carried away 
capti\'e when a small child by the Indians, and 
brought up by them. To Mr. and Mrs. Barker 
three children have been born; namely, Asa 
J., Mary J., and Arthur C. The silent mes- 
senger of death has, however, cast his shadow 
across the threshold of this happy home, bear- 
ing away their little son Arthur C. at the 
tender age of two years. Their other son, Asa 
J., is in the employ of the Lehigh Railway 
Company. Mr. Barker cast his first Presiden- 
tial vote for Rutherford B. Hayes in 1S76, and 
has always affiliated with the Rejjublican 
[jarty. A man of excellent financial judgment, 
of integrity, and honor, he has served his fel- 
low-townsmen with fidelity as Assessor and as 
village Trustee. 




D. PHILLIPS, a citizen of Perry, is 
a man well known on account of his 
wide experience in various lines of 
business. He was born at Mount 
Livingston County, N.Y. , July 3, 
1842, son of Richard and Eleanor (Brown) 
Phillips, and grandson of Samuel and Sarah 



Mori 



(Schoby) Phillips. His grandparents were 
born in New Jersey and emigrated to the State 
of New York, settling first in Seneca County 
and afterwards in Mount Morris, Livingston 
County. Here Samuel Phillips bought two 
hundred acres of uncultivated land, which he 
cleared and improved, transforming a wilder- 
ness into a fruitful farm. He died at the age 
of eighty-four years. He and his wife were 
members of the Methodist I^piscopal church, 
and in politics he was a Democrat. Of their 
chiklren, nine in number, but one daughter 
survives. 

RichartI Phillips was married at an early 
age to Eleanor Pamelia Brown, daughter of E. 
Brown, a farmer of Livingston County, after 
which he purchased a farm near Brooksgrove ; 
and there he resided until his death. He died 
in the prime of life, June 8, 1845, being at 
the time but thirty-three years of age, and left 
a wife and three children, namely: Marian, 
who married J. \V. Duryea, a farmer, and re- 
sides in Richmondville, Mich. ; Sarah Eliza- 
beth, widow of George Werner, who resides 
in Hornellsville, and is the mother of three 
children; and S. D. Phillips, the subject of 
this brief biography. The wife of Richard 
Phillips is still living, at the age of seventy- 
six years, and resides in Hornellsville, N.Y. 

S. D. Phillips resided with his grandfather 
until sixteen years of age, when he made a 
start in the world for himself. At the age of 
eighteen, on April 20, 1861, he enlisted at 
Nunda, N. Y. , in Company V, Thirty-third 
Regiment, New York State Volunteers, but 
was discharged August 5 by reason of injuries 
received in line of duty. Although entitled 
to an honorable discharge, he hired a substi- 
tute ; and thus the ranks of his company suf- 
fered no los.s. On P\'bruary 19, 1862, Mr. 
Phillips married Ann Tallman, daughter of 
William Tallman, a farmer of Mount Morris. 
They had one child, Harriet E., who lives at 
home. When but twenty-five years of age, 
Mrs. Ann T. Phillips passed away; and on 
April 19, 1873, Mr. Phillips married Marian 
E. Richards, who was born September 25, 
1849, daughter of Dana and FA'izu. (Hollister) 
Richards. They have resided in Perry, with 
the exception of a few years spent in Nebraska 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



and Ohio. Mr. l'hillip.s is a .stanch Repnbli- 
can, a member vi John P. Robin.son Po.st, No. 
lOl, Grand Army of the Republic, and of Con- 
stellation Lodge, A. F. & A. M., No. 404. 



AMES HATHAWAY JACKSON, 
M.D., proprietor and phy.sician in 
charge of the Jackson Sanatorium at 
Dansxille, N. Y. , was born in Peter- 
borough, Madison County, June 11, 1841. 
His earliest ancestors in America came over 
from England in the "Defiance " in 1635 ; and 
from John Jackson, an innkeeper in Cambridge 
in 1675, who inherited from an uncle Richard 
his Brattle Street property, has descended the 
Jackson family. The great-great-grandfather 
of Dr. Jackson was Deacon John Jackson, of 
Weston, Mass., who was born in Cambridge, 
Mass., January 12, 1703, and married in 1727 
to Mercy Chadwick, of Watertown. The Dea- 
con's son, Colonel Giles Jackson, born in 
Weston, January 12, 1732, was one of the 
striking figures on the stage of historical 
drama during the period of America's strug- 
gle for independence. He was a Colonel in 
the P"irst Berkshire Regiment of Massachu- 
setts of the Revolutionary army, a Field 
Officer and Chief of General Gates's staff at 
the battle of Saratoga, and drew up with his 
own hand the articles of capitulation which 
were signed by Burgoyne. The original draft 
of this most interesting document is preserved 
as a treasured heirloom in the Jackson family. 
Colonel Giles Jackson was married twice. 
His first wife was Miss Anna Thomas, who 
bore him fourteen children. The second wife 
was Mrs. Sarah Atwood Orton, a widow with 
five children, to whom si.\ children were born 
of her second husband, so that under the ]ia- 
ternal roof a family of twenty-five sons and 
daughters were reared to youth and maiden- 
hood. Medical talent seems to have come 
down through several generations; for the pa- 
triarch Colonel's son, James Jackson, born in 
Tyringham, Berkshire County, Mass., was a 
physician and was Army Surgeon at Sackett's 
Harbor in 18 12. He married Mrs. Mary Ann 
(Elderkin) Clark, a daughter of \'ine Elderkin 
and Lydia Ann White, of Connecticut, and 



a grand-daughter of Colonel Jedediah Elder- 
kin, a lawyer of great repute, and member of 
the Connecticut Committee of Safety. The 
widow Clark had a family of five children by 
a former marriage. 

The ne.xt in the line now being considered 
is James Caleb Jackson, son of Dr. James and 
Mary A. (lilderkin) Jackson, born at Manlius, 
N. Y. , March 28, 181 1, who will long be re- 
membered as the founder of the celebrated 
hygienic institution, "Our Home," at Dans- 
ville, now known as the Jackson .Sanato- 
rium. James C. Jackson studied medicine 
with his father, and received a diploma from a 
medical college at Syracuse, N. Y. In early' 
manhood, taking an interest in the great ques- 
tions of the day, he was Corresponding Secre- 
tary in 1842 of the American Anti-slavery Soci- 
ety, and edited for a time the Madison County 
Abolitionist, which was a strong advocate of 
emancipation. Either through overwork or 
from some other cause he lost his health, 
and was given up to die. Being successfully 
treated at a water cure in Cuba, N. Y. , under 
Dr. Gleason, after his recox'cry he became part- 
ner in a similar establishment at Glen Ha\en, 
Cayuga County, at the head of Skaneateles 
Lake. In the autumn of 1858 he came to 
Dansville, and opened the "Home," from 
which has grown the present Sanatorium. He 
won a wide reputation, not only as a physician, 
but as an orator and writer, and as editor of 
an able and widely known periodical. The 
Laws of Life and Journal of LLealtli. On 
September 10, 1830, he married Miss Lucretia 
Edgerton Brewster, a lineal descendant of 
Elder William Brewster, of the "Mayflower" 
band. She became the mother of three chil- 
dren, of whom only one, James Hathaway, the 
special subject of this sketch, now survives. 

James Hathaway Jackson was graduated at 
the age of thirty-five from Bellevue Hospital 
Medical College, New York City. In 1876 
he assumed charge of the Jackson Sanatorium 
at Dansville, so successfully carried on by his 
father for nearly twenty years. This Sanato- 
rium is a model institution, designed for the 
recuperation of minds and bodies that have 
been enfeebled by disease or .shattered by over- 
strained nerves, and sets forth its purposes, 




JAMES H. JACKSON. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



25 



ends, and motives in tlie eight pnipiisitions of 
its announcement to the jniblic: — 

"God has so created and rehited man to life 
on earth — casualties aside — that, in order to 
live free from sickness and to die from old 
age, he needs only to obey the laws uiion 
which life and health depend. Therefore as 
Christians, as well as advocates of a new medi- 
cal philosophy, we insist : first, that sickness 
is no more necessary than sin; second, that 
the gospel demands that human beings should 
live healthfully as well as religiously; third, 
that within the sphere in which they are to 
operate physical laws are as sacred as nn)ral 
laws, and that mankind is as truly bound to 
obey them ; fourth, that (jbedience to physi- 
cal laws w^ould do away with disease and the 
countless number of ailments that smite hu- 
manity from infancy to maturity, and that 
by such obedience — casualties aside — man 
would die of old age; fifth, that, in order to be 
cured of any curable disease, one needs simply 
to be brought within the range of the opera- 
tions of the laws of his organism, and to be so 
related to them that they may work unobstruc- 
tively in order to get well ; sixth, that therefore 
the only sound philosophy upon which to pro- 
ceed to treat the sick, with a view to their 
restoration to health, is to employ such means 
and such only as, had they been properly used, 
would have kept them from becoming ill ; 
seventh, that the right to use one's powers and 
faculties neither originates in nor depends u]3on 
sex, but upon the possession of an intellectual 
and moral nature, and, inasmuch as woman 
possesses this as truly as man, her right to use 
whatever powers or faculties which belong to 
her is ec[ual with man's; eighth, hence we 
advocate such reformation in our government 
as will place women in all respects on equality 
with men before the law. 

"Such are our principles; and we respect- 
fully commend them to the public, and beg 
that the Wise and Good assist us in their 
promulgation. " 

The spacious and handsome building stands 
on the site of the old Sanatorium known 
as "Our Home Hygienic Institute," which, 
with its valuable library and medical appli- 
ances, was totally destroyed by fire on June 26, 



1882. It is entirely fire-proof, and in its 
ec(ui])ment one of the most thorough in Amer- 
ica, and to-day is filled with all sorts and con- 
ditions of invalids from all quarters of the 
globe. Situated twelve hundred feet above 
the sea level, among the hills of the lovely 
valley of the Genesee, the surroundings of the 
Jackson Sanatorium seem to ha\'e been spe- 
cially devised by nature for those purposes to 
which the intelligence of man has applied them. 
The quiet stretches of forest, the pure moun- 
tain streams, the genial climate, and the pict- 
uresque beauty (if the scenery, all combine to 
offer the most advantageous conditions to those 
who are seeking for health. The remarkable 
exceptional purity of the water of this region 
has been proved by its careful analysis, which 
certifies that it contains only six hundred and 
forty-one thousandths of a grain of organic 
matter to each gallon. About the main build- 
ing, which is three hundred feet long and five 
stories high, cluster a dozen pleasant cottages 
with light, airy, steam-heated rooms, com- 
manding charming views of hill and valley, 
and the village of Dansville nestling below. 
All of the most approved forms of baths are 
employed in the institution, including the 
Moliere, thermo-electric, Turkish, Russian, 
electro-thermal, and salt baths, also massasre, 
Sw'edish movements, inunction, vacuum treat- 
ment, and all forms of electricity, as seems 
most suitable to the individual case. The 
asphalt roof of the building, which serves as 
a sort of boulevard, even in winter presents a 
lively appearance after the breakfast hour, 
when the patients are out in their chairs or 
cots, gay with bright rugs or shawls, for fresh 
air and exercise. 

Dr. James H. Jackson was married Sejitem- 
ber 13, 1864, to Miss Kate Johnson, a medical 
graduate, and a woman eminently fitted to be a 
helpmate to her husband. Their son. Dr. J. 
Arthur Jackson, is Secretary and Manager of 
this institution, and Helen D. Gregory is the 
able and efficient Treasurer. Besides attend- 
ing to his manifold duties at the Sanatorium, 
Dr. J. H. Jackson is actively interested in 
local public affairs. He has been a member 
of the Board of lulucation of Dansville, Wor- 
shipful Master of Thcenix Lodge, No. 115, 



26 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



A. F. & A. M., was the first Republican 
President of the village of Dansville, being 
elected February 12, 1895, by the first Repub- 
lican majority ever obtained in the history of 
that town. The portrait of Dr. James H. 
Jackson accompanying this sketch will doubt- 
less be viewed with interest by many readers 
of this volume. 



T^HAUN'CFY K. SANDERS, the old- 
I \t^ est publisher in Livingston County, 
^^lU who has been continuously on the 

same paper, the Nunda J^V^c'J, since 
its establishment in 1859, was born in Pavil- 
ion, Genesee County, N. Y. , October 2/, 1837. 
His father, 1-ienjamin Sanders, was born in 
Penn.sylvania, and, being left an orphan, came 
to New York and engaged in the cabinet- 
maker's trade in Dansville. Later he fol- 
lowed the same occupation for many years at 
Pavilion, and in 1862 moved to Nunda, where 
he died. His wife was Hulda Knapp, of Ver- 
mont ; and she became the mother of four chil- 
dren, namely: George A., who is employed on 
the Utica Press; Chaunccy K. ; Pamelia J. ; 
and Alanson K. 

Chauncey K. Sanders was educated at the 
district and select schools of Pavilion, and 
later attended Shader's Commercial College 
in Lima, N. Y. He then found employment 
in the office of the Geneseo Democrat, of 
which paper his brother was publisher, and in 
I 857 entered the office of the Dansville Her- 
ald. In 1859 Mr. Sanders removed to Nunda, 
where he started the Nunda Neu's, which he 
has since continued to publish, his office being 
in LTnion Block. He was in the State militia 
at the time of the war, and was engaged in 
doing guard duty over the sixteen thousand 
rebel prisoners confined in the Palmira Prison. 
In 1 861 he married Harriet E. Tousey, daugh- 
ter of Orville Tousey, of Dansville; and they 
have reared three children: Fannie, Chauncey 
K., Jr., and Walter B. One son, Harry F. , 
was drowned at Silver Lake, July 3, 1880, 
when eighteen years of age. Fannie, the only 
daughter, married Frank S. Thomas, of Mount 
Morris, and has three children — P'aith, Harry, 
and P'rank. 



Mr. Sanders cast his first Presidential vote 
for Abraham Lincoln in i860, and has always 
supported the Republican party. He was ap- 
pointed Postmaster in 1861 by President Lin- 
coln, serving four years; was again appointed 
to that office by President Hayes in 1879, "I'^d 
so faithfully did he perform his duties that 
the position was again given him by President 
Arthur, making his time of service in that 
capacity fifteen years. For many years he was 
a member of the Board of Elducation, and he 
was Assistant Journal Clerk of the Assembly 
in the year 1867. He is a charter member of 
Craig W. Wadsworth Post, No. 417, Grand 
Army of the Republic, of which he was Com- 
mander in 1894. He is a member of the New 
York State Press Association, the Republican 
State PLditorial Association, being one of its 
first Vice-Presidents; and for two years, in 
1892 and 1893, he was President of the Liv- 
ingston County Press Association. Mr. San- 
ders is now President of the Livingston Coimty 
Historical Society, having been chosen at the 
annual meeting of this important organization 
held in January of the present year, 1895. 
The family attend the Universalist church, of 
the Board of Trustees of which .society Mr. 
Sanders is Chairman. He is prominent in 
town affairs, taking an active part in all 
matters pertaining to the general welfare, and 
is universally respected by his fellow-citizens. 




ILLIAM H. EWELL, one of the 
leading citizens of his native town 
of Middlebury, Wyoming County, 
was born December i, 1830, being a son of 
Eli and Charlotte (Walker) Ewell, grandson of 
James and Sarah (Holbrook) Ewell, and great- 
grandson of John Ewell, who was of Scotch de- 
scent, and who was a sailor. James Ewell was 
born in Massachusetts, came to Middlebury 
with his sons, and lived here until he died, at 
the age of sixty years. His wife survived him 
for twenty years, living until the ripe age of 
eighty years. Their children were: Samuel, 
Henry, Peleg, Eli, Nancy, Mabel, Luther, 
Deborah, James, John, Mercy, and Louise. 
Mr. liwell was a farmer; and, doubtless, from 
him descended the love of tillino- the soil. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



27 



which has marked the character of his descend- 
ants. He was a Whig in politics. 

Eli, the fourth son of James and Sarah, and 
the father of William H., was born March 5, 
1793, and was about twenty-three years of age 
when he came to this place. His elder brother 
had preceded him, coming to Middlebury some 
time before and buying a farm. Possibly sto- 
ries of the fertility of the soil and the prospect 
of earning themselves a home induced the 
father to share their fortunes. Certain it is 
that he soon followed his sons. Eli sold him 
his farm and moved to Wolf Creek in the town 
of Castile, where he erected two saw-mills and 
did a thriving lumber business. Soon after 
the death of his father he came back to Mid- 
dlebury, and, living on the old home estate, 
built the house and barn which now stand, 
planted orchards, and lived a life of peace and 
prosperity, owning land to the extent of six 
hundred acres. His wife was Charlotte 
Walker, daughter of Obadiah Walker, who 
was of Vermont birth, and lived in the town of 
Bethany, Genesee County, N. Y. Mr. Eli 
Ewell raised a flourishing family of eight chil- 
dren, as follows: Lovina, deceased, married 
for her first husband Marvel J. Marsh, and 
after his death married for her second J. S. 
Chase. Angel ine married S. Howes. Harri- 
son married Eliza Larmore. Clarinda married 
S. Howes. All of the above are now de- 
ceased. Mary married D. Cartwright, and is 
now living in Allegany County. George died 
at sixteen years of age. William- H. is 
still living. Carlos married A. Wilson, now 
deceased. Mr. P^li Ewell died at the age of 
fifty-three years, while still in the prime of 
his life. He was a supporter of the Christian 
church, and belonged to the party of Whigs, 
serving their cause loyally. Two older 
brothers came to Wyoming County in 1803, 
and in 1812 served in the war. 

William H. Ewell received his education in 
the district school and Wyoming Academy. 
That he improved his advantages to the utmost 
is shown by his adaptability for the public 
offices to which his fellow-townsmen have 
elected him ; namely. Superintendent of the 
Poor for this county. Highway Commissioner, 
and Assessor, which last position he held for 



fifteen years. Mr. Ewell lived at home until 
he was eighteen years old, when he took the 
portion of his father's farm allotted him, about 
seventy acres, and set about making a home. 
Four years later, when twenty-two years of 
age, he married Miss J. E. Miller, daughter 
of Jairus and Jane (Quail) Miller. Mr. Mil- 
ler was born in Massachusetts. The family 
came here and settled just south of where the 
liwells resided. Mr. Miller and his wife had 
six children — J. P'meranc}', Orville W. , Ro- 
setta, Emma, Ella, Lucretia. Mr. Miller was 
a strong Republican, and a member of the 
Pj-esbyterian church. 

'Mr. William H. Ewell has added to his 
land, until at the present time he owns an 
extensive farm of one hundred and fifty acres, 
lying about two miles from the village of Wy- 
oming. He devotes most of his time to stock- 
raising, in which pursuit he is very successful, 
as is evinced by his flock of one hundred 
sheep, his fine horses, and droves of sleek 
cattle, his barns filled with hay and grain. In 
fact, every detail of this prosperous farm shows 
the practised hand and the well-trained eye of 
the proprietor. Mr. Ewell owns eight acres of 
orchard and also six hundred peach-trees. 
Surely, as he rests from his labors at the close 
of the day, and looks around him over his 
broad acres, he may well e.xclaim, "The lines 
are fallen unto me in pleasant places!" 
Plight children have been born to Mr. and 
Mrs. Powell, namely: Charlie H., who died 
at the age of eight years; Manie C, living at 
home; Fred D., now residing in North 
Dakota; George E. , at home; P"rank O. , who 
died at the age of twenty-eight years; Ella J. 
who married E. J. Kennedy, and lives in Erie 
County; Elmer R. and Meed A., living at 
home. Mr. Powell is a member of the Odd 
P'ellows lodge at Wyoming, and also belongs 
to the Equitable Aid Pinion. 



NDRP:W J. WILLIARD is a well- 
known merchant of Geneseo, N. Y. , 
whose extensive coal and lumber 
yards, with offices attached, are con- 
veniently situated at the railroad depot. He 
was born in Portage, Wyoming County, No- 




28 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



vcmber I, 182S. His father, Alvasis Williard, 
was born in New England in 1790, and was 
reared a farmer and lumberman. In 1 826 he 
moved to the town of Portage, Livingston 
County, N. Y., and established himself in the 
lumber business so successfully that he re- 
mained there until 1847. In that year he con- 
cluded to change his headquarters to Geneseo, 
where, with that capacity which is born of ex- 
perience, he was able to follow his business 
even more prosperously than before. He died 
in Geneseo August i, 1862, having passed the 
allotted threescore years and ten, and leaving 
behind him a record of faithful industry worthy 
of the highest respect. The wife of Alvasis 
Williard, mother of the subject of this sketch, 
was before marriage Miss Lydia Albee, a native 
of Massachusetts. She reared nine children — 
Melissa, Frederick, Clarissa, Ephraim, Lu- 
cinda R., Andrew J., Levi A., Lovett J., and 
Samuel. This devoted mother of so large a 
family was not unmindful of her Christian 
duties, being an exemplary member of the 
Presbyterian church. She died in the town of 
Geneseo, at the age of sixty-two years. 

Andrew J. Williard spent his early years in 
Portage, attending the district school there. 
When he was fifteen, the family moved to Gen- 
eseo. He assisted his father for a time; but 
at eighteen, with the love of change incident 
to youth, he concluded to go to work on a 
farm. He followed this occupation, working 
by the month and learning agriculture, till he 
was twenty-six years old, when he rented a 
farm for himself. At the end of eight years 
he moved to Avon, and remained in that pict- 
uresque and somewhat noted locality about 
three years. Circumstances then making a 
change desirable, he returned to Geneseo and 
leased a farm of fourteen hundred acres known 
as the "big-tree farm," where he branched out 
into the cattle-raising industry. This exten- 
sive enterprise he carried on with his accus- 
tomed zeal and sagacity for fourteen years, and 
then turned his attention in a different direc- 
tion by purchasing, in connection with Mr. 
Shaffer, his present property, consisting of a 
large coal yard, a saw and planing mill, lum- 
ber yard, and accessories. After a few years 
Mr. Shaffer sold his portion and interest in 



the concern to Mr. Neff, who continues to be 
Mr. Williard's partner. The firm has been for 
some time known by the name of Williard & 
Neff. 

Mr. Andrew J. Williard was married October 
3, 1855, to Miss Ophelia Bush. Their chil- 
dren, four in number, are all living save Jen- 
nie, who died early. Willis A. married Miss 
Nancy Scoville, and is at present located on a 
farm in Geneseo. Clara, the only daughter, 
married Mr. John Lowry, a cigar-maker of the 
town, and has one child, named Walter. The 
other son, Fred, who after a course of study 
was graduated from the medical college in 
Buffalo, N. Y., is now a practising physician 
of that large and enterprising city. Mrs. 
Ophelia B. Williard died in 1S77. She was 
a member of the Presbyterian church. Mr. 
A. J. Williard married for his second wife 
his brother's widow, Mrs. Susan Williard, a 
daughter of Miner Jones, a prominent farmer 
of Portage, her native town. 

Mr. Andrew J. Williard, the circumstances 
of whose life are here briefly reviewed, is so 
highly esteemed by his fellow-townsmen for 
his intelligence, enterprise, and good under- 
standing of men and things, that he has been 
elected Supervisor of the town at three sepa- 
rate elections, his Republican opponents help- 
ing to give him, a Democrat, a majority of 
one hundred and fifty votes. Mr. Williard has 
filled other important offices, including that of 
Highway Commissioner, as well as serving as 
President of the Board of Education for three 
years past. He attends and liberally helps 
support the Presbyterian church in Geneseo. 



OHN MARKP:Y, proprietor of a hotel at 
Java Centre, is a most genial host, and 
is also an important factor of the agri- 
cultural interests of Wyoming County, 
where his entire life has been spent, he having 
been born in the town of Java, April 27, 1847, 
and here bred and educated. He is of Irish 
parentage, being the son of James Markey, 
who was born in County Louth, Ireland, in 
1 8 10. 

James Markey was left an orphan at the ten- 
der age of three years, and was reared to man's 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



29 



estate by kind friends. At the age of twenty- 
one he sailed for America, and was landed on 
the shores of New York after a stormy voyage 
of nine weeks. He was an industrious and 
ambitious young fellow, and in the city worked 
at any honorable employment he could find 
until coming to this part of the State. In 
Wheatland, Monroe County, he worked as a 
farm hand by the day or month, and by great 
economy saved enough money to warrant him 
in buying a tract of land. His first purchase 
consisted of fifty-six acres in Java, which he 
bought in 1840. A small clearing had been 
made, and there was a partially built frame 
house on the property. He cleared and im- 
proved a farm, to which from time to time he 
made substantial additions, until his property 
aggregated three hundred and si.xty acres of 
land, besides an acre and a half in the village, 
where he built a home, living there until his 
demise in 1873. His widow survived him, 
dying in December, 1880, aged seventy-si.x 
years. While a resident of New York City, 
in 1834, he married Margaret Kerwin, a native 
of Ireland. Of the five children born to them 
all are now living, as follows: Ann, the wife 
of John Mooney ; Mrs. Kate Gallagher, a 
widow ; Thomas, a farmer ; Mary, wife of 
Thomas Murray ; and John, of whom we write. 
John Markey was reared to habits of indus- 
try and thrift, and after leaving the home farm 
spent some three years- in the oil regions of 
Pennsylvania, whither he went in 1865. Re- 
visiting the place in 1869, in the month of 
July, he began drilling for oil, working by the 
day, and the subsequent year took contracts for 
drilling. In 1873 Mr. Markey returned to the 
place of his nativity, and purchased two hun- 
dred and thirty acres of land from his father, 
paying eight thousand one hundred and twenty 
dollars, but being obliged to go heavily in 
debt. In the fall of 1874 he disposed of all 
but sixty-two acres. The following year he 
sold the remainder of his land and bought a 
farm of one hundred and twenty-five acres 
which his father had formerly owned. In less 
than a year he again sold out, and subsecjuently 
bought a farm of eighty acres, on which he 
carried on general farming for six years. In 
1880 Mr. Markey bought his present village 



lot, and, erecting a commodious house and 
barn, opened his premises to the travelling 
public, December 22, 1880. The farm prop- 
erty which he then owned he sold in 1882; 
and in 1889 he bought a farm of one hundred 
acres near the village, this farm being now 
managed by one of his sons, George A. 

Mr. Markey was united in the holy bonds of 
matrimony February 9, 1869, to Anna E. 
Twite, a daughter of James Twite, a native of 
Erin's Isle. Two daughters and three sons 
have been born of their union; namely, James 
W. , George A., Andrew J., Estelle G. , and 
Anna E. Mrs. Markey passed to the bright 
world beyond February 26, 1893, at the age of 
forty-five years. Mr. Markey has usually voted 
the Democratic ticket; and he has served as 
Constable and Collector for two years, and as 
Highway Commissioner two years. Socially, 
he is a member of the Select Knights. 




ILLIAM GRANT, an early pioneer of 
the village of Moscow, in the town 
of Leicester, Livingston County, 
N. Y. , was born on the present site of the State 
prison at Auburn, N. Y. , in May, 1804. His 
father, Daniel Grant, was born, it is thought, 
in Connecticut, and came from there to New 
York State, locating in Auburn when that 
locality was known as Hardenburgh Corners. 
He remained but a few years, and then went 
westward, penetrating the wilds of the Genesee 
valley. After living for a while at Caledonia, 
he pushed on to Castile, where he secured a 
tract of land, cleared a farm, and here resided 
until, advanced in years, he removed to Mos- 
cow, to spend his last days with his son Will- 
iam. Daniel Grant served in the War of 
1812. His wife's maiden name was Eunice 
Blanchard. 

William Grant was reared to habits of in- 
dustry amid the scenes of pioneer life, and in 
young manhood went to Moscow to establish 
himself in business. He was so successful 
that in a few years he became a prominent 
manufacturer of wagons and carriages. His 
business soon increased to such an extent that 
he purchased property in Moscow, including a 
farm near the town, upon which, however, he 



3° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



never lived, but retained his residence in the 
village until his death, November lo, 1887. 
Mr. Grant married Julia A. Gorham, who was 
born in 1807, in Fayette, Seneca County, 
N.Y., and was the daughter of James and Ma- 
rissa (Morris) Gorham, who were early pio- 
neers of Seneca County. Mrs. Grant died 
August 26, 1883. She was the mother of 
seven children — William Murray, Phebe Eliz- 
abeth, Daniel W., Helen M., Margaret A., 
Mary Marissa, and Justina E., two of whom 
died in childhood. William Murray Grant 
enlisted in the Twenty-fourth Indiana Bat- 
tery, New York Volunteers. He died in the 
hospital at Newbern, N.C., September 14, 
1863, after a short illness, thus escaping the 
terrors of Andersonville Prison. Phebe E. 
was married at the age of twenty to Richard 
Woods; and he and his only sons, Frank M. 
and Frederick, are now successful business 
men in Pasadena, Cal., Mrs. Woods having 
died since their removal there. Helen M. is 
the only representative of the family now re- 
siding in Livingston County. She was born 
in Moscow, receiving her early education in 
this place, and, showing exceptional literary 
ability, was sent away to school, and afterward 
taught for a time. She was married to Beriah 
M. Coverdale; and she and her husband are 
the parents of four children — Eugene M., 
Nellie, Thomas, and W. Grant Coverdale. 
Margaret A. and Justina E. remained with 
their parents, tenderly caring for them until 
severed by death, after which they sought to 
build them a home in the sunny lands of Cali- 
fornia, where they now reside. F"or fifty-two 
years Mr. and Mrs. William Grant were per- 
mitted to enjoy life together. Mrs. Grant won 
by her gentle disposition and warm heart a 
host of friends. Mr. Grant sustained through- 
out his life a reputation for integrity and up- 
rightness of character, and by his death the 
community lost a valued member. 



/STeORGE M. wolf, retired from ac- 
I •) I tive business life, and spending his 
— declining years in pleasant leisure in 
the village of Varysburgh, has accumulated a 
comfortable competency, and is the owner of a 



valuable farm of one hundred and three acres 
not far from the village, besides which he has 
twenty acres of land connected with his resi- 
dence. His birth occurred in Alsace, Franco- 
Germany, March 12, 1832; and his parents, 
Philip and P'lizabeth (Shoemaker) Wolf were 
natives of the same province. The paternal 
grandfather of Mr. Wolf emigrated to Amer- 
ica, settling in Canada in 1834; and with him 
came several members of his large family, 
many of whom are still living there, although 
the grandparents have long since passed to 
their final rest. 

Philip Wolf left France in 1846, emigrating 
with his wife and two children to the L^nited 
States. They were ninety-nine days on the 
water, the ship running short of provisions, 
and being obliged to stop at the Portuguese 
Islands for food. Mr. Wolf was a tailor by 
trade, and worked at that occupation a year 
in New York City. The following spring he 
started westward with his family, having made 
a contract with the Erie Canal Company to 
be taken to Buffalo. Arriving in Albany and 
finding that the canal was not open, he shipped 
his goods to Attica by rail. He settled in the 
town of Orangeville, renting a house from his 
wife's brother, Michael Shoemaker, who had 
come there si.\ years before. He subsequently 
bought a farm of sixty acres a mile east of 
Varysburgh, which he occupied for several 
years. Later he opened a shop in the village, 
and there continued in business until 1868, 
when he bought a farm of one hundred and 
eighteen acres a mile east of the village, where 
he farmed until his death in 1882, at the age 
of seventy-five years. The mother of the sub- 
ject of this sketch died in 1852 ; and the father 
married again, his second wife, the widow 
Smith, being a native of the old country. Of 
that union two sons and three daughters were 
born, making a family of three sons and four 
daughters, all of whom are living, excepting 
Kate, a daughter of the second marriage, who 
married a Mr. Burlingame, and subsequently 
died in Iowa. The following are the remain- 
ing children: George M. ; Sarah, widow of 
George Bauer, of Varysburgh ; Augustus, of 
Iowa; a daughter in Orangeville; and a daugh- 
ter in Perry. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



31 



In 1862 George M. Wolf enlisted in the ser- 
vice of his country, in Company H, One Hun- 
dred and Thirty-sixth New York Volunteer 
Infantry, remaining with his regiment until he 
received his honorable discharge in 1865, 
being a large part of the time regimental 
butcher ; and during the whole period he was 
never away from his regiment nor in a- hos- 
pital. Returning to civil life, Mr. Wolf re- 
joined his family in Varysburgh, and soon 
afterward settled on a farm in Orangeville, 
where he carried on fifty acres of land. In 
i.S/O he disposed of that property, and the fol- 
lowing year moved on to his present estate 
in the village of Varysburgh and opened a 
meat market, which he conducted profitably 
until 1885, when he sold his interest to his two 
sons, who are now carrying on a very success- 
ful business. 

In 1854 Mr. Wolf was united in marriage 
with Catherine Laninger, a native of France, 
being the daughter of George Laninger, who 
came over to this country in 1838 with his 
wife and two children, the other child being 
Sarah, widow of John Donhauser, who died at 
Waukegan, III. The record of the two chil- 
dren born of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Wolf 
is as follows : George W. married Miss Lany 
Broadbrooks, and they have one daughter. 
John married Catherine Hoffower, and they are 
the parents of one child. In politics Mr. 
Wolf has always been identified with the Dem- 
ocratic party; and he has served the town most 
ably as Assessor for three years, and during 
the years of 1883 and 1884 he was Supervisor. 
In his religious views he coincides with the 
belief of the Presbyterians. 



■KROME SLATER WHEELOCK, a re- 
tired merchant residing in Cuylerville, 
and for twenty years Postmaster of this 
place, was born in Shaftsbury, Vt., 
August 9, 1823. His father, Joseph Wheel- 
ock, was a native of Worcester, Mass. 

His grandfather, Joseph Wheelock, Sr. , was 
born in Mendon, Mass., and was the son of 
Penjamin Wheelock, a farmer of that town, 
and Abigail Ransford, of Boston, Mass., he 
being one of seven children. He was a miller 



in his native town until he moved with his 
wife, Sally Slater, of Boston, Mass., to Shafts- 
bury, Vt. , and here they spent their last days. 

The younger Joseph Wheelock, who was but 
eleven years old at the time of the death of his 
parents, then went to live with Judge Olin, in 
whose family he was reared. In 1828, several 
years after his marriage, he, with his wife and 
children, left Shaftsbury for New York State, 
travelling by means of wagons to Troy, and 
thence by canal to Rochester. The household 
goods were taken on a flatboat on Genesee 
River directly to Leicester, while the family 
were obliged to take the stage to Geneseo, and 
then hire a team to complete the journey to the 
town of Perry, Wyoming County. Here Jo- 
seph Wheelock bought land, and resided until 
1 83 1, when he sold out and purchased a farm 
adjoining the Pine Tavern estate at the west 
part of the town of Leicester. This farm was 
a forlorn-looking place, with only log build- 
ings; but in a few years many improvements 
were made and frame buildings erected. At 
the end of two years Mr. Wheelock rented the 
Pine Tavern, the property of Captain Horatio 
Jones, including a large tract of land, where, 
in connection with tavern-keeping, he engaged 
extensively in farming. In 1839 he sold out 
his interests and went to Mount Morris, where 
he leased the American House, which he car- 
ried on for two years. He then came to Cuy- 
lerville, bought property, and engaged in mer- 
cantile business. In 1855 he went to Cali- 
fornia, joining two of his sons who had previ- 
ously gone there. Returning to Cuylerville 
the following year, he here led a retired life, 
and died when eighty years of age. He mar- 
ried Anna F. Chappell, who was born in Mid- 
dlefield, Otsego County, and died in 1893, 
when ninety-four years of age, having been the 
mother of eleven children — Jerome S., Rich- 
ard, Nahum, Martin, John, Margaret, Anna, 
Martha, Hosea, Mary, and William. 

Jerome S. Wheelock was but five years old 
when he came with his parents to New York; 
and he clearly remembers many incidents of 
the journey, and the pioneer life during the 
early years in the new home. He assisted his 
father with the farm and hotel work until he 
was twent)'-one, when he started for himself in 



32 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



the grocery business. Soon after, he gave this 
up for a short time and engaged in buying 
standing timber, which he cut, and then rafted 
the lumber through the Genesee and Erie 
Canals to Albany. He again took up the gro- 
cery business for a period of five years, after 
which time farming occupied his attention; 
but, as this was not entirely satisfactory, he 
resumed mercantile business, carrying a gen- 
eral stock, continuing in this until 1S84. At 
that time he was owner of a farm at Conesus 
Lake; and, as he had sold out his business, 
farming interested him for a number of years, 
until, finding a suitable purchaser, he sold out, 
and has since lived practically retired. 

In 1847 Mr. Wheelock married Fannie J. 
Howell. By this marriage there were eight 
children — Emmer J., Richard, Elizabeth, 
Anna, John, Willie, Etta, and Effie. Emmer 
J. married Chauncey Duryea, and has two 
children — Frank and Grace. Elizabeth mar- 
ried Livingston Howell, and has three children 

— Willie, Mabel, and Jennie R. Etta mar- 
ried Angus McDonald, and has two children 

— Annie and Elizabeth. I^ffie married David 
Reed, and has three children — Annie, Mary, 
and Jesse. 

Mr. Wheelock cast his first vote with the 
Democrats for Polk and Dallas, and his next 
with the Free Soil party, for Van Buren. 
Then, being one of the first to realize the 
benefits to be derived from a change in poli- 
tics, he assisted in the organization of the Re- 
publican party. He was ajipointed Postmaster 
under Lincoln's administration, his commis- 
sion bearing the signature of Montgomery 
Blair; and the length of time he held this post 
shows the efficiency with which he has served 
the public, and the high esteem in which he is 
regarded. 




SCAR WOODRUFF, editor and pro- 
prietor of the Dansville Expirss, a 
paper devoted to the interests of the 
Democratic party and the people, is 
prominent in the social, literary, political, and 
religious life of Livingston County, of which 
he is a native, having been born in Geneseo, 
September 17, 1839. He comes of New Eng- 



land antecedents. His paternal grandfather, 
Oliver Woodruff, an honored pioneer settler of 
this county, was born in Litchfield, Conn., in 
1755, and, when nineteen years old, entered 
Yale College ; but a week after he enlisted in 
the Continental army. Having served six 
months, he re-enlisted, and assisted in build- 
ing Fort Lee on the Hudson River, which was 
captured by the British a month after it was 
finished. He and others were taken pris- 
oners, confined in New Bridewell in New 
York, and kept there all winter, with but little 
food, without fire, and every window in the build- 
ing broken. An e.xchange of prisoners took 
place in the spring; and, when released, thirty- 
three out of the thirty-five men in Mr. Woodruff's 
company died in one night from over-eating. 

Oliver Woodruff was among the original set- 
tlers of the town of Livonia, having emigrated 
to that town from Connecticut nearly a century 
ago, bringing with him his wife and seven 
children. He purchased a tract of heavily 
timbered land, which during the bu,sy years 
that succeeded he converted into a fine and 
productive farm, where he lived until his 
death, at the venerable age of ninety years and 
eight months, December 24, 1845. Of his 
seven children that grew to adult life, nearly 
all attained advanced age. Sidney, who mar- 
ried Oliver D. Stacy, lived to be ninety-seven 
years old, and retained her faculties to the last. 
Hardy lived to the age of eighty-eight years. 
Bushrod Washington, the father of Oscar, at- 
tained the age of eighty-seven years. Ann 
Sedgwick lived to the age of eighty-seven. 
Olive and Birdsey lived to the age of three- 
score and ten years. Steptoe passed away 
when but sixty years old. Of this family, 
whose longevity is noticeable, all of the sons 
were named after military officers. The 
mother died while yet in the prime of life, at 
fifty years of age. 

Bushrod W. Woodruff was born in Livonia, 
May 26, 1806; and until fourteen years old he 
assisted in clearing and improving the home 
farm. Going then to Geneseo, he entered the 
ofifice of one of the first papers published in 
this county, and learned the printer's trade, 
remaining there seven years. Beginning his 
career as a journeyman printer, he worked at 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



33 



his trade and as a publisher in Geneseo and 
adjacent towns, continuing at his occupation 
until i860, when he retired from active pur- 
suits. He departed this life at Dansville in 
i893» aged eighty-seven years. He had great 
force of character, was of a deeply religious 
nature, and was a conscientious member of the 
Presbyterian church. His widow, who is now 
an active woman eighty-one years of age, makes 
her home with her son Oscar. Her maiden name 
was Sally A. Rose; and she was born in the 
town of Bath, of which her father, James Rose, 
was an early settler. She reared ten of the 
thirteen children born to her and her husband; 
and of these six are now living, Oscar being the 
eldest. She is also a sincere Christian, and an 
esteemed member of the Presbyterian church. 
Oscar Woodruff received a little education 
in the public schools of this county, and at the 
age of seventeen years took a stool at the com- 
positor's case, in the office of the newspaper 
which he now owns, and which was then 
known as the Dansville Herald. He be- 
came thoroughly proficient in the business of 
the office, following the printer's trade until 
1 861, when his patriotic spirit was aroused by 
the call of the President for volunteers in de- 
fence of the Union. He enlisted in the Tenth 
New York Cavalry, which was connected with 
Gregg's Cavalry Division, and, having served 
for three years, re-enlisted and served until 
the close of the war, when he received his hon- 
orable discharge at Syracuse. He actively par- 
ticipated in many of the battles of the war, and 
was three times promoted — first to the rank of 
Second Lieutenant, then to that of First Lieu- 
tenant, and afterward to the rank of Captain. 
Returning to civil life, Mr. Woodruff once 
more became a citizen of Dansville, where he 
has since passed the most of his time, although 
from 1873 until 1875 he was paymaster's clerk 
in the United States Navy. Having a decided 
inclination toward journalism, for which he was 
well fitted, Mr. Woodruff bought the Dansville 
Express in 1877, and has since then de- 
voted himself to its management. It is a 
bright, newsy, and original sheet, and has a 
large circulation, that is by no means confined 
to party lines. This paper was formerly called 
the Dansville Herald, and was started in 



1850 by E. C. Daugherty and J. G. Sprague, 
under the firm name of K. C. Daugherty & 
Co., and was published in the interests of the 
Whig party. About January i, 1857, it 
passed into the hands of the Know-nothing 
party, and was under the management of E. G. 
Richardson & Co. for three months. In 
April, 1857, H. C. Page assumed control of 
the paper; and at the end of that year it was 
purchased by George A. Sanders, and changed 
to an advocate of Republicanism. On August 
I, 1865, it was sold to Frank J. Robbins and 
L. D. F. Poore, who on August 9 changed 
its name to the Dansville Express, and en- 
larged it from a six to a seven column paper. 
In October, 1870, V. J. Robbins became the 
sole proprietor, and further enlarged it to an 
eight-column paper, which he conducted in the 
interest of Horace Greeley until the close of that 
famous campaign, when he continued it as a 
Democratic journal. On June i, 1877, the paper 
was bought by Oscar Woodruff and A. H. Knapp ; 
and they conducted it in partnership until Mr. 
Woodruff purchased the interest of Mr. Knapp 
in 1882, since which period he has managed it 
himself, greatly increasing its circulation, and 
bringing it up to its present high rank among 
the leading newspapers of the county. 

Mr. Woodruff has been twice married. In 
1869 he was united in wedlock to Mary Betts, 
daughter of John Betts, a pioneer settler of 
Dansville. Mrs. Mary Woodruff died in 
1870; and in 1892 Mr. Woodruff married Miss 
Nettie Carney, daughter of William G. Car- 
ney, of Sparta. Mr. Woodruff has thoroughly 
identified himself with the best interests of the 
town and county wherein he resides, and is 
now serving as Supervisor, a position he has 
held since 1890, having been Chairman of the 
Board one year. Politically, he is a strong 
advocate of the Democratic principles. So- 
cially, he is a prominent member of Canase- 
raga Lodge, No. 123, Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows, and has held every office in the 
lodge. He is also a member of Phoenix 
Lodge, No. 115, A. V. & A. M., and a charter 
member and one of the organizers of the Seth 
N. Hedges Post, Grand Army of the Republic, 
of which he was Commander for two years, and 
Adjutant for seven years. 



34 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 




ZRA A. KELSEY, a late and much re- 
spected citizen of Castile, the central 
town on the eastern border of Wyo- 
ming County, New York, was a native of 
Whiting, Vt., and the son of Charles C. and 
Sally (Allen) Kelsey. His grandfather, 
whose Christian name was also Kzn\, was born 
in Killingworth, Conn. He there occupied 
himself with farming during most of his life, 
and died at a ripe old age, leaving eight chil- 
dren — Daniel, Henry, Charles C, Phebe, 
Charlotte, Mary, Clarissa, and Eliza. Charles 
C. Kelsey removed early in life from Killing- 
worth, his native place, to Vermont, where he 
was married, and very successful in the pursuit 
of agriculture. His wife, Sally Allen, left at 
her death four children — Ezra A., Giles C, 
Clarissa, and Mary E. His second wife was 
Elniina Lake, by whom he had two children 
— Charles and Sarah A. After her death he 
he lived with his son in St. Lawrence County, 
New York, and died when sixty years of age. 
Ezra A. Kelsey was married at Whiting, 
Vt., to Jane Kimball, who died at the age 
of twenty-four, leaving one daughter, Har- 
riet A., born May ii, 1846. This daughter 
is now the wife of Edward F. Smith, a carpen- 
ter and joiner of Perry, and has four children. 
For his second wife Mr. Kelsey married Har- 
riet N. Kimball, daughter of James and Sophia 
(Taft) Kimball. Her grandfather, Amos 
Kimball, was a native of Connecticut, whence 
he removed to Pittsfield, Vt. , where he carried 
on his trade of miller. His wife died in the 
prime of life; but he lived to be seventy-five 
years old, and died at Rutland, Vt. His chil- 
dren were: James, William, Samuel, Edwin, 
Lucy, Mary, Lucinda, Lucretia, Charlotte, 
Martha, Eliza, and Lydia. James Kimball, 
the father of Mrs. Kelsey, experienced in his 
young days all the hardships and difficulties 
of pioneer life. Setting out for St. Lawrence 
County, he made his way without other guide 
than the marks on the trees, and at length 
reached that part of the wilderness where he 
dete.rmincd to settle. He bought one hundred 
acres, erected his rough and primitive log 
house, and proceeded to clear the land. Grad- 
ually the aspect of this wild region became 
changed. A comfortable frame house replac- 



ing the one of logs, and substantial barns re- 
ceiving the bounteous harvests, gave evidence 
of the prosperity of the owner. He died when 
seventy-five years of age, and his wife when 
she was eighty-seven. They left six children 
— ]. William, Harriet N., Eliza A., Mary 
H., Timothy T., and Amos S. 

Ezra A. Kelsey by his second wife had five 
children, who may be here briefly mentioned 
as follows: William A. married Sarah Her- 
rick, has three children, and lives at Fort Cov- 
ington, N. Y. Jennie S. married Warren J. 
Fisk, has three children, and resides in Cas- 
tile. Clara E. married F. O. Adams, a 
station agent of the D. & H. R. R. at 
Unadilla, Otsego County, N. Y., and has two 
children. Mary died at the age of eighteen. 
Charles E. married Minnie A. Wade, and has 
two children. The youngest son resides on 
the old homestead in the town of Castile, and 
cultivates a fine farm of two hundred and fifty 
acres, pleasantly located on the east side of 
Silver Lake. This property formerly included 
other land bordering on the lake, which has re- 
cently been sold to summer residents, who are 
erecting cottages and otherwise improving the 
spot, making it a most inviting summer resort. 
Mr. Kelsey in his early years owned three 
hundred acres in St. Lawrence County, which 
he sold in 186S, buying the estate just de- 
scribed on Silver Lake. In his later years he 
took much delight in the improvement of his 
land and buildings, and at his death, when 
seventy-two years of age, left one of the best 
farms in the town of Castile. He invariably 
voted the Republican ticket, and was always 
an interested member of that party. He was 
extraordinarily energetic and ambitious, and, 
being honorable in all his business dealings, 
was held in high regard by his many friends. 



■QHN M. MILNE, A.M., Ph. D, prin- 
cipal of the Geneseo State Normal 
School, one of the most learned and 
efficient educators in the Empire State, 
was born in Scotland, March 3, 1850. His, 
father, Charles Milne, by occupation a miller, 
who had received a common-school educa- 
tion, came to America in 1852, settling at 




JOHN M. MILNE. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



37 



West Rush, Monroe County, N.Y. After a 
residence there of two years he engaged for a 
time in the milling business; but he moved 
to Holley, where, as in Rush, he lived in re- 
tirement for some years before his decease, 
which occurred at the age of seventy-nine years. 

Charles Milne was a man of strong charac- 
ter and of much worth to the community, hav- 
ing gained the respect and confidence of his 
fellow-citizens, who sincerely regretted his 
loss. The maiden name of his wife, Dr. 
Milne's mother, was Jean Black. She was 
also a native of Scotland, where she married 
Mr. Milne. She was a most estimable lady, 
possessing many rare Christian qualities, and 
was the mother of six children, five of whom 
were born in Scotland and came to this coun- 
try with their parents. The eldest, William 
J., who was a resident of Geneseo from June, 
1 87 1, to 1889, is now President of the Nor- 
mal College at Albany. Charles D. is a 
manufacturer at Rochester. Jean F. is the 
wife of E. D. Bronson, a builder at Holley. 
Edward B. is in the United States army. 
John M. is the subject of this sketch. Mar- 
garet married Dr. Charles H. Glidden, of 
Little Falls, N.Y. Dr. Milne's mother 
passed her declining years at Holley, where 
she died at the age of seventy-two. Both par- 
ents were members of the Presbyterian church, 
and the father was a Republican in politics. 

John M. Milne arrived in America at the 
age of about three years, and resided with his 
parents at West Rush, and afterward at Holley. 
He attended the public schools winters, and in 
the other seasons did farm work at monthly 
wages. Agricultural pursuits, however, were 
not to be the destiny of a young man of his 
scholarly tastes and aspirations and his great 
ca]3acity for acquiring knowledge. He had de- 
termined early to fallow a professional or cleri- 
cal life; and after four years at labor as a farm 
hand he began the foundation of his future 
career by entering the normal school at Brock- 
port, where after four years of diligent applica- 
tion he was graduated with high honors, in 
1 87 1, as qualified to be a teacher. He then 
entered Rochester University, remaining there 
one year. Having already acquired a high 
reputation as a scholar, he now received the 



appointment of instructor of Greek and Latin 
at the Geneseo Normal School, which position 
he held for seventeen years. In 1889 Dr. 
Milne became principal of this well-known 
scat of learning, which is one of the very best 
educational institutions in the State, having 
an average attendance of eleven hundred stu- 
dents, and graduating an average of one hun- 
dred annually. Under his able administration 
the school has made rapid advancement both in 
its curriculum and its attendance, being at 
present the largest and ranking the highest of 
any school of its kind in the State. Dr. 
Milne has a corps of twenty-one efficient in- 
structors under his direction. 

It will thus be seen that the early ambition 
of Dr. Milne has been realized, and he has 
become a leader in a leading profession. Dr. 
Milne is a devoted member of the Masonic fra- 
ternity, being connected with Geneseo Lodge, 
No. 214, and a member of Royal Arch Chap- 
ter and Monroe Commandery, No. 12, of 
Rochester. He has held many offices in the 
fraternity, and has been District Deputy Grand 
Master, the district over which he presided in- 
cluding four counties. He is a member of 
Alpha Delta Phi of Rochester University, and 
received the degree of Ph. D. from the Univer- 
sity of the State of New York in 1890. Dr. 
Milne is an educator of advanced ideas, ever 
striving by the best means to accomplish the 
most perfect results. In politics he is a Re- 
publican, and possesses ample knowledge upon 
all political subjects. His portrait, which is 
presented in connection with this brief sketch 
of his career, will be recognized with pleasure 
by many to whom he is known by name and 
fame. 



OHN W. DALRYMPLE, a prosperous 
farmer of Perry, Wyoming County, 
N.Y., was born in New Jersey, June 
8, 1822, son of Asa and Elnora 
(Balkes) Dalrymple. The Dalrymple family 
were among the Scotch pioneers of the State 
of New Jersey; and Thomas, the grandfather 
of John W., was a native of that State, where 
he occupied himself with farming throughout 
his life. He died leaving seven children — 



38 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



John, Jessie, James, Asa, William, Elizabeth, 
and Minor. 

Asa, fourth son of Thomas, was also born 
in New Jersey, and there received his educa- 
tion. In 1826 he came to Livingston 
County, and bought one hundred and twenty 
acres of uncleared land in Mount Morris, 
whereon he resided the remainder of his life. 
He cultivated his farm with great care, devot- 
ing himself diligently to the care and im- 
provement of his estate, and at his death, 
when eighty-six years old, left one of the 
most flourishing farms in the vicinity. His 
wife died in her eighty-fourth year, having 
given birth to ten children. Their son 
Thomas married Euphemia Weller; and they 
both died in Nebraska, aged about sixty-two, 
leaving four children. Eli and Samuel died 
in infancy. Isaac married Mary Sherman; 
and both are now dead, having left four chil- 
dren. Susanna married Aaron Moyar, and 
is now dead, four boys surviving her. Amos 
O. married Frank Darling, had nine children, 
of whom five are now living, and resides at 
the old homestead in Mount Morris. John 
W. is the subject of this sketch. Hannah 
married Stephen Wisner, has three children, 
and lives at Mount Morris. Ellen married 
John Hunt, has one child, and resides at 
Mount Morris. Levi is now dead. 

John W. Dalrymple, after receiving an 
education in the schools of Mount Morris, 
adopted the occupation of farming, in which 
he has been deservedly successful. One 
hundred and fifty acres of land, one mile and 
a half distant from the village of Perry, 
constitute the estate to which he has given 
his time and attention, and where he resides 
with his wife and son. He has recently 
remodelled the house, built two large, sub- 
stantial barns, and added all the modern im- 
provements which characterize the well-reg- 
ulated farm of to-day. Mr. Dalrymple' s 
short-horn Durham cattle have won quite a 
reputation, and he winters also about two 
hundred and fitfy sheep each year. 

When twenty-nine years of age, John W. 
Dalrymple was united in marriage to Caroline 
M. Gladding, daughter of John and Margaret 
(Sutton) Gladding. Her father was a native 



of Greene County, and removed to Mount 
Morris in the early days of that town. He 
died when eighty years of age, having been 
throughout his life a stanch Republican and 
a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
He was four times married, Margaret, the 
mother of Mrs. Dalrymple dying at the age 
of forty. Mrs. Dalrymple had three half 
brothers and sisters, but is the only child 
of the family now living. She is the mother 
of three children: Edward, who died at the 
age of twenty-two years; Emma, who was 
married in 1876 to Willis Dalrymple, and 
passed away in her twenty-seventh year, 
leaving three children; John, who married 
Eliza Kempt, and lives at the homestead, 
assisting his father in the management of the 
farm. 

The Dalrymples have always been allied to 
the Democratic party, and John W. Dalrymple 
follows in the footsteps of his ancestors in 
politics; nor has he deserted the precedents 
of his forefathers in religion, but, like them, 
is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. He is a man of foresight and good 
judgment, by means of which he has gained 
success in business; and he is held in high 
esteem by his many friends. 



WILLIAM A. FERRIS, aw 
citizen of Lima, Livingstc 
N.Y., the former Postmas 



well-known 
:on County, 
laster at this 
place, was born in Carlisle, Schoharie County, 
September 8, 1840. His grandfather, Will- 
iam Ferris, who was born in Wexford, Ireland, 
came to America with an older brother when 
but seven years of age. They landed in Nor- 
folk, Va., where the brother remained, while 
William worked his way up to New York 
State, finally settling in Carlisle. In that 
new and uncultivated country he purchased 
land and spent the remainder of his life. 
He was the first Supervisor of the town, hold- 
ing the office for several years. He died in 
183 s at the age of seventy. 

Peter Ferris, son of William the emigrant, 
was born in Carlisle, where he attended the 
district school. He became Colonel of the 
State militia, and is known in the history of 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



39 



that county as Colonel Ferris. He worked 
on the home farm until 1S55, after which he 
moved to East Bloomfield, Ontario County, 
remaining there four years, and then, coming 
to Lima, spent his last days in this town, 
dying at the age of seventy-two years. He 
married Sarah Van Every, daughter of Cor- 
nelius and Maria Van I'^very; and they were 
the parents of six children, namely: Corne- 
lius, a resident of Ontario County; Thomas, 
of Oswego County; Eleanor, who died at the 
age of forty-eight years; Nancy M., who lives 
in Canandaigua, Ontario County; William A.; 
and Cornelia J. 

William A. Ferris attended the district 
schools in Schoharie and Ontario Counties, 
and finished his education at Lima Seminary 
in 1 86 1. He taught school the following 
winter in East Avon, after which he learned 
the carpenter's and joiner's trades. July 19, 
1862, he enlisted in One Hundred and Thir- 
tieth New York Infantry, which was after- 
ward changed to cavalry, and known as the 
First New York Dragoons, and served under 
General Sheridan till the close of the war. 
His regiment participated in thirty-one en- 
gagements, in all of which they lost heavily. 
He was in the color guard for over two years, 
and was Color Sergeant during the last year 
of his service. He was mustered out July 
ig, 1865, at Rochester, after which he re- 
turned to Lima, and entered mercantile busi- 
ness, being employed as clerk for H. & 
O. S. Gilbert. In 1866 Mr. Ferris went to 
Shepherdstown, W. Va., where he was married 
to Mary F. Smurr, with whom he had become 
acquainted while his corps were fighting Jubal 
Early in the Shenandoah Valley. Miss 
.Smurr was a daughter of John Smurr, a 
native of West Virginia, who was loyal to 
the Northern cause. She mended the torn 
fringe on the flag which Sergeant Ferris car- 
ried; but, as the Union troops were driven 
from the town on the following day by the 
rebels under General Early, he did not meet 
her again until his return to the South to 
receive her hand in marriage. 

They became the parents of two children: 
Stella M., who teaches school at Glovers- 
ville, Fulton County; and J. Howard, who is 



a graduate of the seminary at Lima and a 
carpenter in Buffalo. Mrs. Mary E. Smurr 
Ferris died in October, 1871; and Mr. 
Ferris again married, his second wife being 
Ann E. Ollerenshaw, daughter of Thomas 
Ollerenshaw, who was a resident of Lima 
and a native of England. By this second 
marriage is one daughter, Mary E. Ferris. 

Mr. Ferris was appointed Postmaster by 
President Harrison in 1889, and served until 
June, 1894. He has always been a pro- 
nounced Republican, having cast his first 
vote for President Lincoln in 1864. He has 
been a Trustee of the village, and is a mem- 
ber of the Masonic Order of Lima, and also 
of the American Order of United Workmen. 
The family attend the Presbyterian church, 
of which they are valued and respected 
members. 



OHN M. BRYSON, dealer in hardware 
in the village of Varysburgh, in the 
town of Sheldon, Wyoming County, 
N.Y., is an alert, wide-awake man, 
possessing good business tact and enjoying a 
large patronage. He is a native of Varys- 
burgh, where he was born September 29, 1854, 
of Irish parentage, his parents, Thomas and 
Jane (Crawford) Bryson, having emigrated 
from Ireland with their two elder children in 
1848. They had a long and tempestuous 
voyage of six weeks' duration, and after land- 
ing in New York City came directly to 
Wyoming County, settling at first in the 
village of Orangeville. There the father 
worked for a number of years at his trade of 
shoemaking, which he had learned in County 
Antrim, Ireland, where his birth occurred in 
1822. Subsequently removing to Varys- 
burgh, he here departed this life in March, 
1891. His wife, who survived him, dying 
September 20, 1893, bore him nine children, 
six of whom are now living, as follows: 
James, a resident of Varysburgh ; Anna, wife 
of William Libby, of Varysburgh; John M., 
of whom we write; Mary, wife of Joseph 
Beattie, of Mackeyville, Pa.; Sarah, wife of 
Fred Austin, of Alden, N.Y. ; and Hattie 
M., a dressmaker. James Bryson, the father 



40 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



of Thomas, followed him to America, coming 
here in 1S50, and bringing with him a part 
of his family, who have since been residents 
of the Western States. 

John M. Bryson is essentially a self-made 
man, having begun the battle of life at the 
age of thirteen years, when he entered a store 
of general merchandise as a clerk, being first 
in the employ of Mr. Ainsworth and after- 
ward in that of D. S. Davis. Having ob- 
tained a practical knowledge of the business, 
in 1S74 and 1875 Mr. Bryson engaged as a 
commission merchant on his own account, 
partly for the sake of the profit, but more 
especially on account of his health, which 
was being seriously impaired by indoor life. 
The succeeding two years he was again em- 
ployed in the store of D. S. Davis, and while 
there bargained for the stock and trade of B. 
Marzolf & Son, of whose store in the south 
end of the village he took possession on 
January i, 1878. In 1880 Mr. Bryson built 
his present store, locating it on the opposite 
side of the street, and eight years later moved 
it to its present site. He carries a large and 
well-selected stock of tin and hardware, 
valued at from forty-five hundred to six 
thousand dollars, and does a substantial 
business. 

On the loth of December, 1879, Mr. Bry- 
son and Miss Lora A. Godfrey were united 
in marriage. Mrs. Bryson is a daughter of 
Stafford J. Godfrey, who since the death of 
his wife, formerly Phebe Ward, has made his 
home with her. Mrs. Phebe Godfrey passed 
to the life eternal in 1884, being then fifty- 
two years of age, leaving besides her daugh- 
ter, Mrs. Bryson, one son, Frank A., who is 
a clerk in Mr. Bryson's store. Mr. and Mrs. 
Bryson have two children, namely: Charles 
G., born December 3, 1883; and Bernice, 
born December 16, 1893. Socially, Mr. 
Bryson is a Chapter Mason, and has passed 
the chairs in the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows, being now Past District Grand 
Master. He is entirely independent of party 
lines in his political views, voting for the 
man best fitted for the office to be filled. He 
has no ofificial aspirations, but is now serving 
as Notary Public. 



"CilTjAH KENNEY, a retired farmer, liv- 
pl ing in the village of Byersville, West 
-^ — Sparta, is deserving of honorable 

mention in this volume as a worthy repre- 
sentative of the agricultural interests of this 
part of Livingston County and as the descend- 
ant of a well-known and respected pioneer of 
West Sparta, where his father, Elijah Ken- 
ney, Sr., cleared a farm from the wilderness. 
Mr. Kenney is an octogenarian, having been 
born in Montgomery County, April 20, 181 1. 
Having started life for himself with but five 
shillings in his pocket, he has gradually 
added to his capital, till he is now in the pos- 
session of a comfortable competency, which he 
has accumulated by years of diligent toil and 
a judicious management of his affairs. 

His father was of Connecticut birth, and 
lived in that State as a boy on a farm, at 
length removing to Montgomery County in 
this State, where he worked on a farm for 
several years. While there he married 
Hannah Ament, who was born in Schenec- 
tady, of English antecedents. In 18 17 he 
came to Livingston County, bringing with 
him his wife and five children; and, buying 
one hundred and sixty acres of heavily tim- 
bered land, he built a log house, and began 
the improvement of a farm. The country 
hereabout was then clothed with all the gran- 
deur of the primeval forest, in which roamed 
deer, bears, and prowling beasts of prey. 
With the energy typical of the New Eng- 
lander, he labored to clear his land, and 
with the assistance of his older children 
made substantial headway in his efforts, 
living there until his death, at the age of 
eighty. Of the fourteen children born to 
him and his faithful companion, twelve grew 
to maturity, and six are now living; namely, 
Elijah, Margaret, Susan, Louisa, Celia, and 
Lester B. The mother spent her last days in 
Illinois, passing away at the age of eighty- 
three years, at the home of her son Richard. 
Elijah Kenney spent his early years on the 
parental homestead, working faithfully for his 
father until twenty-two years old, when he 
began working out by the month. With the 
money he thus earned he went to Saginaw, 
Mich., some four years later, but after a 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



41 



residence there of three years returned to 
West Sparta. Mr. Kenney soon began buy- 
ing and selling barrel staves, which proved 
very remunerative. After his marriage he 
bought land, and carried on general farming 
until 1882, when he retired from active 
labors, and, moving to Byersville, left his 
farm in charge of his son. In the interven- 
ing time, however, he had bought other 
land, and has now two hundred and iifty- 
two fertile acres, well improved and sup- 
plied with all the conveniences for carry- 
injr on agricultural work after the best-known 
modern methods. In politics he is a stanch 
Republican. 

The marriage of Mr. Kenney with Lucy 
Ann Pickard, who was born in 1817, took 
place in 1844, in Nunda. Two children 
have been born of their union, Celia Ann 
and Carson K. The latter, who lives on 
the old homestead, married Isabella Gray, 
the daughter of Andrew Gray, a well-known 
farmer of Ossian; and they are the parents of 
seven children; namely, Maggie Bell, An- 
drew Gray, Lucile, Carl, Janett, Clyde, and 
Basil. Mr. Kenney is well informed and 
much interested in local and national matters, 
and is a zealous worker in the interests of 
the Prohibition party and a regular attendant 
of the Methodist church. 




ENAJAH M. WARNER, the de- 
scendant of an honored pioneer 
^J family of Wyoming County, is iden- 
tified with the manufacturing inter- 
ests of this section of the county, having car- 
ried on a successful business as harness-maker 
in Strykersville for more than twoscore years. 
He was born about two and one-half miles 
from his present home, in the town of Wales, 
Erie County, August 8, 1824. His father, 
Hymen Warner, was a native of Rutland, 
Vt., born in 1797; and his grandfather, 
Omri Warner, was of Scottish birth. 

Omri Warner and an elder brother, who 
was a Scotch Presbyterian minister, came to 
this country prior to the Revolution; and 
during that struggle for liberty the brother 
bore his musket as a private soldier in the 



patriotic forces, but on Sundays conducted 
divine services. After serving for two years, 
he died from disease there contracted; and 
his brother Omri held his place in the ranks 
until the close of the war. The grandfather 
was twice married, and reared a large family 
of children, each of whom had numerous 
descendants, so that, when the subject of this 
sketch was pursuing his studies in district 
school No. I in Wales, twenty-one Warners 
were there enrolled as pupils. Hymen 
Warner was reared a farmer's son amid the 
mountains of Vermont, where he lived until 
after his marriage, in 18 17, with Sally 
Richards, who was born in Connecticut, of 
Welsh parents. In 1820 he came to this 
State with his wife and two children, and 
settled on a small farm of sixty-five acres in 
the town of Wales, paying four dollars an 
acre for the land, and turning in as part pay- 
ment the team of horses with which he had 
made the journey. His family circle in- 
cluded fourteen children, an equal number of 
boys and girls, of whom five sons and six 
daughters grew to maturity. One son, 
Francis, now occupies the old homestead. A 
daughter, Harriet, died at the age of fifteen 
years, of typhoid fever, the same disease from 
which the father died ten days later, in 
March, 1851. The mother was accidentally 
killed by a runaway team the following 
November. The parents were honorable, 
upright people, held in high esteem, and, 
although not strictly orthodox Christians, sent 
their children to Sunday-school. 

Benajah was the recii^ient of good educa- 
tional advantages, attending the Springville 
and Albion Academies after leaving the dis- 
trict school, and subsequently was engaged 
in teaching one term. Attaining his major- 
ity, he sought the newer country of the West, 
going to Allegan County, Michigan, where 
he was employed for six months in carrying 
lumber across the lake to Chicago on a sail- 
ing-craft. He became a victim of ague, 
which lasted him for more than a year after 
his return to New York. In 1848 Mr. 
Warner began working at his present trade, 
serving one year in Penfield, and subsequently 
as a journeyman for two years in Pavilion and 



42 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Fairport. In 1851 he removed to Strykers- 
ville, opening a shop in his dwelling-house, 
where his wife, who was a dressmaker and 
tailoress, also plied her needle. Thus they 
had a good start in life. 

Mr. Warner was married April 17, 1S48, 
to Alma Hipp, who was born in Penfield, 
Monroe County, N.Y., in 1825. Her par- 
ents, John and Alma (Spencer) Hipp, both 
died on their farm in Monroe County in 1S80 
within a period of two weeks. They left two 
sons and three daughters. One son, Spencer 
Hipp, was a soldier in the late Civil War, 
and while a prisoner contracted consumption, 
from which he died in 1867. The other son, 
Albert, is a resident of Penfield. Mr. and 
Mrs. Warner have three children, a son and 
two daughters : Hymen, a resident of Buffalo, 
married Julia Havens, and they have one son; 
Hattie, wife of Frank Martin, a farmer, has 
one son; and Effie, a dressmaker, lives at 
home. The son learned his father's trade 
when a young man, and later became a black- 
smith. He is a man of versatile talent, and 
for some twelve years was employed on the 
railroad, being an engineer nine years, and 
is now a stationary engineer. 

Mr. Warner, who is an intelligent reader 
and thinker, a fluent conversationalist, and 
a man of broad and liberal views, is a most 
pronounced agnostic, bound by neitlier sect 
nor party, and claims the world as his home 
and all mankind as his brethren. He is in 
general an advocate of the principles of 
the Republican party, although he never 
hesitates to vote for the men whom he con- 
siders best fitted for office, and for whatever 
measures he deems conducive to the public 
welfare. 



B 



AVID McNAIR, a well-known 
farmer, and one of Dansville's most 
^9y respected citizens, has been identi- 
fied with the agricultural interests 
of this section of Livingston County for nearly 
fourscore years, his birth having occurred on 
a farm adjoining the one he now occupies, 
November 13, 1818. He traces his ancestry 
back for more than two hundred years to one 



John McNair, who was born in 1690 in the 
north of Ireland, presumably of Scotch 
antecedents, and was the first of the name 
to put foot on American soil. He emigrated 
to the United States, and settled in Pennsyl- 
vania, spending his last years in Northamp- 
ton County. His son John, the grandfather of 
David, who was born in Bucks County, Penn- 
sylvania, was bred and married in Northampton 
County. In 1804 he migrated to Livingston 
County with his family, being one of the 
original settlers of the place. This part of 
the country was then an almost unbroken 
forest; and, having the choice of the land, 
he bought such a large tract that he subse- 
quently settled upon each of his children, 
the five sons and two daughters, a farm in 
this vicinity. 

Samuel McNair, the father of the subject 
of this sketch, was a native of Northampton 
County, Pennsylvania. In 1804 he came 
with his father to Livingston County; and, 
having built a log house on the tract of land 
which his father gave him, he returned next 
season, and was married July 2, 1805, to 
Margaret Mann, of Montgomery County, 
Pennsylvania. They came immediately to 
their new home, and here lived together 
nearly fifty-three years. By death they were 
but a few months separated, he dying at the 
age of fourscore and four 3'ears and she at 
seventy-five years of age. Of their ten chil- 
dren three are still living, namely: Isaac, 
aged eighty-seven years, he and his wife, two 
years older, having travelled life's pathway 
together for sixty-four years; James, a resi- 
dent of Michigan; and David, of Dansville. 
The deceased were M. E., who died at the 
age of thirteen years; Martha Jane, who 
married William Pratt; Charles W. ; Will- 
iam; John; Samuel; and Sarah D., who 
married William K. Mann. Both parents 
were members of the Presbyterian church, and 
ever active in religious works. 

David McNair spent his earlier years on the 
home farm, obtaining a substantial education 
in the public schools, and was for a while 
engaged in teaching. At the time of his 
marriage he took possession of the farm which 
he now occupies, consisting of three hundred 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



43 



acres of the finest farming land to be found 
in this part of the State, and has since made 
a study of the best methods of carrying on 
his chosen vocation, his place being one of 
the most valuable and best-improved of any 
in the county. 

Mr. McNair was married in 1855 to Miss 
Alice McNair, a daughter of Samuel McNair, 
a farmer of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, 
who, though bearing the same name as him- 
self, belonged to a different family. Samuel 
McNair removed from Pennsylvania to this 
place, and spent his last years in the home 
of his daughter, dying at the venerable age 
of eighty-three. Several children have been 
born into the household of Mr. and Mrs. 
McNair, of whom we chronicle the following: 
Samuel E., a farmer, married Hattie Perine, 
the daughter of James B. Perine, of West 
Sparta; Charles F. ; Martha; Eugene; and 
Albert Dewey. Charles F. and his cousin, 
C. W. McNair, are together carrying on a 
substantial wholesale and retail nursery busi- 
ness, which was established in 1874 by 
Frederic, who was then a youth of sixteen 
years, having been born March 20, 1858. 
Eugene, who assists in the management of 
the home farm, was born July 23, 1863, and 
after his graduation from the Geneseo Nor- 
mal School, went to Montana, where he 
assisted in surveying the route of the Montana 
Central Railway, after that being employed 
for a year on the Northern Pacific Railroad. 
He was united in marriage May 2, 1894, to 
Miss Emma Tenney, a daughter of Silas 
W. Tenney. 

In his political views Mr. McNair was an 
ardent supporter of the Whig party; but on 
the abandonment of that party he identified 
himself with the Republican party, being 
on£ of the founders of this organization, 
and, having cast his first vote for William 
Henry Harrison, has never since missed a 
Presidential election. He is very active 
in religious circles and an influential mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church, having rep- 
resented the church in the Presbytery, and 
in 1893 had the honor of being sent to Wash- 
ington, D.C., as a delegate to the National 
Conference. 




ILLIAM J. PALMER, a retired 
1,5V farmer and highly respected citizen 
of Perry, Wyoming County, was 
born August 9, 1827, son of Alton and Har- 
riet (Beardsley) Palmer and grandson of Jared 
and Mary Palmer. The grandfatlier was a 
farmer in Connecticut; and, when but forty- 
five years of age, he was killed by a falling 
tree. His death occurred June 20, 18 12; and 
his wife lived until P'ebruary 14, 1838, when 
she passed away in her sixty-fourth year, 
leaving five children — Lockwood, Alton, 
Maria, Sally, and Eunice. 

Alton Palmer, the second son of Jared, was 
born in Connecticut in 1801. His wife, 
Harriet Beardsley, was born at Oxford, 
Conn., April 8, 1803, daughter of Jared and 
Betsey (Bennett) Beardsley, her father being 
a farmer and innkeeper. She was one of 
twelve children — Polly, Alma, Harriet, 
Clark, Bruant, Walter, Amy, Jared, Edwin, 
Betsey, Lockwood, and Mary. Mr. and Mrs. 
Alton Palmer had five children: William, 
the subject of this sketch; Mary, who married 
Mark Pierce, and died at the age of thirty, 
leaving three children; Harriet A., who mar- 
ried David Andrus, and died at the age of 
forty-five, leaving four children; Martha J., 
who married David Andrus; and Jared, who 
died in infancy. Mrs. Palmer was a member 
of the Baptist church. Alton Palmer was a 
Mason and an honest, upright man. 

William J. Palmer adopted the life of a 
farmer. He bought one hundred and thirty- 
two acres of improved land west of Silver 
Lake, and after remodelling the buildings 
sold the estate, and bought one of one hun- 
dred and seventy-six acres, which under his 
skilful management yields excellent harvests, 
and on which he has erected new buildings, 
which greatly increase the beauty of the place 
as well as enhance its value. This estate 
is located on the west side of Silver Lake, in 
the town of Castile, and is a most charming 
spot, well meriting the care and attention be- 
stowed upon it by its owner. In 1890 Mr. 
Palmer bought a lot of land on Lake Street, 
Perry, where he built a large and beautiful 



residence, which is 
finest in the town. 



considered one of the 
He is also the owner of 



44 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



another farm of one hundred and thirteen 
acres in Castile; and this, as well as the 
first-mentioned farm, is devoted mostly to the 
cultivation of grain. 

In 1854 Mr. Palmer married Marilla Toan, 
daughter of Thomas and Betsey (Harvey) 
Toan. A sketch of Thomas Toan may be 
found in connection with that of C. H. 
Toan. Mr. and Mrs. I^almer have four chil- 
dren, three daughters and one son: Nellie 
Palmer is a musician, and lives in Perry; 
Augustus Palmer married Viola Markham, has 
one child, Marion, and lives on the old home- 
stead; Augusta is an artist of exceptional 
talent, whose work in crayon, water color, and 
oil is well known; I^illie married Willard L. 
Chapin, a farmer in the town of Castile. 

Mr. William J. Palmer is a Democrat and 
a firm supporter of his party. He is occupied 
extensively in sheep and cattle raising, his 
fine grade of stock having a wide reputation. 
An energetic and worthy citizen, he merits 
and enjoys the good will and esteem of his 
townsmen. 



KEVT BROCKWAY is one of the much 
respected citizens of the town of 
^ Springwater, a farmer, residing on 
his well-cultivated estate about two 
miles from the village. He was born in Ot- 
sego County, April 9, 18 16, and was named 
for his father, who was a native of Litchfield 
County, Connecticut. The elder Levi left 
his birthplace at an early day; and, travelling 
over the border to Rensselaer County, New 
York, near to Albany County, in that health- 
ful as well as attractive locality, now the 
resort of the tourist and the worn toiler of the 
town, he spent his boyhood and youth. 

In 1798 Levi Brockway, Sr., married, and 
proceeded farther west to Otsego County. 
He purchased a tract of land there, cleared 
the forest growth, erected farm buildings, 
and in time gathered about himself and family 
the accompaniments of civilization. But 
in 1828, the spirit of enterprise coursing 
once more through his veins, he gathered his 
household goods together, loaded the wagons, 
and with his family set out on the journey 



toward a new home. At length they reached 
Springwater, in Livingston County, where 
they found themselves in the neighborhood 
of lakes and flowing streams and a country of 
fertility well worth the task which was to 
follow of preparation and tillage. The labo- 
rious process of felling the forests and clearing 
the land went on as before. Buildings were 
erected, fences to mark boundary lines and 
separate fields and pasture lands were set up, 
gardens and grain-fields sown and kept in a 
proper state of cultivation; and then, when 
so much was at length done, Mr. Brockway 
found that he was an old man. But he had 
lived to see the result of his energetic toil, 
and died in his chosen home in Springwater 
in the year 1863, aged eighty-seven years. 

In reviewing the life of Mr. Brockway, one 
can but admire the pluck and courage which 
dominated his whole career, and, in compari- 
son with the shrinking from sinewy labor so 
characteristic of the youth of the present 
time, chronicle here words of respect and 
praise for one who set so worthy an example. 
Mr. Brockway' s wife, mother of the present 
Levi, was Miss Hannah Marvin, a daughter 
of Abraham Marvin, a successful farmer of 
Rensselaer County. They had a family of 
four children — Aurelia, Lovina, Lucy, and 
Levi, the latter being the only one now 
living. Mrs. Hannah Brockway, who had 
sustained a very important part in all the hard- 
ships and trials of their career as pioneers 
in Otsego County, died in the pleasant home 
she had had a share in creating, at the age of 
forty-nine years. She was a member of the 
Methodist church. 

Levi Brockway, son of Levi and Hannah 
(Marvin) Brockway, passed his early years in 
his father's home, growing up under the happy 
influences of farm and country life. Four 
years he spent on the farm of his brother- 
in-law; then, accompanying his father, he 
came in 1832 to what is now the pleasant 
town of Springwater. He assisted his father 
in all the arduous work of felling the trees, 
clearing the land of stumps and stones, drain- 
ing the marshy portions, and making paths 
and driveways. In 1849 he purchased a part 
of the homestead property; and, beginning 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



45 



at first in a log cabin, as the early settlers 
had done, he was able in the year 1863 to 
take possession of his attractive and com- 
modious new house. Mr. Brockway followed 
general agriculture till within the past three 
years, when he gave up the active cares 
of the place to his son, and lives a retired 
and quiet life. His farm at one time com- 
prised one hundred and seventy acres, all 
under cultivation, and requiring a vast amount 
of personal care and supervision. 

Mr. Brockway was married in 1840 to Miss 
Julia A. Root, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. 
Amos Root, her father being a well-known 
farmer of this town. They have had four 
children: Zalida (deceased), who married 
James Hudson, a farmer of Springwater; 
Edgar, who married Eveline Hicks; Hannah, 
who married Ezra Willis; and Zaide, whose 
husband was John Salter. Zalida's children 
were three: Gertrude, who married Dexter 
Price, and has one child, named Charley; 
Charley, who married Miss Carrie Colgrove; 
and Zaide, who married William Conderman. 
Edgar's children are Juliette and Ruth. 
Hannah has one child, named Gertrude; and 
the child of Mrs. Zaide Salter is named 
Jessie. Mrs. Brockway died at her home, 
January 22, 1895, on her birthday, aged just 
seventy-seven years. She was a devoted 
member of the Christian church. 

Mr. Levi Brockway is one of the oldest 
men now living in Springwater, having also 
been a resident in the town with his family 
longer than any other. After the labors of 
the past he has now settled down to enjoy a 
green old age, surrounded by his three mar- 
ried children, three grandchildren, also mar- 
ried, and one great-grandchild. Mr. Brockway 
is a man of fine intelligence for one who has 
depended only on what learning the district 
school gave him in his youth. He has done 
much to build up and advance the interests 
of the town, and deserves, as he now receives, 
the universal respect of his fellow-townsmen. 
In politics he is a Democrat, though formerly 
a Republican. He is a member of the 
Christian church, where he has been Trustee 
and on the Finance Committee. He is also 
a member of the Building Committee. 



T^LARENCE M. SMITH, Cashier of 
I >|-^ the Citizens' Bank of Perry, Wyo- 
^(9^_^ ming County, N.Y., was born in this 
village, September 25, i860, son of 
Marvin and Miranda (Millspaugh) Smith. 
His grandfather, Septimus Smith, who was 
a native of Connecticut, went to Rockland 
County, Vermont, where he spent some time, 
and learned the carpenter's trade. He mar- 
ried Clarissa, daughter of C. Goodspeed, a 
prominent farmer of Vermont; and after their 
marriage they removed in 1817 to Perry, 
Wyoming County, N.Y., where he continued 
his trade during the remainder of his life, 
dying when but forty-four years of age, leav- 
ing a widow and nine children; namely, 
Caroline, Adeline, Mark D., Luther, George, 
Marvin, Eli, Fanny, and Sylvia. Mrs. 
Clarissa Goodspeed Smith lived to be sev- 
enty-nine years of age. 

Marvin, the third son of Septimus, was 
born in Perry, September 21, 1824. After 
receiving his education in his native town, 
he learned the machinist's trade, which he 
followed during his life, his death occurring 
in his sixty-fourth year. Miranda Mills- 
paugh, his wife, was born in Perry, November 
22, 1834, daughter of Jeremiah B. and Susan 
(Ayers) Millspaugh. Her paternal grand- 
parents were Benjamin J. Millspaugh, a shoe- 
maker of Newburgh, N.Y., whose paternal 
ancestors came from Germany, and his wife, 
Susanna Kimbark Millspaugh, who was of 
P"rench descent. Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin J. 
Millspaugh had nine children — Ephraim, 
Mary, Jeremiah B., Nathaniel, Cornelius, 
Andrew, Margaret, Nancy, and Seers. Jere- 
miah B. on his arrival at Perry bought a 
farm, which he afterward sold, and during 
the remainder of his life followed the trade of 
mason. His death occurred when he was 
seventy-three years of age, while his wife 
lived to be eighty-eight, both having been 
members of the Methodist Episcopal church 
for fifty years. Their four children were: 
Jane, Nathaniel, Chester, and Miranda. 
Marvin and Miranda (Millspaugh) Smith 
had four children, Clarence M. being the sec- 
ond. The other son, Charles W., born 
August 15, 1859, married Hattie Dugan, 



46 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



is an electrician at Perry, and has two chil- 
dren. Addie Smith, born March 6, 1S62, 
married Lester Bootsford, a merchant in Mos- 
cow, N.Y., and is the mother of one child. 
Hattie D., born February 22, 1864, married 
Charles Toan, Superintendent of the Silver 
Lake Ice Company, and lives in Perry. 

After receiving an education at Perry 
Academy, and when but sixteen years of age, 
Clarence M. Smith began mercantile life as 
a clerk in the store of F. O. Bullard. A 
course of study at the Eastman Business Col- 
lege in Poughkeepsie prepared him for the 
duties of book-keeper; and he again entered 
the employ of Mr. Bullard in that capacity. 
Five years later he was engaged as book- 
keeper and assistant in the dry-goods store of 
M. C. Williams & Co. at Perry; and not long 
after h^ accepted the position of teller in 
Smiths Bank at Perry, where he remained 
for six years. During this time he also kept 
the books for the Perry Knitting Company 
and for M. H. Olin. On March 12, 1888, 
in company with several of the leading resi- 
dents of Perry, he started the Citizens' Bank, 
accepting in the new institution the position 
of Cashier, which he has conscientiously and 
ably filled. 

In 1885 Mr. Smith married Helen A. 
Williams, daughter of Moses C. and Helen 
A. (Bullard) Williams. Mr. Williams was 
a very successful merchant of Perry. At his 
death, when sixty years of age, he left a wife 
and five children — Fred C, Helen A., 
Oliver, Charles, and Frank. He was a mem- 
ber of Consolation Lodge, No. 407, A. F. & 
A. M., of Perry, and was a stanch Republi- 
can. His wife and four sons now reside in 
Buffalo, N.Y. Mr. Smith has been village 
Clerk for eight years. He has always taken 
an active part in the progressive movements 
of the place, and was among the agitators of 
the subject of electric lights, which method 
of lighting was adopted by the village in 
1893; and, when a company was formed, Mr. 
Smith was made its Secretary. He is a 
member of the Presbyterian church, of which 
he is Treasurer, and is also a member of Con- 
solation Lodge, No. 404, A. F. & A. M., of 
Perrv- 



TT^HARLES JONES, a prominent and 
I Sr^ influential citizen of Geneseo, Liv- 
^^Hs ingston County, is well known 

throughout Western New York. 
He is the direct descendant of distinguished 
patriotic ancestry, who in the early struggle 
for our national existence, when men's hearts 
were sorely tried, most efficiently proved their 
strength and bravery in the defence of that 
liberty which we are now permitted to enjoy. 

Mr. Jones was born in the town of Geneseo, 
August 15, 181 5, and is the son of a no less 
celebrated hero than the famous Captain Ho- 
ratio Jones of Revolutionary fame, who was a 
nati\-e of Northumberland County, Pennsyl- 
vania, and was born in the year 1763. At the 
age of eighteen Captain Horatio joined a 
scouting company, w^hich was organized for the 
protection of the colonists under the command 
of one Captain Boyd. This company did 
some good service in the latter part of the 
Revolutionary War; and Horatio, and most 
of the command, were captured by the Indians, 
and taken to Caneadea, where he was forced 
to undergo the savage ordeal of running the 
gauntlet. Life was at stake ; and young 
Horatio, being agile and full of nerve, made 
the best of his slim chance, and successfully 
passed through the awful trial. After this 
memorable exploit he was adopted by the tribe, 
and lived in the family of the Indian corn- 
planter, who resided at that time near the head 
waters of the Alleghany River. Here he mas- 
tered the Indian language, and after the decla- 
ration of peace returned to Pennsylvania. 

Young Jones then provided himself with 
what little education he could obtain from the 
somewhat meagre facilities open to him; but 
he gained what he desired — a thorough knowl- 
edge of the English language — and then re- 
turned once more among the Indians. He 
was appointed interpreter by General Washing- 
ton, and shortly after settled on the east bank 
of the outlet of Seneca Lake, upon a site since 
occupied by the late Robert Swan. Here he 
established an Indian trading-post, and bought 
furs for John Jacob Astor. He remained here 
a few years, then penetrated into the woods of 
the Genesee country, and located in what is 
now the town of 'Leicester, his being the first 




CHARLES JONES. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



49 



white family to locate in what is now Living- 
ston County. Purchasing a large tract of 
land, he engaged extensively and successfully 
in agricultural pursuits. Here he resided for 
the remainder of his days, and died at the 
age of sixty-two years. Captain Jones was 
twice married, his first wife being a Miss 
Whitmore, by whom he had four sons, two of 
them losing their lives in the War of 1812. 
His second wife, and mother of Charles, the 
subject of this sketch, was Elizabeth Starr, 
of Cayuga County, New York, who died in 
1S44, aged si.xty-four years. She was the 
mother of twelve children, the subject of this 
sketch and one sister, Jane, Mrs. Charles C. 
FitzHugh, being the only ones now living. 

The pioneer schools furnished Charles Jones 
in his boyhood with the rudiments of his edu- 
cation, the first one he attended being taught 
in a log-house. He then studied successively 
at Temple Hill, Geneseo, and Canandaigua 
Academies. At the age of twenty years he 
went to Greece, in Monroe County, to assume 
charge of some property which his father 
owned in that place. After two years' resi- 
dence there he returned to Leicester, and be- 
came extensively engaged in farming, which 
he continued to follow until 1869; and in this 
year he moved to Geneseo, purchasing the 
residence he now occupies. It is a commodi- 
ous house, built in a modern style of archi- 
tecture, beautifully and tastefully furnished. 
The grounds, which comprise two acres, are 
laid out in a most picturesque style of landscape 
gardening, with spacious lawns ornamented 
with rare plants and shrubbery, together with a 
great variety of choice fruit-trees. 

The Rochester Savings Bank has a large 
number of mortgages in Western New York ; 
and Mr. Jones is employed by the bank to look 
after their interests, assess values, etc., an 
occupation which takes up a greater part of his 
time. He is a member of the Board of Con- 
trol of the Geneva State l^lxperimental Station, 
and has been for many years a Director, and is 
at present Vice-President of the Genesee Val- 
ley National Bank. He was first married in 
1845 to Miss Kliza Richmond, of Aurora, Ca- 
yuga County, who died in 1849. In 1856 he 
married Miss Sarah Cummings, of New Bed- 



ford, Mass., who shared with him life's joys 
and sorrows nearly forty years. He was again 
called upon to mourn in domestic sorrow, as 
she was laid away to rest in January, 1894. 
Mr. Jones's only daughter died at the age of 
thirteen years. It is a well-known fact that 
there is no success like success, and that Mr. 
Charles Jones has experimentally proved this 
is apparent by his unclouded prosperity and 
extended reputation. Although Mr. Jones is 
nearly eighty years of age, the fourscore limit 
seems to have no effect upon him whatever, as 
he is bright and active, both mentally and 
physically, and carries his years without the 
least sign of a burden. For a speaking like- 
ness of this worthy gentleman the reader is 
referred to another page of the "Review." 

As the names of ancestors and direct family 
connections of Captain Horatio Jones are un- 
avoidably omitted in the present sketch, we 
take this opportunity of mentioning that the 
late George H. Harris, the historian of 
Rochester, prepared a history of that redoubt- 
able pioneer, which will soon be published. 
This will form a most valuable addition to the 
biographical literature of the State. 



'irXR. JOHN A. CHASE, a dentist of 
I I Geneseo, the county seat of Living- 

L .y ^^°" County, was born in Bloom- 
field, Ontario County, N.Y., Feb- 
ruary 16, 1832. His father, Joseph Chase, 
who was a native of Great Barrington, Mass., 
was a well-to-do farmer and builder, and also 
a man of patriotic spirit. It is related of him 
that during the War of 1812 he set out with 
a military company from Ontario County to 
join the United States Army; but on reach- 
ing Geneseo it was found that the British had 
succeeded in burning the village of Buffalo, 
and that their services were not required. 
The company therefore returned to their 
homes. The brothers of Joseph Chase were 
David and Jonathan, of Royal Oak, and 
Elisha, of Detroit, Mich. Joseph Chase died 
in Bloomfield at the age of sixty-seven. The 
grandfather of Dr. Chase, also named Joseph, 
in early days a resident of Great Barrington, 
located after a time in East Bloomfield, On- 



5° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



tario County, N.Y., where he carried on the 
occupation of farming; but later he moved to 
Royal Oak, Mich., and spent the remainder 
of his life in that locality. 

Joseph Chase, the younger, married Miss 
Mariam Adams, who was born in Bloomfield, 
N.Y., in 1799. Her father, John Adams, 
Jr., and her grandfather, John Adams, were 
both men of note in the early unsettled days 
of the country. The grandfather, who was 
known as Deacon John Adams, came from 
Great Barrington, Mass., to New York, and 
was the first white settler in East Bloomfield. 
He soon became a large land owner; and it is 
interesting to note that where his primitive 
log house was located now stands the railroad 
station, whose cars directly connect with far 
distant parts of the continent. The township 
of Bloomfield, Ontario County, now includ- 
ing Victor, Mendon, West and East Bloom- 
field, was purchased of Phelps and Gorham 
by a company from Berkshire County, Massa- 
chusetts, of which the Adams family were a 
prominent part. The elder John Adams was 
blessed with a family of thirteen children, 
five sons and eight daughters, who all grew 
to maturity, married and settled in the neigh- 
borhood, and for each of whom he purchased 
a farm. The sons were: John, William, 
Abner, Jonathan, and Joseph. His sons-in- 
law were: Ephraim Rue, Loren Hull, Elijah 
Rose, IMoses Gunn, Lot Rue, John Barnes, 
Roger Sprague, and Asa Hickox, all of whom 
moved into this region with their families in 
1789. In all his intercourse with the Indians 
Deacon John Adams was their firm friend. 
He served as Captain of a company during 
the Revolutionary War, and passed through 
this section of the country during his march 
with the skirmishing expedition. 

John Adams, Jr., also served in the Revo- 
lution; and his grandson. Dr. Chase, recalls 
the pleasing incident of driving him to Can- 
andaigua in his old age to receive his pension 
from the government. He had six children, 
namely: General William H. Adams, of 
Lyons; George and Alvin, of Bloomfield; 
Mariam, Mrs. Joseph Chase; Mrs. Sabra Hop- 
kins, of Lima; and Mrs. Fannie Redmond, 
of Lapeer, Mich. 



Joseph Chase and his wife brought up three 
children — William Henry, a farmer in East 
Bloomfield; Ann, who married Calvin David- 
son, also a farmer of the same section of the 
State; and John A., the subject of this 
sketch. The mother spent her last years in 
Bloomfield, and died there at the age of sixty- 
five. She and her husband were members of 
the Congregational Society in Bloomfield. 
The church edifice which belonged to it was 
erected mainly through the devotion and enter- 
prise of the Adams family. It was the first 
one in all Western New York, and was built 
in 1 80 1. The cliurch society was formed Sep- 
tember 8 and organized November 15, 1795. 
Its first pastor was the Rev. Zadock Hunn. 
The first school was taught in Bloomfield by 
Laura Adams as early as 1794. 

John A. Chase lived until he was of age on 
the farm, attending the district school and 
the academy in Bloomfield. After leaving 
school he went West, where he remained 
about seven months, and then returning home 
entered upon the study of dentistry with Dr. 
E. F. Wilson, of East Bloomfield. He 
began practice for himself in Castile, Wyo- 
ming County, where he remained about a year, 
and then coming to Geneseo stayed here four- 
teen years. He next went to Avon for a few 
months and from there to Rochester. Two 
years later he returned to Geneseo, where he 
has built up a successful practice. 

Dr. Chase married in 1865 Miss Jane 
Hardy, a daughter of Pridgeon Hardy, a well- 
known farmer of Iowa. She died in Geneseo, 
August 24, 1893. They had two children, 
one of whom survived childhood and grew to 
maturity. Her name is Lillian Ruggles 
Merriam. She graduated with honor from 
the State normal school, and taught school 
in Scottsville. She married IMr. John H. 
Scofield, an agent of fire insurance; and they 
reside in the town of Scottsville. They have 
two sons, named respectively Ezra Chase 
and John Adams. A daughter, Louisa 
Adams, died early. 

Dr. John A. Chase is a member of the 
Seventh District Dental Society, of which he 
has been Vice-President. He was also dele- 
gate to the first State Dental Convention, 



BIOGRAPHICAL! REVIEW 



SI 



which met at Albany in tlie Assembly 
Chamber of the State Capitol about the 
year 1868, at which time was organized the 
Dental Society of the State of New York. 
Subsequently the State was divided into eight 
District Dental Societies, the town of Gene- 
seo being in the Seventh District. Dr. 
Chase was a Republican in politics up to the 
3'ear 1872. Since that time he has been a 
Democrat. During the War of the Rebell- 
ion, he placed a substitute at great expense 
in the army, he being in no way holden, 
either by draft or otherwise. Dr. Chase is a 
Presbyterian, as was his wife. While he was 
a Trustee of the Avon Presbyterian Society, 
the present elegant church edifice was 
erected; and Rev. H. P. V. Bogne, the pres- 
ent pastor of the Presbyterian church of 
West Avon, was installed. 




kRS. ELLEN A. MILLS BROOK- 
INS, a grand-daughter of General 
Mills, the first permanent white 
settler of Mount Morris, Living- 
ston County, N.Y., is a lineal descendant of 
Rev. Samuel Mills, one of the earliest mis- 
sionaries of the Geneseo valley. (A more 
extended sketch of the Mills family is given 
with the biography of Dr. Myron H. Mills.) 
The father of Mrs. Brookins, Sidney H. 
Mills, was born in Mount Morris, June -4, 
1808. His youth was spent among pioneer 
scenes, where he early learned to endure the 
hardships and privation of such a life. In his 
younger days Indians still lingered near his 
home; and he became familiar with them, 
thus being enabled to learn their language 
and customs. At the time of his marriage 
he settled on land belonging to his father, 
occupying it till 1836, when he came up to 
the farm in the town of Mount Morris where 
his daughter and her family now reside. 
When this land was purchased, it was heavily 
timbered; but by hard work and perseverance 
he succeeded in clearing it and erecting good 
buildings. He resided here until his death, 
at the age of sixty-two. His wife was Julia 
Angeline Parker, of Milo, Yates County, 
N.Y. Her grandfather, Ezra Parker, of 



early English ancestry, was, as far as is 
known, a native of Massachusetts. He spent 
his last days in Michigan, where he died at 
the age of one hundred years. 

Joel Parker, son of P^zra and father of 
Julia, Mrs. Mills, was born in Berkshire, 
Mass., but moved from there to Sangerfield, 
Oneida County, N.Y., accompanied by his 
wife and one child, making the journey on 
horseback. A few years later he removed to 
the town of Milo, Yates County, settling on 
the bank of the lake, which was his abiding- 
place for a number of years. He then went 
to New London, Huron County, Ohio, where 
he spent the remainder of his days. His 
wife, Polly Benham, was the daughter of 
James Benham, of Hartford, Conn. She was 
born in Hartford on the fifteenth day of 
March, 1776. When she was two years old, 
her father moved to Dutchess County, New 
York, where she lived until she was seven 
years of age. She then went with her father 
to Oneida County, and there lived until she 
was married. Her mother, whose maiden 
name was Sarah Sedgwick, was a cousin of 
Noah Webster, of dictionary fame. Mariam 
Webster, Mrs. Brookins's grandmother, mar- 
ried Mr. Sedgwick for her first husband, Mr. 
Hopkins for her second, Mr. John Marsh for 
her third. Mr. Hopkins was killed by the 
Indians. Julia A. Parker met Mr. Mills at 
Mount Morris, where she was engaged in 
teaching school, and married him when she 
was twenty-one years of age. They had three 
children, namely: Ellen A., Mrs. Brookins; 
and two sons, James D. and Harris, both of 
whom died at the age of twenty-three years. 
Mrs. Julia A. Parker Mills died April 19, 
1881. 

Ellen A. Mills was married at the age of 
twenty-nine to her present husband, James 
H. Brookins, who was born in South Dans- 
ville, Steuben County, N.Y., August 8, 1833. 
His father, Silas M. Brookins, a native of 
Sharon, Vt., was one of the early pioneer 
settlers of South Dansville, where he resided 
a number of years. He thence went to Wis- 
consin, and securing a tract of government 
land improved a portion of it, and resided 
there for some time, but finally removed to 



52 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Chickasaw County, la., spending tlie re- 
mainder of his life at that place. His wife, 
Lydia Thornton, was born in Bradford, Pa. 
Mr. and Mrs. Brookins have five children — 
George W. ; Nellie M., who married Andrew 
N. Swanson, of Hornellsville; Mary; Ed- 
ward; and Sadie, who is an adopted daughter. 
Mr. Brookins was educated to agricultural 
pursuits, which he has followed most of his 
life. Since his marriage he has lived at the 
Mills homestead, successfully engaged in 
farming. Both Mr. and Mrs. Brookins are 
greatly esteemed by their many friends in 
Mount Morris, where they have so long 
resided. 



Y^/TlLIAM H. PAINE is a fine repre- 
Vy^ sentative of the native-born citi- 
•^ '^ zens of Livingston County, sons and 
grandsons of its stalwart pioneers, who are 
now carrying on the work, which their ances- 
tors inaugurated, of developing the resources 
of this portion of our great country. 

William D. Paine, the father of the subject 
of this personal narrative, was born in Herki- 
mer County, New York, in 1809, and there 
grew to manhood. In 1830 he emigrated to 
this section of Livingston County, and pur- 
chased a homestead, which is now owned by 
his widow and occupied by his widow and 
daughter. He was a millwright by trade; 
and, after getting well settled on his land, he 
built a saw-mill, and manufactured lumber 
from the timber cut on his own property and 
on much of the neighboring land, carrying on 
a substantial and lucrative business. He 
worked with assiduous industry and untiring 
energy for the accomplishment of his purpose, 
remaining on his original farm until his de- 
cease. He became prominent in town affairs, 
his sterling honesty gaining for him the con- 
fidence and esteem of his fellow-townsmen, 
whom he served as Justice of the Peace, 
Assessor, and Constable. He married Se- 
mantha Rice, the daughter of Elijah Rice, 
who came here from Cattaraugus County in 
1826, being one of the pioneer settlers of this 
locality. Two children were born of their 
union; namely, Laura L., who lives on the 



old homestead with her mother, and the sub- 
ject of this sketch. 

William H. Paine was born at the home 
of his parents in Nunda on May 25, 1850. 
He received excellent educational advantages, 
pursuing his studies at the Nunda Academy 
after he left the district school. Having a 
predilection for agricultural pursuits, he 
engaged therein at an early age, working on 
the home farm the greater portion of the time 
until his marriage, which occurred January 
27, 1885, when he removed to a farm owned 
by his father-in-law: and this he has since 
carried on with ability and success. 

The maiden name of the wife of Mr. Paine 
was Julia E. Hitchcox. She was born in the 
town of Nunda, being the daughter of Merritt 
and Sophronia Hitchcox, well-known and 
valued residents of this place. Inheriting in 
a marked degree the prudence and practical 
sagacity of his ancestors, Mr. Paine has in 
like manner won the esteem and confidence of 
the community, and is identified with the 
management of local affairs. In politics he 
is a true Republican; and his first Presi- 
dential vote, cast in 1872, was for General 
U. S. Grant. For three consecutive years he 
has served with great credit as Supervisor of 
the town. 



/®Yi: 



RIFFITH JONES, a progressive 
\ '*) I farmer of the town of Perry, Wy- 
oming County, N.Y., was born in 
Wales, May 18, 1832, son of William and 
Catherine (Jones) Jones. The father was born 
in Wales in 1800; and, having spent his youth 
in his native place, when eighteen years of 
age he came to America, settling in L^tica, 
N.Y. The Erie Canal was at that time in 
process of construction; and here Mr. Jones 
found employment for four years, after which 
he returned to Wales, and occupied himself 
with agricultural pursuits. In 1838 he again 
left his native land for America, here also 
following the occupation of farming. Lentil 
1849 hs resided in Oneida County, N.Y., and 
then removed to the town of Attica, Wyo- 
ming County. Here he bought one hundred 
and fifty-nine acres of partially cleared land, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



53 



built a large house and barns, and became a 
successful farmer and stock-raiser, also operat- 
ing a choice dairy. He died at the age of 
fifty-five years, and his wife passed away 
when eighty-eight years of age. They were 
members of the Presbyterian church, and he 
was a Republican in politics. Their chil- 
dren, three in number, were as follows: 
Howell, who married Rowena Smith, and, 
being killed in a railroad accident at Dale 
when fifty-seven years of age, left a widow 
and one child, Mary E. ; Griffith, the subject 
of this sketch; and Mary, who died at the 
age of four years. 

Griffith Jones received a common-school 
education, after which he bought the old 
homestead, where he resided until 1873. 
Having parted with the ancestral place, he 
moved to Perry, and bought the old Benedict 
farm, a fine estate embracing one hundred 
and fifty-one acres, situated in the north- 
eastern part of the town. In October, 1857, 
Mr. Jones married Polina S. Smith, who 
was born in the town of Attica, Wyoming 
County, March 7, 1835. She is the daughter 
of Henry and Lydia (Whaley) Smith, the 
former a native of Otsego County and the 
latter of Onondaga County. 

Henry Smith was born May 8, 1801. His 
parents were Isaac and Hannah (Hawley) 
Smith, both of whom were born in Vermont; 
and his father was a private in the Revolu- 
tionary War. Henry Smith began the occu- 
pation of farming in Attica in 1 831, 
remaining there till 1845, when he bought 
one hundred and eighty-six acres of land in 
the town of Middlebury, Wyoming County, 
where he became one of the most progressive 
farmers of that section. He died at the age 
of sixty-six years, his wife living to be 
seventy-six years of age. They had a family 
of fourteen children, who may be thus briefly 
mentioned: Lovina, born at Dale, April 25, 
1823, married Martin Lindsey, and has two 
children. Orrin, born October 4, 1824, mar- 
ried Miss L. Whaley, and died August 27, 
1884. George W., born March 17, 1826, 
married Charlotte Peck, and both are now 
dead. Minerva and Elizabeth died in in- 
fancy. James M., born February 12, 1831, 



married Frances Johnson, and is a farmer in 
the town of Middlebury, being the father of 
two children. Harriet S., born April 22, 
1833, married Elisha Gay, a farmer in Mid- 
dlebury, and has six children. Polina S. is 
the wife of the subject of this biography. 
Lovica, born February 6, 1837, married 
C. V. Lindsey, of Attica, and has two chil- 
dren. Sarah A., born July 3, 1840, married 
John Jones. Mary R., born July 16, 1842, 
died June 23, 1845. Simeon S., born 
October 4, 1844, died January 8, 1845. 
Francis, born November 3, 1845, married 
Rose Austin, and has six children. Alice 
A., born October 24, 1851, married Martin 
Stortz, and has three children. 

Mr. and Mrs. Griffith Jones have two chil- 
dren : William H., born June 4, 1866, mar- 
ried Hattie Nichols, and lives at the 
homestead; Frank M., born February 14, 
1 87 1, also lives at home. 

Mr. Jones has improved his place, re- 
modelling the buildings which formerly be- 
longed to the Benedicts; and he has now one 
of the best-managed and most profitable farms 
in the town of Perry. His apple orchards are 
well known for the excellent quality of fruit 
which they bear in abundance, and among his 
live stock are about one hundred fine Merino 
sheep. Mr. Jones is a Republican in poli- 
tics, has been Assessor for nine years, and 
has held other minor offices. He and his 
wife are members of the Baptist church of 
Dale. He has shown much zeal for the wel- 
fare of the community in which he lives, and 
the energy with which he has carried on im- 
provements both for his own interest and that 
of the public has won for him well-deserved 
success. 



^KNJAMIN S. COFFIN, Esq., of 
/'"A Mount Morris, is a well-known and 
'^ J esteemed native citizen of Living- 
ston County, and one of its most 
prosperous farmers. He was born on Septem- 
ber 3, 1839. He is descended from the Nan- 
tucket stock, from which is said to have 
sprung all the Coffin race in America, includ- 
ing many who have won distinction in various 



54 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



He was com- 
Nantucket and 



walks in life. Its progenitor in this country 
was Tristram Coffin, born in Devonshire, 
England, in 1605, who came to New England 
in 1642, and settled with his family on the 
island of Nantucket in 1660. 
missioned chief magistrate of 
Tuckernuckett in 1671. 

Peleg Coffin, the father of Benjamin S., 
was born and grew to maturity in Saratoga 
County, being the son of a pioneer settler. 
At the age of twenty-one years he made a 
trip to this county, and in the town of Mount 
Morris purchased sixty acres of thickly 
wooded land, that purchase being included in 
the farm now owned and occupied by his son. 
Returning on foot, the same way that he came 
to Saratoga County, Peleg Coffin married, 
and in the following spring, 1823, brought 
his bride to the place he had selected as their 
future home. Starting with a yoke of oxen 
and a sled, on which all of their earthly pos- 
sessions were packed, they journeyed slowly, 
until the sudden disappearance of the snow, 
when they had to exchange the sled for a 
wagon; and the last mile of the way he was 
forced to cut a road through the dense forest 
trees to the home of his brother-in-law, 
who owned an adjoining tract of land. He 
remained with the brother-in-law until he had 
built a log cabin, and then he and his youth- 
ful wife began housekeeping on their own 
territory. Rochester, the nearest market and 
milling-point, was forty miles away, and was 
reached only after a tedious three days' 
journey with oxen. From the wilderness in 
which he settled Peleg Coffin redeemed a 
good farm, and as the years rolled on con- 
tinually added to its improvements, erecting 
in time a good set of frame buildings. Here 
he spent many years of active industry, living 
to the age of seventy-one. His wife was 
Susan Smith, who was born in Gal way, Sara- 
toga County, and died in Mount Morris at 
the veneralale age of eighty-six years. To 
her and her husband four children were born; 
namely, Latham, Walter S., Ruby A., and 
Benjamin S. Mr. Coffin was a teacher, and 
was also for several years a zealous and effi- 
cient local preacher of the Methodist Epis- 
copal denomination. 



Benjamin S. acquired his preliminary 
education in the district schools; and this 
was supplemented by an attendance at Gene- 
see College, in Lima, where, after studying 
for three years, his attendance was interrupted 
by the breaking out of the late Rebellion, 
and he did not receive his diploma until after 
his return from the scene of the conflict. He 
taught school for some years both before and 
after the war. In April, 1861, at the first 
call for volunteers, inspired by patriotic 
ardor, he enlisted in defence of his country, 
and on May 7, 1861, was mustered into ser- 
vice as a member of Company G, Twenty- 
seventh New York Volunteer Infantry. The 
following November he was promoted to be 
Quartermaster Sergeant of the regiment, and 
served in that capacity until the expiration of 
his term of enlistment in June, 1863. Re- 
turning to his native place, he shortly after 
settled on the home farm, where he has since 
resided, and which he has managed success- 
fully and profitably. 

On December 30, 1863, Mr. Coffin was 
united in marriage to Miss Catherine Smith. 
They have two children, a daughter, Belle, 
and a son, George. A third child died in 
infancy. Mrs. Coffin was born in Canan- 
daigua, Ontario County, August 29, 1834, 
being a daughter of Justin Smith, who was 
born July 22, 1804, presumably in Cayuga 
County. John Smith, her paternal grand- 
father, was of German ancestry, and a native 
of Maryland, whence he emigrated to Cayuga 
County in this State at an early period of its 
settlement, and reclaimed a farm from the 
primeval wilderness. He married Catherine 
Smith, who bore him several children, among 
them being Justin, the father of Mrs. Coffin. 
Justin learned the trade of blacksmith when 
he was a young man; and after his marriage 
he removed to Ontario County, where he 
bought a tract of land about two miles from 
the village of Canandaigua, remaining there 
until 1839. Mr. Smith then came to Mount 
Morris, and, purchasing a farm on the River 
road, five miles from the village, there carried 
on mixed industry until his death, June 3, 
1879. He married Isabelle McFarland, a 
native of Pennsylvania, where she was born 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



55 



March 3, 1805. She was a daughter of 
George and Mary (Thompson) McFarland, 
natives of the Keystone State, and of Scotch 
ancestry. Mrs. Smith preceded her husband 
to the better land, dying January 14, 1S77. 
She bore her husband six children, of whom 
the following is a brief mention: Nancy, wife 
of DeWitt Clark, a resident of Eau Claire, 
Wis.; Catherine; George, deceased; John, 
a resident of Mount Morris; Justin, de- 
ceased; and William, a physician in Niles, 
Mich. John and Justin both served as gal- 
lant soldiers in the late Civil War, being 
members of the regiment first known as the 
One Hundred and Thirtieth New York Vol- 
unteer Infantry and later as the First New 
York Dragoons. Mr. Smith was in his early 
days a Democrat in politics, but was afterward 
identified with the Republican party. He 
held many ofifices of trust and responsibility, 
and was for many years the County Loan 
Commissioner. Religiously, both he and his 
wife were members of the Presbyterian church. 
Mr. Coffin is a man of undoubted integrity 
and the possessor of those sterling qualities of 
mind and heart which make him an invaluable 
member of the community. He and his es- 
timable wife are consistent members of the 
Presbyterian church. He has served as 
Justice of the Peace for twenty-six years, and 
for a number of years has been pension at- 
torney, and in the matter of securing pensions 
for deserving comrades has been eminently 
successful. Mr. Coffin is a member of the 
J. E. Lee Post, No. 281, Grand Army of the 
Republic, and is Past Commander. He is a 
member of Masonic Lodge, No. 122, A. F. 
& A. M., and of Mount Morris Chapter, No. 
137, R. A. M., and has also served as High 
Priest for sixteen years. He is also a promi- 
nent member of the Genesee Valley Lodge, 
No. 129, American Order of United Work- 
men, and of the Royal Legion, Select 
Knights, No. 40. Mr. Cofifin likewise be- 
longs to the Survivors' Association of the 
Twenty-seventh New York Volunteer In- 
fantry, of the First New York Veteran 
Cavalry, and of the Thirty-third New York 
Volunteer Infantry, having been for two 
years President of the association, and is at 



the present time serving as Secretary and 
Treasurer. Mr. Cofifin is also a member, and 
was President, of the Livingston County 
Grand Army of the Republic, and was Presi- 
dent of the Farmers' Pioneer Association em- 
bracing the towns of Mount Morris, Nunda, and 
Portage. 



Y^TIRAM F. NICHOLS, M.D., a well- 
L^-l known and successful physician of 
|l 9 I Wyoming County, whose ofifice is at 

^ — ' No. 46 Market Street, Attica, has 
won a fine reputation for skill, and has built 
up an extensive practice in Attica and the sur- 
rounding country. He is a native of this 
county, Bennington being the place of his 
birth, and May 25, 1846, the date thereof. 
His father, Jacob H. Nichols, was born in the 
town of Attica in September, 1816, being a 
son of Abijah Nichols, one of the six original 
settlers of this locality. 

Abijah Nichols was born in Brimfield, 
Mass., in 1776, and was one of the five sons of 
Malachi Nichols, a life-long resident of the 
Bay State. The other sons were : Asher, for 
many years a practising physician of the town 
of Portage in this State; Gail; Willis; and 
Perley. Abijah Nichols married Polly Howe, 
one of New England's daughters; and the first 
years of their wedded life were spent in Attica. 
In 1822 he removed to Orleans County, in 
order that he might better attend to his duties 
as one of the sub-contractors of the Erie Canal. 
After his death, which occurred in 1832, his 
family returned to Attica, and settled on the 
hill four miles south of the town, in what was 
then called Arabia. His widow, who lived to 
the venerable age of ninety-two years, died in 
Alexander in 1870. She bore her husband 
fifteen children, twelve sons and three daugh- 
ters, of whom but two are now li\'ing — A. J. 
Nichols, an octogenarian; and Jacob H., the 
Doctor's father. One daughter, Abigail, the 
widow of John E. Smith, who was killed while 
in service during the late Rebellion, died in 
June, 1894, at the advanced age of eighty-two 
years. 

Jacob II. Nichols, a prominent and practical 
farmer of Bennington, is still actively en- 



S6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



gaged in agricultural pursuits, and, although 
in the seventy-ninth year of his age, cradled 
grain on his farm the past season. His wife, 
five years younger, whom he married August 
7, 1842, is as strong mentally and physically 
as most women in the prime of life. They 
celebrated their golden wedding on Monday, 
August 8, 1892. Her maiden name was Jane 
Latimer. She was born in the town of Ben- 
nington, this county. May 20, 1821, being a 
daughter of Hezekiah and Obedience (Butler) 
Latimer, both of whom were natives of Con- 
necticut. Mrs. Latimer, the Doctor's maternal 
grandmother, was born September 11, 1787, at 
the home of her parents, Josiah and Hannah 
Butler, in Northington, Conn. ; and her mar- 
riage with Hezekiah Latimer was solemnized 
December 25, 1808. The following year the 
young couple emigrated to New York, locating 
in Bennington, Wyoming County, or, as it 
was then called, Sheldon, Genesee County. 
On their way thither their hardships began, 
the bride being obliged at times to leave the 
ox wagon and wade through the swamps and 
morasses with her shoes and stockings in her 
hands. The humble log cabin which they 
reared in the wilderness was often menaced by 
the prowling wolves, the blanket serving for 
a door being but little protection. In 18 12, 
being obliged to flee from the Indians, they 
took their only child to Cortland County, 
where they remained until after the birth of 
their second child. Mr. Latimer, who was a 
soldier in the War of 1812, died at an ad- 
vanced age, April 5, 1865. His widow, sur- 
viving him, lived until May 6, 1879. 

Jacob H. and Jane Nichols had two chil- 
dren — Hiram F. ; and his sister, Emma C. , 
herself a practising physician, and the wife 
of Dr. Milton H. Carey, of Buffalo, N.Y. 
Hiram was reared to farm life, and after leav- 
ing the district school was engaged in teaching 
thirteen terms. In 1870 he began the study 
of medicine with Dr. C. W. Howe, of Cowles- 
ville, subsequently entered the physio-medical 
school at Indianapolis, and was graduated from 
that institution in 1882. Dr. Nichols began 
the practice of his profession in Bennington 
Centre, the place of his nativity, going thence 
to Cowlesville, where he remained four years. 



meeting with excellent success. In 1887 he 
came to Attica; and the following year, having 
established a good practice here, he bought his 
present residence and office. He has been 
eminently prosperous in his professional work, 
and is conceded to be one of the brightest and 
ablest medical men in this section of the 
county. 

Dr. H. F. Nichols was married June 21, 
1868, to Etta M. Lindsay, of Erie County. 

Mrs. Nichols is a daughter of the late See- 
ley and Eunice (Munger) Lindsay, the former 
of whom was born in Chautauqua County, and 
the latter in the town of Bennington. Her 
father died when she was an infant, in 1853, 
leaving his widow with five living children. 
The mother died five years later. Of the ten 
children born to her, six are now living, two 
daughters being residents of Washington, two 
sons residing in the State of Minnesota, Mrs. 
Nichols in Attica, and a half-sister in Batavia. 
The Doctor and his wife have four children. 
The eldest child, a boy, died in infancy. 
Mae, who was graduated from the Attica High 
School in 1 894, with a higher record than any 
previous graduate, is in Rochester, where she 
is employed in writing. Francis M. is a boy 
of nine years, and Alice Maud a beautiful 
child of six years. In politics Dr. Nichols 
affiliates with the Republican party; and, so- 
cially, he is a prominent member of the Odd 
Fellows, having passed the chairs, and now 
belonging to the encampment. Mrs. Nichols 
is an esteemed and active member of the Bap- 
tist church, and a member of the Woman's 
Christian Temperance Union. 




lYRON VAN DUSEN, who is prop- 
erly ranked as one of the self-made 
men of Livingston County, began 
the battle of life with health, 
strength, and brain as his sole capital; and, 
thus endowed, he has risen to a position of 
wealth and importance in the community. He 
has been prospered in all of his ventures, his 
tireless industry and economy, combined with 
foresight and a sound judgment, meeting with 
a deserved reward. He wisely chose that for 
his future calling to which he was best adapted 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



57 



both by nature and experience ; and, as a 
farmer, stock-raiser, and a dealer in cattle, he 
has been eminently successful. He was born 
in Stafford, Genesee County, January 18, 
1 8 16. His father, Henry Van Dusen, was a 
native of Oueensbury, Warren County; and 
his grandfather, John Van Dusen, was, it is 
thought, a life-long resident of the Empire 
State. He served as a Continental soldier 
during the War of the Revolution, and after- 
ward carried on general farming in Queens- 
bury, where he lived to a good old age. 

Henry Van Dusen, having been reared and 
married in the place of his birth, removed to 
Genesee County in 1814, the tedious journey 
thither with his wife and two children being 
made with teams, and occupying twenty-seven 
days. He bought land in the Poultney tract, 
located in the town of Stafford, where he was 
one of the earliest settlers. He erected a log 
cabin in the wilderness ; but ere its comple- 
tion it was burned, and out of his scanty 
means he had to build another. Western New 
York was then an almost trackless forest, and 
the deer were so plentiful that the pioneers 
had hard work to keep them from destroying 
their wheat. There being neither markets nor 
mills within convenient distance, they main- 
tained life from the products of the soil and 
the game to be found in the forest. In 1827 
Henry Van Dusen sold his partly improved 
farm, and removed to the town of Centreville, 
Allegany County, where he was numbered 
among the pioneers. Paying two dollars and a 
half an acre for a tract of land in the Holland 
Patent, he built a log house, and began the 
task of clearing a farm from the timber. He 
met with various misfortunes, and finally lost 
all of his property, but remained in the town 
until the end of his life, which covered a 
period of threescore and ten years. He mar- 
ried Eliza Walcup, a native of Oueensbury, 
and the daughter of Aaron Walcup. She bore 
him thirteen children, and outlived him, 
spending fourscore years upon this earth. 

Myron Van Dusen was the third child in 
order of birth of the parental household ; and 
at the age of seventeen years he became self- 
supporting, starting out in the world without a 
penny in his pocket. His first employment 



was chopping wood, and for the first one hun- 
dred cords he received eighteen dollars. He 
continued working by the day, month, or year, 
and, being very industrious and exceedingly 
frugal, accumulated a small sum of money, 
which in 1844 he invested in land, buying 
eighty acres in the town of Caneadea, Allegany 
County, where he engaged in general farming. 
As the years rolled by, Mr. Van Dusen grad- 
ually enlarged his operations, in addition to 
tilling the soil, being extensively engaged in 
buying and selling cattle, and has met with 
profitable returns as a dealer in real estate, his 
landed property being located in three different 
counties and comprising seven hundred val- 
uable acres. 

Mr. Van Dusen has been twice married. 
The maiden name of his first wife, to whom he 
was united in 1840, was Elizabeth Boynton. 
She was born in 1820 in Genesee County, of 
New England parentage, being a daughter of 
William and Tryphena (Reynolds) Boynton, 
both of whom were natives of Maine and pio- 
neers of Genesee County, New York. The 
father was a farmer by occupation, and a sol- 
dier in the War of 1812. Mrs. Elizabeth Van 
Dusen proved a faithful helpmate and an able 
assistant in his pioneer labors, seconding his 
efforts while he was laying the foundation for 
his present fortune, managing her domestic 
affairs with wisdom and economy ; and in the 
early days of their wedded life she dressed her 
family in homespun garments of her own manu- 
facture. On December 20, 1S90, she passed 
to the joys of eternal life, leaving four chil- 
dren — Emily, Laura, Melva, and Milton E. 

On November 3, 1891, Mr. Van Dusen was 
married to Mrs. Lenora (Parks) Hagadorn, a 
native of Scipio, Cayuga County, N.Y. , where 
her birth occurred December 2, 1820. Her 
father, William Parks, was born in Washing- 
ton County, New York, whence his father, 
Joel Parks, Esc]. , migrated to Cayuga County, 
Ijeing a pioneer of the town of Scipio. He 
bought land there, and, taking advantage of its 
excellent water-power, erected a saw and grist 
mill, and also a carding and fulling mill. He 
engaged in general farming, and likewise oper- 
ated his mills, until a heavy freshet destroyed 
the dam and ruined him financially, when he 



S8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



removed to Canada, settling on the Grand 
River, where he rounded out nearly a century 
of life. He was a man of exceeding enterprise 
and ability, and during his residence in Scipio 
was a Justice of the Peace. The maiden name 
of his wife was Chloe Browning. Her son 
William, who was associated with his father in 
farming and milling in Cayuga County, went 
with him to Canada, where he resided several 
years. He then returned to New York, and 
purchased a home in the town of Granger, Al- 
legany County, living there until his death, at 
the age of eighty-one years. He married Eliz- 
abeth Marithew, a native of Washington 
County, and a daughter of John and Martha 
(Taylor) Marithew. 

Lenora (Mrs. Van Dusen), daughter of Will- 
iam and Elizabeth (Marithew) Parks, remained 
beneath the parental roof until her marriage, 
in 1840, to Joseph La Rue, who was born in 
Washington County, New Jersey, being a son 
of John and Mary (Lake) La Rue, natives of 
the same State. Mr. La Rue was a farmer by 
occupation, and also an innkeeper at Brooks's 
Grove, where he departed this life at the age 
of forty-two years. Mrs. Lenora (Parks) La 
Rue subsequently married William Hagadorn, 
a farmer, who was a native of Cayuga County, 
but removed to Mount Morris, where he died 
at the age of sixty-eight years. Some time 
afterward, as before mentioned, his widow be- 
came the wife of Mr. Myron Van Dusen. 
Mrs. Van Dusen has two sons living, both 
born of her first marriage, their names being 
Frank A. La Rue and Fred J. La Rue. She 
is a woman of strong Christian principles, and 
is an esteemed member of the Presbyterian 
church, to which her two former husbands 
belonged. 




RLONDO W. BARKER, a farmer of 
large experience, sagacious, and prac- 
tical in the management of his af- 
fairs, is numbered among the most 
successful and well-to-do of the agriculturists 
who are pushing forward the material interests 
of Livingston County in general and of the 
town of Nunda in particular. He has tilled 
the soil to some purpose, as is shown by the 



appearance of his fine property, which is ad- 
joining the Barker homestead, where he was 
reared, the date of his birth being January 2, 
1826. He is a grandson of Munson Barker, a 
native of Connecticut, a member of a well- 
known New England family, who was a pioneer 
of Oneida County. 

Seth S. Barker, son of Munson and father of 
Orlondo, was born in Augusta, Oneida County, 
and there lived imtil after his marriage. In 
1821 he came with his bride to this county, 
brinsingr all of their household goods across 
the country with teams, and settled in Nunda. 
On East Hill he took up a tract of land nearly 
all covered with pine, oak, or chestnut trees 
and on which there stood a partially built log 
house that had been abandoned by a timid 
pioneer on account of the appearance of a 
snake. This house the family occupied for a 
few weeks before the roof was put on it. Mr. 
Barker was one of the first settlers in that part 
of Nunda ; and, having been deceived by a 
bogus agent, he was forced, after living there 
awhile, to pay for his land the second time. 
He succeeded in clearing a good portion of his 
one hundred and twenty-five acres, and added 
improvements equal to the finest in the town. 
He built a commodious frame dwelling-house, 
and remained on the homestead until his death 
in January, 1893, having lived to the venera- 
ble age of nearly ninety-two years. He was a 
man of influence among his fellow-associates, 
and served as Assessor of the town for several 
years. He married Sarah Durfee, a native of 
Rhode Island, who died in 1884, at the age of 
fourscore and two years. They reared three 
children — Munson, Orlondo W. , and Jus- 
tus L. 

Orlondo W. Barker was educated in the dis- 
trict schools of Nunda, assisted in the farm 
labors that fell to his share, and, after arriving 
at man's estate, continued working with his 
father until his marriage. He had previously 
purchased a piece of land of sixty-eight acres, 
on which he then built a fine residence, which 
is located in that ]iart of Nunda known as 
Barkertown. 

Mr. Barker wooed and won for his life com- 
panion a most estimable young woman, Miss 
Mary E. Swain, their nuptials being celebrated 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



59 



in 1S57. Mrs. Barker also comes of honored 
New England ancestry, her paternal grand- 
father, Samuel Swain, having been a native of 
Massachusetts, whence he emigrated in 18 18 
to this county, first locating in what is now 
the town of Portage. After moving to Nunda, 
he and his son erected a saw and grist mill, 
the first in Nunda, and carried on an extensive 
business, rafting their lumber down the river 
to Rochester. They also built a woollen fac- 
tory. Alfred Swain, son of Samuel, married 
Gertrude Pittenger; and Mary E. , Mrs. Bar- 
ker, was the eldest child born of their union. 
Her brothers and sisters are : Harriet, Sophia, 
Susan, Cornelia, G. Jennie, Samuel A., W. 
Edward, and Ered F". , all of whom are es- 
teemed members of society. Jennie, a tal- 
ented and highly educated young lady, is a 
teacher of art at the Female Seminary in Nor- 
folk, N. C. Ered F. , the in\-entor of the 
lubricator that bears his name, and that is 
manufactured in Chicago, was recently shot by 
a discharged employee, the wound, however, 
not proving fatal. 

Of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Barker 
two children have been born — S. Inelle and 
Ethel May. Inelle is the wife of Ray Durfee, 
of Batavia. Ethel married Dr. C. T. Hood, 
professor of mental and nervous diseases at the 
Homceopathic Hospital in Chicago, 111. ; and 
they are the parents of two children — Grace 
G. and Ethel May. Mr. and Mrs. l^arker 
have also brought up as their own the son of 
an old soldier, Willie Barker, whom they took 
when he was an infant of four months. Politi- 
cally, Mr. Barker is a firm adherent of the Re- 
publican party, and, though no aspirant for 
official honors, takes an intelligent interest in 
local and national matters. 




|^|ICHARD McMASTER, a representa- 
tive agriculturist of this part of Liv- 
ingston County, is a well-known 
resident of the town of West Sparta, 
where he is an extensive landholder, owning 
three valuable farms, all of which give sub- 
stantial evidence of his ability in farming and 
bespeak his intelligence and thrift. He is a 
native citizen, born November 29, 1825. Rich- 



ard McMaster, the first of his ancestors of whom 
he has any record, was a native of Dublin, Ire- 
land, and followed the sea for a living. In 
one of his voyages this hardy mariner came to 
America, and he subsequently brought his 
family to this country. He continued his sea- 
faring life, and eventually found a grave in the 
ocean. His son, Edward McMaster, served in 
the War of the Revolution, was taken prisoner 
during one of the battles, and came very near 
dying before he was exchanged, but recovered, 
and afterward joined the brave minute-men. 
He spent his last years in Pennsylvania, living 
to a ripe old age. 

Ebenezer McMaster, son of Edward, was 
born in Trenton, and was reared to a farmer's 
life. In 1806 he came to Livingston County, 
being one of the early settlers of West Sparta, 
where he bought a tract of unimproved land 
and began to clear a farm. He later moved to 
Kyserville in the same town, and in 1832 
bought the farm now owned and occupied by 
the subject of this sketch. Here he lived and 
labored with unceasing toil, clearing and cul- 
tivating a comfortable homestead, on which he 
resided throughout the remaining years of his 
earthly existence. He was a man of exem- 
plary habits, possessing a sound and robust 
constitution, and lived to the advanced age of 
ninety-five years. He married Ik^tsey Canada, 
who bore him twelve children that grew to 
adult life, four of them being now on earth; 
namely, James, Ebenezer, Philemon, and 
Richard. The mother likewise spent her last 
years on this farm, dying at the age of seventy- 
nine years. Both parents were deeply relig- 
ious peojjle, worthy members of the Baptist 
church. 

Richard McMaster spent the days of his 
youth on the home farm, assisting his father 
in advancing its improvement and cultivation. 
After the death of his parents he came into the 
possession of the old homestead, which is 
finely located in West Sparta, about six miles 
from the village of Dansville, and contains one 
hundred and thirty acres of fine farming land. 
Mr. McMaster has also accumulated much 
other landed property, being the owner of two 
other farms not far distant, one containing one 
hundred and eight acres, and the other one 



6o 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



hundred and fifty-one acres, and in addition 
thereto has three hundred acres of land on the 
"flats." He carries on general fanning in a 
manner worthy of emulation, rcajjing rich re- 
wards for his industry and enterprise. He 
pays a good deal of attention to stock-raising, 
and keeps fourteen horses and three hundred 
sheep, besides other stock. 

Mr. McMaster was united in marriage in 
1877 with Theresa A. Wilhclm, the daughter 
of John Wilhelm, a farmer, and one of the 
pioneer settlers of Sparta. Their hearts have 
been gladdened by the birth of two promising 
children — John Wilhelm and V'erner. Mr. 
McMaster is a stanch supporter of the views of 
the Republican party, and an effective worker 
in political circles. Religiously, both he and 
his estimable wife are active and conscientious 
members of the Methodist church. 



m\ 



IRAM P. MILLS, President of the 
Genesee River National Bank, is a 
II 9 I financier of great ability, and one of 

^""^ the foremost business men of Mount 
i\Iorris. He is a native of the Empire State, 
having been born in Dutchess County, January 
2, 1806. He comes of sturdy English ances- 
try, his father, William Mills, having been 
born in Ejigland. The father of William emi- 
grated from P2ngland to the United States with 
his family, first joining a brother who had pre- 
viously settled in New England, but shortly 
buying a farm near Morristown, N.J. He 
died soon after settling there, leaving his 
widow with one child, William, then a lad of 
a few years. The widow subsequently married 
aiiain, and remained in New Jersev- 

William Mills, who was but five years of 
age when he came with his parents to Amer- 
ica,' was reared to agricultural pursuits, and 
when a young man removed to Dutchess County, 
New York, where he married. He subse- 
quently moved to Saratoga County, and settled 
on ground made sacred by the blood of Revolu- 
tionary patriots. There he lived until after 
the birth of several of his children, when he 
removed to a point about two miles below Me- 
chanicsville, where he bought a farm of one 
hundred and sixty acres; and on this home- 



stead the three younger children of his family 
were born. An attractive feature of the place 
was the substantial frame house, built in Colo- 
nial style, with piazzas above and below, 
]5ainted a delicate cream color, and ornamented 
with green blinds, the whole being encircled 
by a beautiful lawn. It was delightfully lo- 
cated on the west bank of the Hudson River, 
of which it commanded an extensive view, both 
to the north and the south. In this charming 
spot he spent the remainder of his earthly life. 
He married Mary Neaher, a native of Rhine- 
beck, Dutchess County. Her father, who was 
born in Germany, came to New York and 
bought land adjoining the Livingston grant; 
and there the Neaher and Livingston families 
lived in intimate converse and intermarried. 
Mr. Neaher died, leaving his widow with ten 
children; and she subsequently married again, 
becoming the wife of a Mr. Cramer, a widower 
with ten children. She survived her last hus- 
band, living upward of ninety years, and died 
in Granville, N. Y. , at the home of her young- 
est step-son, who treated her with the utmost 
tenderness. Mrs. Mary Neaher Mills survived 
her husband about three years, and died at 
Mount Morris, leaving five children, of whom 
we record the following: Frederick C. , who 
died at Oswego, N. Y. , was a civil engineer by 
profession, and superintended the building of 
the Genesee Valley Canal and the construction 
of other public works. Hiram P. is the sub- 
ject of further mention below. Theodore, 
also a civil engineer, resided for some time 
at Cleveland, Ohio, but died in Livingston 
County, New York. Sarah Maria, who mar- 
ried Henry Swan, formerly of Saratoga 
County, died in New York City. Elizabeth 
Angelica married Captain George H. Brad- 
bury, and a sketch of their lives may be 
found on another page of this volume. 

Hiram P. Mills acquired his education in 
the pioneer schools of his time, and was reared 
to habits of industry and economy. He as- 
sisted his father on the farm until twenty years 
old, when he married and commenced the 
struggle, of life on his own account, even with 
the world, his only capital being a robust con- 
stitution, a courageous spirit, and a well-bal- 
anced mind, so that it may be truly said of 




HIRAM P. MILLS. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



63 



him that he is the architect of his own fortune. 
For a time Mr. Mills was engaged in a mer- 
cantile business, keeping a small store on the 
Champlain Canal. He afterward became an 
assistant in building the first railway of the 
United States, extending from Albany to 
Schenectady. This road had wooden rails, 
with strap-iron on top; and the cars were 
drawn by horses. Mr. Mills subsequently be- 
came a civil engineer, and was a large contrac- 
tor on different canals. He was assistant 
encfineer on the Oswego Canal, a contractor in 
the Delaware district of the Pennsylvania 
Canal, and assisted in laying out the route of 
the Genesee Valley Canal. In 1S3S he settled 
in Mount Morris, and has since then been 
prominently identified with the interests of 
this section of Livingston County, his sound 
judgment, great business tact, and perfect in- 
tegrity placing him in a conspicuous place 
among its leading citizens. 

Mr. Mills has been twice married. By his 
first wife, Jane Dunn, who was a native of 
Saratoga County, and the daughter of Peter 
Dunn, he had nine children, three of whom are 
now living, as follows: Mary is the wife of 
Dr. Myron H. Mills, and has two children — 
Isabelle and Jennie. Charles H. married 
Maria Allen. John E. married Frances 
Truesdale ; and they have one child, Sarah 
Maria. William Mills, the first-born, married 
Recta Baker, and at his death left one son, H. 
Ferry. Frederick married Jennie Garling- 
house, and died, leaving one son, Frederick. 
Edward A. married Mary A. Pray, and at 
his decease left four children — Edward D., 
George L. , Fannie J., and John P. Orreann, 
Isabelle, and Theodore died young. 

Pxlward Augustus Mills, above named, 
passed to the higher existence December 4, 
1 89 1, at the age of fifty years, after a brave 
and heroic struggle of many months against 
that insidious disease, consumption. He was 
a man of marked business ability, faithful in 
the discharge of every duty, and for many 3'ears 
prior to his decease had held the responsible 
])osition of paying teller of the Genesee River 
National Bank, resiirning it on account of ill- 
ness in the summer of 1890. He subsequently 
spent several weeks at a health resort in Penn- 



sylvania ; but, receiving no physical benefit, he 
was taken to a medical institute in Buffalo. 
Poinding no relief there, Mr. Mills returned to 
his home, where everything that human skill 
or love could suggest to allay his sufferings 
and prolong his stay upon earth was done. As 
a man and as a citizen, he was held in the 
highest respect. He had served as a member 
of the Board of Education several terms, be- 
sides filling minor offices, always looking after 
the interests of each with strict fidelity. In 
every walk of life his character was above re- 
proach, being a kind neighbor, a true friend, 
an affectionate son, a devoted husband, and a 
loving and indulgent parent ; and a pleasant 
memory of him will long be retained through- 
out the community. 

Mrs. Jane Dunn Mills died in 1866; and 
Mr. Mills was subsequently united in the holy 
bonds of matrimony with Mrs. Cornelia (Be- 
gole) DePuy, a native of Mount Morris, daugh- 
ter of William and P^leanor (Bo \'les) Begole 
(of whom a sketch appears elsewhere in this 
work), and- the widow of the late Philip M. 
DePuy. Cornelia Begole was reared and edu- 
cated at Mount Morris, and resided with her 
parents until twenty-one years of age, when 
she became the wife of Philip M. DePuy. He 
was a native of Cayuga County, New York, 
and was a well-known contractor and builder, 
besides which he was interested in agricultural 
pursuits. After his marriage he settled on a 
farm near Mount Morris, where he engaged in 
general farming until 1S54, when, following 
the tide of emigration westward, he removed 
to Michigan, settling in Tecumseh, Lenawee 
County. He died in the month of August in 
the same year, and the following spring his 
widow returned to the place of her nativity. 
She subsequently became the wife of the sub- 
ject of this sketch, and has since resided at 
Mount Morris. Of her union with Mr. De- 
Puy two sons were born. The elder son, Will- 
iam PVanklin DePuy, who is in business in 
Cheboygan, Mich., married Nellie Rose, of 
Nunda; and they are the parents of three chil- 
dren — Harry Rose, Cora Belle, and Florence. 
Eugene, the second son, married Annette 
Minor, and died at the age of twenty-three 
years, leaving her with one son, also named 



64 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Eusfene, who resides with his mother in ^Nlount 
Pleasant, Mich. 

The accompanying portrait of Mr. Hiram P. 
Mills lends additional interest to the foregoing 
sketch of the life of this venerable and honored 
citizen. 




KRTRAND G. FOSS, attorney at 
Dansville, was born at Le Roy, Pa., 
September 19, 1861, being son of 
the late Andrew D. Foss, who re- 
moved to that place from New Hampshire at 
an early age, with his parents. Andrew D. 
Foss, during the time he resided at Le Roy, 
took an active part in the politics of Bradford 
County, holding the offices of Justice of the 
Peace, County Commissioner, and doorkeeper 
of the House of Representatives at Harrisburg. 
In 1868 he removed to Canton, Pa., where he 
lived in retirement until his decease, which oc- 
curred in January, 1893, at the age of seventy- 
four. The maiden name of his wife, the 
mother of the subject of this sketch, was Sarah 
S. Parkhurst, of Le Roy. Mrs. Foss, now 
aged sixty-eight, is still living at Canton, Pa. 
Bertrand G. Foss, who is an only son, at- 
tended the graded school at Canton, and grad- 
uated therefrom in 1877, delivering the 
valedictory address of his class. He was 
afterward employed as a teacher in the same 
school. In 1882 he came to Dansville as the 
agent for the Ithaca Piano and Organ Com- 
pany. In 1883 he commenced the study of 
law in the office of Faulkner & Bissell, and 
was admitted to the bar at Rochester in 
March, 1886. In 1889 Mr. Foss entered into 
a copartnership with Charles J. Bissell, Esq., 
for the practice of law under the firm name of 
Bissell & P'oss. This association was termi- 
nated in 1889 by the removal of Mr. Bissell to 
Rochester, since which time Mr. Foss has con- 
tinued the practice of law in the same office 
where he began his clerkship. 

Mr. Foss, as a firm believer in the princi- 
ples of the Democratic party, has taken an 
active interest in the politics of Dansville and 
Livingston County. Since the year 1885 he 
has been Justice of the Peace of the town of 
North Dansville, and a portion of the time 



Police Justice and attorney of the village. In 
1889 he was the candidate of his party for 
District Attorney of Livingston County, and 
was defeated by a small majority in a county 
strongly Republican. He has repeatedly rep- 
resented his party upon the County Committee, 
and was a delegate from Livingston County to 
the Democratic State Convention in 1894. 
Mr. Foss and his wife, whose maiden name 
was Hattie J. Bradley, and to whom he was 
united in marriage at Dansville in 1SS6, are 
attendants upon the Episcopal form of wor- 
ship. Mr. Foss, besides enjoying professional 
distinction, is closely identified, with various 
benevolent and social fraternities of Dansville, 
being a member of Phcenix Lodge, No. 113, 
A. F. & A. M. , Canaseraga Lodge, No. 125, 
Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Dans- 
ville Camp, No. 64, K. O. T. M., and Pro- 
tectives No. i, Fire Company. 




ARL G. CLARKE, editor and pro- 
prietor of the enterprising weekly 
known as the Perry Record, having 
his office in the Sutherland Building, 
was born in Brooklyn, N. Y. , July 2, 1864. 
He is the son of Ephraim M. and Sophie 
(Tybell) Clarke, and a great-great-grandson of 
Abraham Clarke, who was one of the signers 
of the Declaration of Independence, and a 
native of Springfield, N.J. 

Ephraim M. Clarke was born in Conesus, 
Livingston County, N. Y. , in March, 181 2. 
When a lad he served an apprenticeship at 
tailoring, and, after working as a journeyman 
for a time, entered into business for himself as 
a merchant tailor, first in Buffalo, N. Y., and 
next in New York City, where he remained 
several years. In 1870 he moved to Livonia, 
Livingston County, being there continuously 
engaged till the spring of 1880, when he re- 
moved with his family to the thriving village 
of Perry. Here he successfully carried on his 
business of merchant tailoring until failing 
health compelled him to retire from active 
labors. He was twice married. By his first 
wife, Louisa Bruen, he had nine children, five 
of whom are now living. Some years after 
her death he married Sophie Tybell, who 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



6S 



was born in Gefle, Sweden. One son, Carl 
G. , the subject of this sketch, was the fruit of 
their union. The death of Ephraim M. 
Clarke occurred on December 14, 1S91. 

Carl G. Clarke was educated at I>ivonia 
Union School, St. Paul's Military Academy at 
Riverdale-on-the-Hudson, and at Perry Union 
School. At the age of si.xteen years he began 
preparing for his life's work by entering the 
jM'inting-office of the Wyoming County Herald, 
published in Perry by Lewis K. Chapin, who 
afterward sold the business to George C. 
King. Having remained for some time in the 
employ of the new proprietor, in 1882 Mr. 
Clarke went to Buffalo, where for a period he 
worked as compositor on the Buffalo Courier. 
Later he went to Rochester, and worked in 
several of the largest job printing-offices in 
that city, being also at different times a com- 
positor on the Deiuoerat and Chronicle, the 
Morning Herald, and the Sunday Herald. 

Returning to Perry on September 6, 1885, 
he assisted the Rev. John F. Gates in estab- 
lishing the Perry Weekly Neivs, and was in 
partnership with Mr. Gates for two years. 

In March, 1889, the year after his marriage, 
Mr. Clarke entered into partnership with his 
wife's father, Edwin M. Read, who purchased 
the Akron Brteze, a weekly newsjaaper pub- 
lished at Akron, Erie County, N. Y. ; and the 
two families removed from Perry to that place. 
Under their management the business was 
largely increased, and numerous improvements 
were made in the paper. Mr. Clarke, desir- 
ing to embark in business on his own respon- 
sibility, the partnership was dissolved in De- 
cember, 1 893 ; and he returned to Perry, 
where on January 24, 1894, he printed the 
first number of the Perry Record. Mr. Clarke 
was given a cordial welcome at his old home, 
and within a short time secured a good list 
of subscribers, which has steadily increased. 
The Record is now a welcome visitor in hun- 
dreds of homes, and is prized as a represent- 
ative, up-to-date paper, independent in every 
respect. 

On January 24, 1888, Mr. Clarke married 
Carrie D. Read, daughter of Edwin M. and 
Mary M. Read, of Perry. Mr. and Mrs. 
Clarke are the proud parents of three children, 



namely: Josephine, born P'ebruary 8, 1889; 
Read, born March 12, 1891; and Mary, born 
April 15, 1893. 



r. JONATHAN B. MOREY was 
orn in Dansville, Livingston County, 
N. Y., November 26, 1836. His 
grandfather, Harcourt Morey, was a 
native and farmer of Dutchess County, whence 
he went to Schoharie County, and from there 
to Dansville, bringing with him a wife and 
three children, and was one of the pioneer 
farmers of this section. Purchasing a large 
tract of timbered land, he cleared and culti- 
vated it, and in course of time erected a house 
and barn. His final place of residence was 
Erie County, Pennsylvania. There on the 
State line he kept an inn, which was the sta- 
tion for the negroes from the South who were 
fleeing to Canada. Mr. Morey was a Whig, 
and in sympathy with tlie Abolitionists. 

Milton More)', son »i Harcourt and father of 
Jonathan, was inured to the toils of a farmer's 
life from his early boyhood, when he assisted 
in the heavy task of clearing away the dense 
and almost impenetrable forest growth. But 
his father, realizing the advantage of every 
man's having a special line of work upon 
which to rely for a livelihood, apprenticed the 
boy to a tanner, that he might become one of 
the hide and leather guild. Young Milton 
Morey applied himself diligently to the vari- 
ous branches of the trade, in due time becom- 
ing both skilful and expeditious, and finally 
purchased the tannery which occupied the 
space on the corner of Main and Milton Streets 
in Dansville, the last-named street being so 
called in honor of him. He remained in the 
business a number of years, was prominent in 
local public affairs, being one of the incor- 
porators of the village, and was held in high 
esteem throughout the county. In 1855, after 
selling his tannery, Mr. Morey migrated to 
Southern Minnesota, where he bought a large 
tract of timbered land twenty miles from 
human habitation, and for thirteen years en- 
gaged in the lumber trade. He ne.\t went to 
Yankton, and, investing in land, cleared a good 
farm. He died in 1886, aged seventy-six years. 



66 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Milton Morey's first wife was Eva Barn- 
hart, of Dansville, who was of German par- 
entage, and was of a family of three children. 
She was a member of the Methodist church, 
and died in 1837, leaving one child, Jonathan 
B. Morey, the subject of the present sketch. 
Her father, Frederick Barnhart, came from 
Germany. He was a well-read man, and 
earned his living as a shoemaker. By his 
second wife, Eliza Ribbey, Mr. Morey had 
four children — Priscilla, Perrilla, Permilla, 
and Daniel — all of whom are living in 
Dakota. Mrs. Eliza Ribbey Morey died in 
Dakota. 

After the death of his mother, little Jona- 
than, then an infant of ten months, was taken 
to live with his uncle, Jonathan Barnhart, with 
whom he remained until i860. The best edu- 
cational advantages that the vicinity afforded 
were given the boy, who was sent to the dis- 
trict school of the neighborhood and afterward 
to the normal school in Albany in 1858. He 
began teaching when he was seventeen, and 
taught in the same district school four terms, 
proving both his competency and popularity, 
and after leaving Albany taught in Dansville 
for two years. At this time his uncle died, 
and the farm to which he fell heir now claimed 
his attention. In 1871 he formed a partnership 
with his brother-in-law, Mr. George A. Sweet, 
in the nursery business. Ten years later Mr. 
Morey sold out his interest to Mr. Sweet; and 
then was established the nursery firm of J. B. 
Morey & Son, who are among the largest 
dealers in trees in this part of the State, and 
have one of the finest places on Main Street, 
the father owning also another farm in this 
locality. Mr. J. B. Morey's influence is felt 
in many directions, and he has been connected 
with both local and nation 1 politics. He is 
President of the Dansville Fair and Trottinsr 
Association, of which he has been a member 
since its organization; and he designed and 
laid out its present fine track, said to be the 
first in the State. He is also President of the 
gas company of the town, and is a stockholder 
in the National Bank of Dansville. In his 
political career Mr. Morey has displayed rare 
tact and keen jiercejition, and is known far and 
near as one of the .strongest Republicans in his 



section. He was elected to the Assembly of 
1864, and re-elected in 1865, when there were 
two districts, and again in 1872 and 1876. 
He has been President of the village, and has 
been three times elected Trustee. He was 
sent as a National Delegate to the convention 
that nominated General Grant for President 
for the second term. 

In 1861 Mr. Morev was united in marriage 
to Miss Laura Sweet, a daughter of Mr. Sid- 
ney Sweet. Mrs. Morey is a native of Michi- 
gan, but came with her father to Livingston 
County in 1841. They settled in .Sparta, 
where her father bought a saw-mill. He was 
afterward interested in the foundry works of 
Livingston, which he continued until he 
opened an exchange office known as "Sweet's. " 
This he conducted for some time, and then 
founded the National Bank of Dansville. Mr. 
Sweet left New York State during the latter 
part of his life, and became a resident of Vine- 
land, N.J. After three trips to Europe he 
returned to Dansville, and died at the home of 
his daughter. Mrs. Morey was one of four 
children, and has two brothers, George A. and 
Edwin T. , now living. F"our children have 
been born to Mr. and Mrs. Morey. The eld- 
est son, Edwin S. Morey, was a graduate of 
Hamilton College, and was admitted to the 
bar at Buffalo. After beginning to practise in 
Dansville, he went to Grand Rapids, Mich., 
where he entered the law ofifice of an uncle, 
and in a short time was made attorney for the 
Michigan Trust Company. From the brilliant 
career which seemed to lie before him he was 
suddenly cut off, dying of typhoid fever at 
thirty-one years of age. Fanny Morey is in 
the seminary at Dansville. Jonathan B. , Jr., 
a graduate of the normal college at Roches- 
ter, and Sidney S. are with their father in 
the nursery business. The family attend the 
Episcopal church. 




,EV. JOSIAH EDWARDS KIT- 
TREDGE, D.D., pa.stor of the Pres- 
byterian church at Geneseo, Living- 
ston County, N. Y. , was born on 
Washington Street, Boston, Mass., October 
12, 1836. He is descended from a long line 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



67 



of English ancestors, the first of the family to 
come to America being John Kittredge, a 
ship-master, who arrived here in 1660, re- 
ceived a grant of land in Billerica, Mass., and 
married Mary Littlefield, daughter of Francis 
Littlefiekl, of Woburn, Mass. 

Their son John was born January 24, 1666, 
and married Hannah French, daughter of 
John French. fie died April 27, 1714, 
and his widow in 1725. They were the 
parents of twelve children, one of whom, 
Francis, was born September 14, 1686, and be- 
came a physician, dying September i, 1756. 
His son Solomon, the great-grandfather of the 
subject of this sketch, resided for a time in 
Tewksbury, Mass., and from there removed to 
Mount Vernon, N. H., where he died August 
24, 1792. His wife was Tabitha Ingalls, and 
she became the mother of twelve children. 
One of these, Josiah, the grandfather of the 
subject of this biography, was born in Mount 
Vernon, N. H., July 6, 1761, and learned the 
trade of a blacksmith, following that in con- 
nection with farming throughout his life. 
His last days were spent with his son at 
Nashua, N.H., where he died May 24, 1852, 
aged ninety years. He was married Oc- 
tober 13, 1792, to Mary Baker, who was born 
May 23, 1762. She was the daughter of Tim- 
othy and Mary (Dakin) Baker. She died Sep- 
tember 16, 1828, the mother of seven children, 
of whom Josiah, the father of the Rev. Josiah 
E. Kittredge, was the eldest. 

Josiah Kittredge, the second of the name, 
entered Phillips Academy, Andover, Mass., 
March 11, 181 3, and later studied medicine 
with Dr. Spaulding, of Amherst, N. H. He 
afterward attended medical lectures at Dart- 
mouth and Harvard, and became a practising 
physician in the State of New Hampshire, 
being elected a member of the State Medical 
Society, June 6, 1S20. He was one of the 
incorporators of the Pembroke Musical Soci- 
ety, and for a time was President of the State 
Medical Society. F"rom 1817 to 1833 he 
practised as physician and surgeon in Pem- 
broke, N. H., from 1833 to 1838 in Boston, 
Mass. ; thence in 1838 he removed to Concord, 
N. H., and the following year to Nashua in the 
same State, practising in both these places. 



In 1856 he moved to South Hadley, Mass., and 
was physician for Mount Holyoke Seminary 
for four years. In 1S60 he settled in Mont 
Clair, N.J., where he resided until 1869, 
when he removed to Glastonbury, Conn., and 
there died in 1872. He was three times mar- 
ried — first, on May 24, 1825, to Mary Blan- 
chard Stuart, of Amherst, N. H., who died at 
the age of twenty-five years, in 1828, leaving 
one daughter, Mary Clarke. In April, 1830, 
he married Sarah Whiting F"rench, of Bed- 
ford, N. H., who died June 10, 1842, leav- 
ing three children — Charles Stuart, Sarah 
French, and Josiah Pldwards. Dr. Kittredge's 
third wife was Susan Baylies Brigham, of 
Grafton, Mass., whom he married May 7, 
1844. She passed away at Geneseo, N.Y. , 
January 23, 1892. Josiah PIdwards Kittredge 
was graduated from Kimball Union Academy, 
Meriden, N. H., in the class of 1854, and from 
Phillips Academy, Andover, Mass., in 1855. 
The next fall he entered Yale College, grad- 
uating in the class of i860, a classmate of 
Professor O. C. Marsh, of Yale, the late Hon. 
William Walter Phelps, and others. For a 
year he taught a select school in Mont Clair, 
N.J. He studied theology a year at Union 
Seminary, New York, and two years at An- 
dover, Mass., graduating there in 1864. In 
1866, for benefit of health and general advan- 
tage, he travelled in Egypt and Palestine, and 
pursued the study of language and philosophy 
in Paris and in Heidelberg. He returned to 
America in 1868, and settled in Glastonbury, 
Conn., where he was pastor of the Congrega- 
tional church for about four and a half years. 
On June 28, 1871, he married Miss Emma 
McNair, of Groveland, Livingston County, 
N. Y., daughter of Robert and Amelia (War- 
ner) McNair. Together they journeyed to the 
Pacific Coa.st, and in 1873 went to Europe, 
accompanied by Dr. Kittredge's mother. For 
two years he was pa.st(>r of the American 
Union Church in P^lorence, Italy. He re- 
turned in the autumn of 1876, and entered 
upon the pastorate of the Presbyterian church 
of Geneseo, April 18, 1877. Dr. and Mrs. 
Kittredge have four children: Robert Josiah, 
born in Gla.stonbury, Conn., July 24, 1872; 
Charles Firenze, born in Florence, Italy, Jan- 



68 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



iiary 5, 1875 ; William McNair, born January 7, 
1877, at Mount Morris, N. Y. ; and Mary Emma, 
born September 14, 1879, at Genesee, N. Y. 

Dr. Kittredge is an enthusiastic student in 
Biblical archaeology, and has perhaps one of 
the most valuable collections of publications 
relating to researches in Egypt and other lands 
in the East to be found in any private library 
in Western New York. He is a member of 
the London Society of Biblical Archccology, 
Associate of the Victoria Institute, and Local 
Secretary of the Egyptian Exploration Fund. 
The University of the City of New York con- 
ferred on him the degree of D. D. in 1884. 
The church of which he is the pastor is a large 
and vigorous one. Four Presbyterian churches 
in Western New York alone exceed it in 
membership. 




\ORTER T. B. MUNGER, a native- 
born citizen of Warsaw, where his 
birth occurred September 15, 1839, 
is worthy of representation in this 
biographical volume, being the descendant of 
an honored pioneer family of this town, his 
grandfather, Samuel Munger, having migrated 
from Connecticut to Wyoming County in the 
early part of this century. 

This part of the State was then in its pris- 
tine wildness; and the intervening country 
was traversed through the vast forests with a 
team of horses which drew a wagon contain- 
ing his wife, five children, and all of their 
earthly effects. Mr. Munger took up fifty 
acres of heavily timbered land in the south- 
west part of the town of W'arsaw, and set to 
work to fell a few trees, which he soon con- 
verted into a log cabin to shelter the family. 
In the course of a few brief years he was en- 
abled to erect a small frame house, which was 
far more roomy and convenient than the rude 
log dwelling. The huge fireplace, before 
which all of the cooking was done, was kept 
well supplied with great logs, which served to 
light as well as heat the room. Four sons and 
two daughters were born of the union of Mr. 
and Mrs. Samuel Munger, further mention of 
whom may be seen elsewhere in connection 
with the sketch of Mrs. Ruth Cleveland. 



Morgan M., eldest son of Samuel Munger, 
was born in the year 1800, during the resi- 
dence of his parents in Connecticut; and he 
was sixteen years old when he accompanied 
them to this county. In tlic pioneer labor of 
improving a farm from the wilderness he was 
an important factor, and after the death of his 
parents he succeeded to its ownership. He 
bought other land, increasing his farm, which 
is still owned by his heirs, from the original 
fifty acres to three hundred acres. In 1844 he 
built a more commodious frame house, the 
material used in its construction being drawn 
from Rochester, forty-nine miles away; and 
this is now used as the farm residence. In 
1832 Mr. Morgan M. was united in marriage 
to Miss P. K. Kingsley, who was born in Ver- 
mont, and reared to years of maturity by a 
family named Scoville. They became the 
parents of eight sons and three daughters, all 
of whom are living except three, one son being 
Porter T. B. , the subject of the present sketch. 
The second son died at two and a half years of 
age. The youngest son died from accidentally 
stabbing himself, at the age of ten years. 
The eldest daughter, Annie, who married 
Marion Belden, died in September, 1888; and 
her husband and the two sons born to them 
have also passed to the bourn from which no 
traveller returns. 

Porter T. B. Munger was reared on the pa- 
rental farm, and attended school until seven- 
teen years of age, when an acute inflammation 
of the eyes compelled him to abandon his 
studies. Inheriting the patriotic .spirit that 
stirred the blood of his ancestors, he served 
during the late Rebellion in defence of his 
country, enlisting August 11, 1862, in Com- 
pany D, One Hundred and Thirtieth New 
York Volunteer Infantry. The following July 
he was transferred to the Nineteenth New 
York Cavalry, which was later known as the 
F"irst New York Dragoons; and until the close 
of the war Mr. Munger was in active service, 
but was never wounded nor taken prisoner, al- 
though he received a serious injury. Much 
of the time he was on special duty, for 
eight months being in Lincoln United States 
General Hospital, as mounted orderly, hav- 
ing been detailed to the position by Dr. 



BIOGRAPHICALi REVIEW 



69 



J. C. McKee, who is now on the retired list at 
Jiutler, Pa. 

Mr. Munger was married in July, 1S60, to 
Maria B. Hoisington, who died ten years later, 
leaving two children — Blanche P., wife of 
Frank Martin, of Warsaw, and the mother of 
one child, William; and Lillian B., who mar- 
ried Adelbert Crocker, of Warsaw, and has 
one child, Lulu. Mr. Munger was again mar- 
ried, in 1873, to Miss Agnes ¥. Tuttle, of 
Warsaw. Her father, Her\'ey Tuttle, was 
born in Vermont, but removed from there to 
this State, settling in Washington County. 
Later he removed to Warsaw, where he mar- 
ried pLSther Rogers, a native of England. 
They made their home in Warsaw till they 
departed this life, leaving two daughters and 
three sons, the latter of whom are living in 
the West. 

Mr. Munger takes an intelligent interest in 
all matters concerning the welfare of the gen- 
eral public, and, although he has never aspired 
to office, served for six years as Constable. 
Socially, he is an influential member of the 
Gibbs Post, No. 130, Grand Army of the Re- 
public, in which he has served as Officer of 
the Day and as Junior Master. He is also 
prominent in the Masonic fraternity, and has 
occupied most of the chairs excepting that of 
Master. Both he and his wife are esteemed 
members of the Congregational church. 




|RS. JOANNA FOOTE is the rep- 
resentative of a well-known pio- 
neer family of Livingston County, 
and is held in high esteem 
throughout the town of Mount Morris, wherein 
she has so long resided, faithful in her duties 
as wife, mother, and friend. Her maiden 
name was Joanna Sturges. Her parents, 
ICbenezer and Mary (Howard) Sturges, were 
natives of Cayuga County, but were in early 
life numbered among the pioneer settlers of 
this county, where they were well-to-do mem- 
bers of the farming communit}'. 

Mrs. Foote has been twice married, and is 
now the second time a widow. Her first hus- 
band, Christopher C. Thorp, deiwrted this life 
in 1873. Her second husband, Giles W. 



Foote, whom she married some years later, 
died in 1885. Mr. Christopher C. Thorp was 
a son of Osborn and Mary (Criss) Thorp, who 
came to Livingston County at an early period 
of its settlement, when it was but sparsely 
populated. In common with their neighbors, 
they lived on the productions of their land, and 
carded, spun, and wove the material for all of 
their clothing. When a young man, Mr. 
Thorp learned the carpenter's trade; and he 
worked at that occupation until i860, when 
he bought a farm in the town of Mount Mor- 
ris, which he operated successfully until the 
time of his death. He built a substantial ■ 
frame house, with convenient barns and out- 
buildings, and otherwise improved his home- 
stead, devoting his time and attention to 
increasing the value of his property, which 
included eighty-seven acres of rich and produc- 
tive land. Of his union with Joanna Sturges 
two children were born; namely, Hattie and 
Edward, the former of whom married Charles 
Brown, of Mount Morris, and has one child, a 
daughter named Helen. 

Edward Thorp, Mrs. Foote's only son, was 
born in Mount Morris, August 8, 1855, and, 
after completing his education in the district 
schools, assisted his parents in the labors of 
the farm, obtaining a practical knowledge of 
agriculture. On the death of his father he 
succeeded to the ownership of the estate, and 
this he has since carried on with ability and 
success. In 1877 he was united in marriage 
with Miss Ruth Case, the daughter of Will- 
iam Case, of Mount Morris ; and their happy 
home has been enlivened by the advent of two 
bright and active children — Mabel and How- 
ard. In politics Mr. Thorp has followed in 
the footsteps of his father, and uniformly casts 
his vote with the Democratic party. His ex- 
cellent wife is an esteemed member cjf the 
Methodist church. 



OHN BLUM, the welLknown shoe man- 
ufacturer of Dansville, N. V., and 
founder of the retail boot and shoe store 
now conducted by his sons, was born 
in Germany, September i, 1822. His father, 
John Blum, Sr. , who was a shoemaker, was in 



70 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



the army of Napoleon in 1S13, in the Russian 
campaign, and was detailed to make shoes for 
the soldiers. After serving three years, he 
returned to his native town, and in 1817 mar- 
ried and settled upon a small farm, which he 
conducted, at the same time working at his 
trade. He died in 1838, at the age of forty- 
four years. His wife was Mary Seybold, 
daughter of Matthias Seybold, and they had 
nine children, five of whom lived to become of 
age; namely, Melchior, Catherine, John, Jo- 
seph, and Frank. Catherine and John are 
the sole survivors. John was the only one 
who came to America. The mother was of 
the German Catholic religion, and died in her 
native country, at the age of seventy-five. 

John Blum was educated at the common 
schools of Germany, and left the parental roof 
at the age of si.xteen. He learned the trade of 
a shoemaker, and worked in factories in Switz- 
erland, Austria, and other countries. In 1851, 
a few years after his marriage, he left his wife 
and two children, and started for the New 
W'orld. Arriving in New York City, he ob- 
tained employment at 648 Broadway, where he 
remained about six months, having then the 
misfortune of losing his wages. Not finding 
further employment in that city, he was com- 
pelled through lack of resources to walk to 
Albany. From there he went to Utica, and 
thence to Hampton, Oneida County, where he 
worked in a shoe-shop for a short time. A 
year or two later he sent the neces.sary means 
to Germany for his family to join him in 
America. After plying his trade in various 
places, he obtained a position as foreman in 
a shoe factory at Nunda. There he worked 
diligently for five years, and in 1859 removed 
to Dansville, where he established a small 
shoe-shop of his own. He lived a careful and 
moral life, obtained the respect and friendship 
of his fellow-townsmen, and increased steadily 
in prosperity until his business became large 
and lucrative. In 1886 he obtained patents 
upon the special line of goods he manufactures, 
and at the present time he employs several 
travelling salesmen. His factory in Dansville 
furnishes constant employment to from forty 
to fifty hands. He is assisted in business by 
three of his sons, who attend to both the fac- 



tory and salesroom. Their retail store is situ- 
ated on Main Street, and is filled with a most 
complete and varied stock of footwear, includ- 
ing Mr. Blum's own specialty, known as 
"Home Comfort " shoes. 

The maiden name of Mr. Blum's first wife, 
whom he married in Germany in 1S48, was 
Euphrosyne Beeler; and she had nine chil- 
dren — John B. , Joseph C. , Anthony, Barbara, 
Daniel, Frank J., Philip, Lizzie, and Catherine. 
John B. was in the United States army, and 
died from disability, at the age of thirty-eight 
years. . Joseph C. married Ida Roach, and is 
now living in Pennsylvania, a salesman for a 
New York shoe house. He has eight children 
— Ida May, Joseph, Gertrude, Rosa, Charles, 
Edward, Eugene, and Leon. Anthony married 
Barbara Jackson, is a stock-raiser in Texas, 
and has two children — Lantie and Barbara. 
Barbara married Jacob F. Schubmehl, and died 
in 1886. Daniel married Mary Mundig, of 
Wayland, and has three children — Euphro- 
syne, Raymond, and Walter. Daniel is with 
his father in the retail department. Frank J., 
who is also in the firm, married Molly Roach, 
of Pennsylvania ; and they have one son named 
John. Philip I^. is a graduate of the Dans- 
ville Seminary, and has been a boot and shoe 
dealer in the West, but is now with his father. 
Lizzie is still at home. Catherine is the wife 
of Louis Sauerbier, and lives in Jersey City, 
N.J. At present the firm consi.sts of the elder 
Blum and his sons, P'rank, Philip, and Daniel. 
All of Mr. Blum's children, with the excep- 
tion of John and Joseph, were born in Amer- 
ica. His first wife dying in 1865, Mr. Blum 
married Gertrude Nientimp, a native of Ger- 
many, and by her he had one child, Christina, 
now deceased, who was the wife of Frank 
Schubmehl. 

Mr. Blum is a member of the St. Boni- 
facius Society, and his sons are connected with 
the E. O. K. of R., the C. R. & B. A., also 
the C. M. B. A., and the Protective P'ire 
Company, having held offices, one as Treas- 
urer, and another as Chaplain. Mr. Blum 
has been for many years a Master of the vil- 
lage, and also Overseer of the Poor. He is a 
charter member of the Canaseraga Fire Com- 
pany of Dansville. He is a Democrat in poll- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



7' 



tics, and he and his family are connected with 
the German church. He has been Secretary 
and Treasurer, and is now Master, of the 
church society. Mr. Blum has labored dili- 
gently ; and he not only enjoys extreme busi- 
ness prosperity, but also the respect and 
esteem of his fellow-townsmen, and with his 
family occupies a very high position in the 
community. 



-OHN HUGH McNAUGHTON, author 
of "Onnalinda," a metrical romance, 
was born in Caledonia, Livingston 
County, N. Y. , July i, 1829. His 
father, John McNaughton, who was a native of 
Perthshire, Scotland, emigrated to America in 
January, 1826. Accompanied by his wife and 
five children, he came to Livingston County, 
where he jjurchased a farm and engaged in 
agricultural ]3ursuits during the remainder 
of his life. He died at the age of eighty 
years. 

The elder McNaughton was married, when in 
Scotland, to Margaret Cameron, also a native 
of Perthshire. She survived her husband ten 
years, and lived to be eighty years old. Their 
children were six in number — Ann, Margaret, 
Catherine, Jane, Donald, and John H. John 
Hugh McNaughton was the youngest child. 
He attended the home school until sufficiently 
advanced for entrance to the old Temple Hill 
Academy ; and from there he went to the acad- 
emy at Riga, where the educational facilities 
were considered to be of a superior kind. In 
1 85 1 he was married to Miss Katherine Chris- 
tie, daughter of Hugh and Mary (Cameron) 
Christie; and they had two daughters — Dora 
and Stella. Dora became the wife of W. J. 
Byam, a native of Canada, and is now a widow 
with three children — John Hugh, George Lyt- 
ton, and Helen Katherine. Mr. W. J. Byam 
was a son of the Rev. George F. and Maria 
(Pike) Byam. He received his education at 
Toronto University and the Canadian Military 
College. After this he studied law with Will- 
iam F. Coggswell, of Rochester, N. Y. , was 
admitted to the bar in 1877, and for a number 
of years was in practice in Caledonia. In 
1 891 he removed to Niagara Falls, where he 



became the first city attorney. He died at 
Niagara Falls, September 26, 1894. 

Mrs. Katherine Christie McNaughton is still 
living in Caledonia. Mr. John H. McNaugh- 
ton died at his home in Caledonia, December, 
1891, at the age of sixty-two years. His ill- 
ness was brief, and seldom has such a light 
gone out from any community as when his 
de]3arted. 

John Hugh McNaughton, a writer of charm- 
ing songs in a setting of ecjually charming 
music, began in his earlier years when at 
school to express his thoughts in verse, giving 
evidence of real poetic talent, perhaps de- 
scended to him through his mother from her 
native Scottish heaths. As he grew older, he 
continued to use his pen, largely but not 
wholl}' in imaginative composition. Mr. Mc- 
Naughton's home was situated on a winding 
road, quite retired, among maples and ever- 
greens in the beautiful Genesee valley; and 
from this secluded retreat he sent out his first 
considerable literary work, a "Treatise on 
Music." It was a subject on which he was 
qualified to write, as he was conversant with 
several musical instruments, and had already 
contributed papers on harmony and kindred 
themes to foreign and American journals. 
Mr. McNaughton also contributed other papers 
to the leading reviews, one of which, as note- 
worthy, maybe mentioned, "The Red Man," 
printed in the NinctccnllL Cciitiny, in May, 
1885, which attracted much attention. Some 
of his sheet music songs have won remarkable 
success, as many as four hundred and fifty 
thousand having been published, of these five, 
"Faded Coat of Blue," "Belle Mahone," 
"Jamie True," "As we went a-haying," and 
"Love at Home." Twelve songs in book 
form, with music by the celebrated composer, 
Virginia Gabriel, were published simultane- 
ously in London and New York. 

Mr. McNaughton's first collection of poems 
was issued under the attractive title, "Babble 
Brook Songs," in 1864. It is of this book 
that the beloved New P'ngland poet, Henry 
\V. Longfellow, wrote in a since published 
letter: "Your poems have touched me very 
much. Tears fell down my cheeks as I read 
them." But his most noted work is the met- 



72 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



rical romance which bears the title of "Onna- 
linda, " and which discUises his power of 
delineation of character, his scope of fancy, 
and his deep love of nature. The book is full 
of interest to its closing page. Its scenes are 
laid in the early times when the Indian walked 
the same sod for which the English and French 
contended, regardless of the original land- 
owner's rights and feelings. The Genesee 
valley was the locality of battle in those his- 
toric times, and naturally of stratagems, plots, 
and many exciting adventures and escapes. 
With some of these the poet has woven a fas- 
cinating love tale in verse, which compels 
the reader's attention to the happy and peace- 
ful conclusion. From the English across the 
sea recognition of his work came to the gifted 
author while he was alive to know it. Many 
letters were received by him, some of which 
have been published, among them an autograph 
one from Lord Lytton (Owen Meredith), one 
also from John Bright, besides a great number 
of highly complimentary reviews in the chief 
journals of London and America. Lord Lyt- 
ton speaks of "the captivating power of the 
story" as "holding the attention alert through 
its two hundred and thirty pages to the end. " 
The success of "Onnalinda" in this country 
was great, but in England, where it had up- 
ward of four thousand subscribers, was phe- 
nomenal. The poem passed through seven 
editions, making a total of thirty thousand five 
hundred copies; and after these an eighth edi- 
tion of ten thousand copies was issued in Sep- 
tember, i8go. 

At the celebration of the Geneseo Centen- 
nial, on September ii, 1890, Mr. McNaugh- 
ton read a characteristic poem from his own 
pen, entitled "Red Jacket," dealing with one 
of his favorite themes. At the time of the 
poet's passing, the Livingston Democrat, 
Rochester Herald, and other journals gave 
feeling tributes to his life and works, not for- 
getting to allude to the "halo of beauty and 
romance ' ' he has thrown around the Genesee 
valley, "such as Scott gave to the Scottish 
border and Irving to the shores of the Tappan 
Zee." It is not given to all men to leave me- 
morials behind them ; but the gifted author of 
"Belle Mahone " and the "Door Ajar" could 



ask no better way to be remembered than in 
those touching stanzas which, from their very 
simplicity and tenderness, will never be for- 
gotten, but be simg at the fireside and repeated 
in the night watches. 




ELLSWORTH WRIGHT, the suc- 
cessful foreman of the Mount Morris 
Enterprise, was born in Holly, Oak- 
land County, Mich., January 21, 
1863, and is the only son of Phiseria A. 
Wright. Having obtained his education in the 
public schools of Mount Morris, he began when 
a young man to earn his own living, taking the 
first step of his career by entering the printing- 
office of the Union and Constitution, where he 
worked for a year and a half. Then for a num- 
ber of years he worked at various kinds of labor, 
finally returning" to the office where he was for- 
merly engaged, the name of the paper having 
been changed to the Union. There he had re- 
mained for eight months, when in April, 1889, 
he entered the office of the Enterprise, where 
he has since been continuously engaged, three 
years ago having been promoted on account of 
his experience and business ability to the 
position of foreman, filling the position with 
credit to himself and to the satisfaction of his 
employer. In December, 1889, he married 
Anna Brennan, of Moscow, Livingston County. 

Mr. Wright belongs to the Republican party, 
and is a member of several secret societies, 
where, as a proof of the respect and esteem in 
which he is held by all his associates, he has 
been chosen to fill many of the higher offices, 
among them being that of Secretary of Bel- 
wood Lodge, No. 315, Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows, which he held for three con- 
secutive terms, and Secretary of Alert Council, 
No. 25, E. K. O. R., which, as a charter mem- 
ber, he has held since its organization : he is 
also a member of Royal Legion, No. 40, S. K. 

Nature has bounteously bestowed upon Mr. 
Wright various talents, which he has not neg- 
lected to cultivate. Hence he has been emi- 
nently successful in his various undertakings. 
In music he is unusually skilled, being able to 
play nearly all the various instruments of the 
profession. He is Secretary and Treasurer of 




MRS. E. H. GEIGER. 




E. H. GEIGER, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



77 



the Mount Morris Cornet Band, and at the 
present time is playing solo barytone. He is 
also a mechanical genius, thoroughly under- 
standing all the different kinds of machinery, 
and is a very successful photographer, many 
of his views appearing in such papers as the 
Rider and Driver of New York, Scribner' s 
Magazine, the Buffalo lUnstratcd Express^ and 
the Rochester Union and Advertiser. 

The Rochester Post Express, in a recent 
article, had this to say of Mr. Wright: "Dur- 
ing the past summer and autumn he has at- 
tended the horse shows and fox hunts, and 
made a specialty of photographing horses and 
other objects while they are running at a high 
rate of speed. In this he was successful be- 
yond his own e.xpectations. In making his 
photographs of jumping horses and other fast- 
moving objects, Mr. Wright uses a shutter of 
his own invention." 




LIAS H. GEIGER, a large landed pro- 
prietor and extensive lumber dealer of 
Livingston County, New York, whose 
recent death, at his residence in Ossian, on 
Sunday afternoon, January 27, 1895, occa- 
sioned a loss keenly felt throughout the com- 
munity, was born in Pennsylvania on Novem- 
ber 25, 1819. 

His grandfather, John Geiger, a native of 
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, was a .stone- 
mason in early manhood, later a school-teacher. 
He was a Democrat in politics, and served as 
Ju.stice of the Peace up to the time of his 
death, at the advanced age of ninety-seven. 
He had a family of four children. The eldest 
of the four was John Geiger, Jr., who grew to 
sturdy manhood and learned the mason's trade, 
following it first as a journeyman. Later, as 
a master mason, he worked on the arches of 
bridges. He married Mary Steacker, daughter 
of John Steacker, of New Jersey, where she 
was born. They reared six children, five boys 
and one girl — George, Charles, Klias, Kate, 
Peter, John — and had one other who died in 
early infancy. Mrs. Mary Geiger passed the 
last years of her life in Pennsylvania, where 
she died at the age of seventy-six. 

Elias H. Geiger, the third son, spent his 



years at Bethlehem, Pa., where he was left 
early fatherless at the age of four. He then 
made his home with Mr. John Rightnour, whom 
he chose as guardian, living with him for fifteen 
years. At the age of nineteen he learned the 
carpenter's trade, at the expiration of a three 
years' apprenticeship going to work as a jour- 
neyman. In 1839 he removed to Dansville, 
where he worked in the village for two years. 
Later he became a contractor, building many 
houses and churches. In 1859 he came to 
Ossian, and went into the lumber business, in 
which he was engaged to the close of his life. 
He was largely interested in shipping lumber; 
and in connection with his business owned a 
large planing-mill, where he did job work. 

On Washington's Birthday, February 22, 
1844, Mr. Geiger married Miss Elizabeth 
Haas, daughter of William Haas, a carpenter 
and joiner of Dansville. Mrs. Geiger, who 
was the eldest of a family of ten, came to 
Dansville with her parents from her native 
place in Northumberland County, Pennsyl- 
vania. Mr. and Mrs. Haas were respected 
members of the English Lutheran church at 
Dansville. The father passed away at the age 
of eighty-one, and the mother lived to be 
eighty-two. In politics Mr. Geiger was a firm 
Democrat. He was a prominent member of 
the Lutheran church of Dansville, with which 
Mrs. Geiger is still connected, and long offi- 
ciated as Trustee and tllder. 

Mr. Geiger was a man of wealth, acquired 
by his own ability and excellent management. 
He owned at the time of his demise about 
three thousand acres of land, and was reputed 
to be worth a hundred thousand dollars. The 
combined wealth of character represented by 
Mr. and Mrs. Geiger, securing for them the 
unbounded respect of a large circle of friends 
and acquaintances, cannot be overestimated. 
Mr. Geiger was one of the incorporators of the 
Citizens' Bank of Dansville, and a Director 
from the beginning. His fellow-officials, with 
deep regret announcing his death, at the age 
of seventy-six years, justly spoke of him as 
"a man who possessed more than average acute- 
ness in his perceptions of business interests, 
strictly just and honorable in all his dealings, 
and of a kindly disposition." 



78 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



This brief sketch is happily supplemented 
by portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Geiger, which 
meet the eye of the reader on adjoining pages. 



KRANK B. SMITH, editor and propri- 
etor of the Herald and Xext's of Perry, 
N.Y., a progressive and influential 
weekly, was born in Warsaw, Wyoming 
County, February 6, 1855, son of Edgar K. 
and Harriet (Rowe) Smith, and grandson 
on the paternal side of Edgar Smith. His 
father, by trade a carpenter and joiner, re- 
sided in Buffalo in early life, but later 
bought land in the village of Warsaw, which 
he divided into village lots, and upon which 
he realized a good profit. Edgar Smith is 
now living a retired life in a pleasant home 
in Warsaw. The children are as follows: 
I'^mmogene, who married Leonard Watrous, 
and lives in the town of Warsaw; Fred E., 
who married Florence Hardy, and is also a 
resident of Warsaw; and Frank B., whose 
name is found at the head of this sketch. 

Frank B. Smith, after receiving his educa- 
tion in the schools of Warsaw, went to work 
at the printing business, and, ever ready to 
make the most of his opportunities, acquired 
at the same time some knowledge of editorial 
work. He made his first business venture in 
Castile, in company with Mr. A. Gaines, as 
publishers of the Weekly Castiliaii, the firm 
name being Gaines & Smith. After a year 
Mr. Smith sold out the business to his part- 
ner, and then established the Wyoming Era, 
a bright weekly, and after two years went 
to Rushford, Allegany County, N.Y., where 
he instituted the Rushford Spectator, a very 
successful paper, which he continued to pub- 
lish for six years. In Rushford, Mr. Smith 
built himself a pleasant home, but later sold 
his interests there, and returned to Warsaw. 
He then bought one-half interest in the Wy- 
oming County Times, and after one year took 
advantage of an opportunity to purchase the 
Canisteo Times, a weekly paper, which he 
conducted for six years with the marked 
appreciation of all his patrons. Upon coming 
to Perry in May, 1892, Mr. Smith bought out 
the Weekly Herald and the Weekly A'ews, and 



consolidated the two into one paper, known 
as the Herald and News, which is Repub- 
lican in its politics, is one of the leading 
political organs in the county, and has a 
circulation of over one thousand copies. 
The paper was established in 1875, and is the 
leading paper of the town. During the sum- 
mer season Mr. Smith publishes a daily 
paper, known as the Herald, for the especial 
benefit of Silver Lake Assembly and the 
summer resort at Silver Lake. 

On September 10, 1878, Mr. Smith was 
united in marriage to Miss Belle S. Wisner, 
daughter of Stephen and Hannah (Dalrymple) 
Wisner, of Mount Morris. Mr. and Mrs. 
Smith have lost one child, Joie, but have three 
children now living, namely: Edith, born 
July 24, 1879; Ella, born March 7, 1881; 
Benjamin Harrison, born October 8, 1888. 

Mr. Smith is a member of Consolation 
Lodge, No. 404, A. F. & A. M., of Perry, and 
of Crystal Salt Lodge, Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows, No. 505, of Warsaw. He has 
been a successful publisher for twenty years, 
and enjoys the reputation of being honorable 
and fair in all his dealings, with the best of 
business credit. By frugal habits and hard 
work he has acquired a fair competency, 
averaging well with the country publisher in 
general. He started with no capital, and has 
succeeded by his own able efforts. He is a 
man of an active and progressive spirit, and 
his influence is always exerted on behalf of 
the material welfare and moral advancement 
of the community. 




ILLIAM HENRY NORTON is a 
well-known and highly successful 
farmer and grain and produce mer- 
chant of the town of Springwater, Livingston 
County, N.Y. His father, John B. Norton, 
studied medicine in Auburn, and after gradu- 
ating, came to Springwater, and on February 
20, 1820, bought a large tract of land on the 
spot where the village now stands. At that 
time this region was all a w'ild forest, and at 
first he hewed the trees and cleared a portion 
of the land. Then he ceased that kind of 
labor; and, though he did some farming, grad- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



79 



ually he disposed of much of his land, thereby 
acquiring a competency, and devoted himself 
chiefly to the practice of medicine. As Dr. 
Norton was the only physician in this district, 
his practice necessarily extended over a 
large area; and during his long period of 
active service, sixty years or more, he was one 
of the best-known men in the country round 
about. He was greatly beloved on account 
of his kind and generous nature, his strict 
honesty in small as well as great matters, 
and the fine and true qualities which endeared 
him to patient and neighbor alike. Dr. 
Norton called himself a Whig, but later he 
was a loyal Republican in his political opin- 
ions. He was an anti-Mason, and was a 
member of the Presbyterian church. Dr. 
John B. Norton married June 8, 1823, Miss 
Jane Marvin, a daughter of one of the early 
settlers in this region, a stanch Methodist, 
who used to entertain the circuit riders at 
his home, heeding the scriptural injunction to 
"use hospitality without grudging." Such a 
man could not fail of the regard of many 
friends. Mr. Marvin spent his last years 
in Springwater, and died in 1845. Mrs. John 
B. Norton was one of a family of six children; 
and she lived to bring up eight of her own, 
namely: Levinna, who married Mr. C. Y. 
Andrus (deceased), John M., Ashur B., 
Solomon G. (deceased), Oscar M., William 
H., Juliette (deceased), and Aaron M., also 
no longer living. Mrs. Norton died at the 
age of fifty-seven on a farm in the town of 
Springwater, two miles below the village, 
which was purchased by her husband in 1851. 
She was an earnest member of the Methodits 
church, in which she had been brought up. 
Dr. John B. Norton died on his old home- 
stead, August 29, 1878. 

William H. Norton was born in Spring- 
water, August 15, 1840, and was named after 
the President then in office, William Henry 
Harrison. He was educated at the district 
school and at the I^ima Seminary, and as- 
sisted his father later on the farm. He early 
developed shrewd, keen business traits, even 
at thirteen carrying on business for himself; 
and at fifteen his note without indorsement 
was considered reliable on the occasion of 



buying a flock of seventy-five sheep. At 
nineteen he purchased his father's farm, which 
contained two hundred and twenty-five acres 
of land below the village. About thirty 
years later, in 1890, he sold it for ten thou- 
sand dollars, purchasing a small farm, on 
which he built a house and barn. Not long- 
afterward he sold that place, and bought the 
land which he now holds. This estate is 
about one hundred and seventy-five acres, in 
three farms, having four houses and six barns, 
including his beautiful dwelling on the main 
street of the village, which is considered the 
handsomest house in town. 

Mr. Norton makes a specialty of sheep- 
raising, keeping fine registered stock of 
Shropshire and Hampshire breeds, and also 
deals in the best Durham cattle. He owns 
another farm of one hundred and thirty acres 
in Canadice, known as the Tarbush farm; 
and this he oversees entirely himself. Mr. 
Norton is one of the prominent shipping mer- 
chants, dealing in hay in large quantities, 
sometimes sending out from three to six 
thousand tons a year, besides grain and gen- 
eral produce in the same proportion. Young 
men starting out on a business career would 
do well to study the methods which are fol- 
lowed by this enterprising financier. 

On the 24th of August, 1870, Mr. Nor- 
ton was married to Miss Alice Wooden, a 
daughter of the Rev. T. J. O. Wooden, a 
Methodist preacher of the Genesee Confer- 
ence, well known throughout the district as a 
powerful man in tlie pulpit and a very suc- 
cessful revivalist. Mrs. Norton received her 
education at the Lima Seminary, where she 
was graduated, and is a musician as well as 
an intellectually cultivated woman. She has 
one brother, Irving, who is a physician 
living in California. Mr. and Mrs. Norton 
have three children — Lillian M., who is at 
the normal school in Geneseo, and is a grad- 
uate of the musical department; Oakley 
Wooden, now in the normal school, preparing 
for a business career as a lawyer; and Ethel 
L., the youngest, who is now attending the 
public school in Springwater. 

Mr. William H. Norton is a stanch Re- 
publican; but, although he is a popular man 



8o 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



in public affairs, and has been solicited for 
various offices, he is not an office-seeker, and 
holds no office at present. Mr. and Mrs. 
Norton and their family are members of the 
Methodist church, and take an active interest 
in its work and in the Sunday school, in 
which Mrs. Norton has been a teacher, and of 
which her husband was for many years super- 
intendent. He is also a Trustee of the 
church. 



He died when sixty 

about the same age 

He was a Demo- 



'AMES H. VAN ARSDALE, a promi- 
nent business man of Castile, Wyo- 
ming County, N.Y., was born in Ca- 
yuga County, August 2, 1845, being 
the only son of Abraham and Maria (Noxon) 
Van Arsdale, and a grandson of Isaac Van 
Arsdale. The grandfather was born in New 
Jersey, and spent his early days as a farmer in 
that State. He later removed to Virginia, 
and purchased a large tract of land and a num- 
ber of slaves; but subsequently he sold his 
land, and in 1833, taking his slaves with him, 
journeyed with his family to New York, where 
he had previously bought land in Cayuga 
County. The journey to their new home was 
made with two four-horse teams, some of the 
family riding horseback, 
years old, his wife being 
at the time of her death, 
crat and a member of the Presbyterian church. 
They had nine children, all of whom returned 
to the North with their parents. They were 
as follows: Mary, lilizabeth, Abraham, Van 
Doren, Andrew, John, William, Henry, and 
Margaret. 

Abraham \'an Arsdale was born in Somerset 
County, New Jersey, and received his educa- 
tion in Virginia. He settled with his father 
in Cayuga County, and there purchased a 
farm, which he sold in 1847, and bought 
ninety acres of land in Castile. After seven 
years he sold that, and purchased one hundred 
and twenty acres near by in the same town. 
On this estate he resided for seventeen years, 
remodelled the buildings, and made many 
improvements. Later in life he removed to 
the village, and there died at the age of 
seventy-five years. His wife, who is still 



living, was born in Dutchess County, and was 
the daughter of William and Ruth (Brownell) 
Noxon. In 1845 William Noxon and his 
wife settled in the town of Castile, where he 
became a prosperous man. While living in 
Cayuga County, he was Inspector of the State 
prison at Auburn. He died at the age of 
seventy-six, and his wife lived to be ninety- 
two years old. They had seven children — 
Maria, Eliza, Helen, Emeline, Phebe, 
Lettitia, and Robert. Mr. and Mrs. Abraham 
Van Arsdale had two children — the daughter, 
Lida, married Dr. S. C. Smith, of Castile, 
who died at the age of fifty-nine, leaving his 
wife with one child, Van R. Smith; James 
H. is the subject of this sketch. 

James H. Van Arsdale was educated in the 
district school, after which he entered a drug 
store as clerk, and assisted also in the Castile 
Bank. In 1874 he bought the furniture and 
undertaking business of J. W. True, and in 
1 89 1 built a fine brick block on Main Street, 
two floors of which he occupies in addition to 
the former store. In 1872 he married Clara 
Davis, who was born in Gainesville, Novem- 
ber 2, 1849, daughter of Giles A. and M. 
Jane (Stevens) Davis. Giles A. Davis was 
born in Preble, Cortland County, and was the 
son of Joel and Resign (Hinman) Davis and 
grandson of John Davis. John was a native 
of Connecticut; and his son Joel removed to 
Preble, N.Y., and in 1827 bought one hun- 
dred and eighty-five acres of new land in 
Gainesville. In his old age he retired from 
active life, residing in Castile, living to be 
ninety-three years old. He had seven chil- 
dren — ^ Emily, Amanda, Ann, Esther, Joel 
G., Giles, and Charles A. Giles A. Davis 
was educated at the district school, at Perry 
Academy, and at a private school in Castile 
taught by Davis W. Smith, and later en- 
gaged in farming, carrying on a blacksmith- 
shop and carriage factory, and dealing exten- 
sively in wool. He has also been largely 
interested in the Castile Bank, and in 1882, 
in connection with George F. Pierce, erected 
the new building on the corner of Main 
and Chapel Street. In 1845 he married 
M. Jane Stevens, a native of Lima, N.Y. ; 
and thev had two children — Clara, the wife 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



8i 



of the subject of this sketch, ami Edward 
E. Davis. 

Mr. and Mrs. Van Arsdale have six chil- 
dren, namely: Mary M., born July 29, 1873; 
Ruth E. and Davis E., born April 21, 1876; 
Charles A. and Chester A., born November 
24, 1S7S; J. Harry, born August 25, 1885. 
Mr. Van Arsdale is a Democrat, ex-President 
of the town corporation, and has been Trus- 
tee of the village school. He is a member of 
the Presbyterian church, of the Maecabee 
Lodge, No. 151, of Castile, and a very ac- 
tive member of the fire department. He 
has been very successful in his business 
career, and is also prominent in town affairs, 
holding a high place in the regard of his fel- 
low-citizens. 



KEKIAH ALLEN, son of John 
\llen, a pioneer settler of Living- 
ston County, New York, was born 
in the town of Adams, Jefferson 
County, July to, 182 i, and died at his home 
in Geneseo, N.Y., July 8, 1887, at the age of 
sixty-six years, lacking two days. His father, 
who was of Connecticut birth, removed to this 
State, living for a while in Jefferson County, 
but afterward came to Livingston County, 
and settled in Portage. His third and final 
removal was to Southern Wisconsin, where 
he bought a small farm, and carried on 
general husbandry through his remaining 
years. 

Hezekiah Allen was one of a numerous 
family of children born to his parents in the 
town of Adams. When his father migrated 
to Wisconsin, he remained in this county, 
and, coming to Geneseo with but fifty cents 
in his pocket, paid the last penny he had in 
the world for lodging, and worked to pay for 
his breakfast. He was a bright, intelligent 
lad, with a district-school education and an 
honest, earnest face, that bespoke his freeness 
from guile; and he had no trouble in securing 
work and friends. He was first employed for 
a short time as a farm laborer on the "flats," 
but very soon became the trusted servant of 
James Wadsworth, and later entered the office 
of that gentleman as a clerk. He was subse- 



quently engaged as land agent of the estate of 
William W. Wadsworth, the deceased brother 
of James Wadsworth ; and on the death of the 
original administrator of that property he was 
appointed to fill the vacancy. He remained 
in the employment of the Wadsworth family 
as financial agent for forty-four years, they 
refusing to accept his resignation even after 
he became an invalid. Mr. Allen was also 
intrusted with the management of the estate 
left by Mrs. Murray, a sister of the elder 
Wadsworth brothers; and this included vast 
tracts of land in Wisconsin, the property 
being kept for her son. He was likewise 
trustee for other estates, among them being 
the Aryault property; and in the discharge 
of the duties therewith connected he gave 
the utmost satisfaction to all concerned, 
proving himself equally capable and trust- 
worthy, his absolute integrity never being 
questioned. 

On December 8, 1852, he was married to 
Polly Deniston, a native of Tompkins County, 
who was born near Ithaca, August 15, 1822. 
They became the parents of three children, 
namely: William, who died at the age of 
twenty-two months; Elizabeth; and James 
H., now Assistant Cashier of the Kenton 
National Bank, of Kenton, Ohio. Mr. Allen 
was a member of the Whig party in his earlier 
days, but on its abandonment became a warm 
supporter of the principles of the Democratic 
party. He attended the Presbyterian church, 
of which Mrs. Allen and her daughters are 
esteemed members. He was an influential 
and public-spirited citizen, taking an active 
interest in all matters pertaining to the im- 
provement of the village or to the intellec- 
tual and moral advancement of the com- 
munity, being for several years a member 
of the Board of Education, and especially 
connected with the normal school. His 
daughter Elizabeth, who inherits not a little 
of her father's force of character and ability 
in affairs, is a graduate of this institution 
of learning, of the class of 1876. A year's 
experience in teaching has further aided in 
her development, and her culture has been 
broadened liy reading, study, and contact with 
the world. 



82 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



-OHN O. WILLETT, formerly a car- 
riage builder, and now a very success- 
ful farmer of the town of Portage, 
Livingston County, N.Y., was born 
on May 30, 1837, in Seneca County. His 
father, Thomas J. Willett, who was a native of 
New Jersey, was engaged in the manufactur- 
ing of carriages and wagons in Seneca County 
until the year 1839, when he transferred the 
business to the town of Lima in Livingston 
County. He remained at the latter place 
about twenty years, and then removed to 
Mount Morris, where he engaged in the manu- 
facture of tiles, continuing at this occupation 
until his decease, which occurred in 1862. 
He was a member of the Presbyterian church. 
His wife, whose maiden name was Phcebe 
Breese, was also a native of New Jersey. 
They reared nine children, eight of whom are 
now living; namely, John O., Oscar D., 
Walter L., Eugene M., Josephine E., Ger- 
trude I^., Robert A., and George T. One 
son, Alpheus C, was a soldier in the late 
war, and fell at the memorable battle of Cold 
Harbor. Oscar married Augusta Ricker; and 
they are now residents of San Francisco, Cal. 
Walter L. married Kate Rose, and they 
live in Buffalo. He was until recently 
Superintendent of the State Institution for 
Feeble-minded Children in Newark, N.J. 
He is a veteran of the late war, and passed 
through some of its worst vicissitudes, having 
been captured at the battle of the Wilderness 
and confined nine months in the famous An- 
(lersonville Prison. Eugene M. married 
Dollie Phelps and resides in Albany. Jo- 
sephine married G. M. Soverhill, and is now 
living in Buffalo. Gertrude is unmarried, 
and lives with her sister in the latter city. 
Robert and his wife reside in Brooklyn. 
George T. lives in Portland, Ore. 

John O. Willett was educated at the dis- 
trict schools of Lima, and learned the trade 
of carriage building with his father. Later 
he studied dentistry, but never practised that 
profession. He resided at Mount Morris 
until the death of his father, after which 
event the property was divided. He then 
purchased a very valuable piece of farm prop- 
erty in the town of Portage, and erected a 



spacious and substantial residence, in which 
he now resides. In 1863 Mr. Willett mar- 
ried Sabra Ricker, whose father was the late 
Timothy Ricker, of Quincy, Mass. Mr. 
Ricker died in Massachusetts; and his widow, 
whose maiden name was Sabra Roberts, was 
again married. She and her second husband, 
George W'. Barrett, of Quincy, removed to 
Mount Morris; and it was at their home that 
the daughter's marriage took place. Mr. and 
Mrs. Willett have two children — a son, Fred 
L., and a daughter, Delia. Fred L. Willett 
married Inez Burroughs. Delia is the wife of 
Marshall B. Chafee, of the town of Perry, 
and they have one child. Mr. John O. 
Willett has long enjoyed the respect of his 
fellow-townsmen, who have the greatest con- 
fidence in him, and have called upon him to 
do his full share of public service. He has 
been Excise Commissioner, Assessor, and 
Supervisor of his town, the latter office hav- 
ing been held by him for the years 1887, 
1888, 1889, and 1890. He has always ad- 
ministered public affairs with a zealous care 
for the best interests of the general commu- 
nity; and his successful efforts have received 
the approbation of all, irrespective of party 
politics. 

Mr. and Mrs. Willett are both members of 
the Universalist church; and Mr. Willett is 
a firm adherent to the principles of the Re- 
publican party, having cast his first Presi- 
dential vote for Abraham Lincoln. 



7TAHARLES H. NICHOLS, President 
I \y of the George Sweet Manufacturing 
\ris^^ Company of Dansville and Director 
of the Cummingsville Plant Com- 
pany, a self-made man and a most exemplary 
citizen, was born at Leicester, in the same 
county of Livingston, November 23, 1843. 

His father, Elisha, who was a native of 
New England, removed to Leicester while 
yet a young man, and worked as a laborer. 
He married Julia Whiteman, and resided 
there until his decease at the age of forty- 
seven years. His wife, a daughter of John 
Whiteman, was born in Pennsylvania, where 
her father was a farmer. Mr. Whiteman 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



83 



afterward removed to Steuben County, New 
York, and settled in the town of Wayland, 
where he acquired a tract of land, which he 
cleared and improved. He afterward moved 
to Sparta, and resided there for many years, 
then went to Cummingsville, and lived in 
the vicinity of the present factory, of which 
Mr. Nichols is now Director, and remained 
here until his death. He reared a family of 
nine children, all of whom attained their 
majority. His daughter Julia, Mrs. Elisha 
Nichols, reared four children — two sons and 
two daughters. Her son Hiram died at 
Leicester, aged forty-seven. Mary Ann 
Nichols married Eli Moore, of Nunda, and 
died at the age of thirty-three years. Alice 
married Herbert McWhorter, a machinist. 
Mrs. Nichols resided at Cummingsville with 
her son, Charles H., during her latter years, 
and was a woman of remarkable activity up 
to the time of her decease, which occurred 
when she was seventy-one years old. Both 
she and her husband attended the Methodist 
church. 

Charles H. Nichols was left fatherless at 
the age of six years, and resided with his 
mother and grandfather in Cummingsville, 
attending school. At the age of eleven he 
began to work upon a farm summers, and con- 
tinued his attendance at school during the 
winter. At the age of sixteen he worked for 
Samuel Williams in the nursery business, 
where he remained two years, after which he 
entered the machine-shop of George Sweet, 
who at that time held the same position 
which Mr. Nichols himself now holds. Here 
he worked three or four years, and having 
learned his trade determined to try his fort- 
unes in the West. He returned after a so- 
journ of eighteen months, and again entered 
Mr. Sweet's employ as a machinist. He con- 
tinued steadily emploj'ed by Mr. Sweet until 
1870, when he was promoted to the position of 
foreman or superintendent of the works. He 
continued thus until the concern was reorgan- 
ized into a stock company, when he became 
its President. Thus from a poor apprentice 
boy Mr. Nichols rose step by step until he 
reached the highest position possible to be 
attained in the concern where he learned his 



trade. This is truly an example of success 
obtained through actual merit. His careful 
attention to his work and his straightforward 
manly ways early gained for him the appro- 
bation and firm friendship of Mr. Sweet, his 
employer; and that gentleman always reposed 
in him the utmost confidence, and treated 
him with unlimited kindness. 

In 1867 Mr. Nichols married Libbie F. 
Thomas, daughter of Mr. Joseph Thomas, of 
Dansville, she having been born probably in 
Sparta, as her father was a carriage builder 
in that place for many years. Mr. and Mrs. 
Nichols have two children — Francis and 
Charles. Mr. Nichols is a Democrat in poli- 
tics, and is a member and Elder of the Pres- 
byterian church, where he has been superin- 
tendent of the Sunday-school for the past 
three years. Mr. Nichols is known as a man 
of strict business integrity, and possesses 
many rare and estimable qualities, which are 
deeply appreciated by the many who know 
him. He occupies an enviable position 
among his townsmen, a natural reward and 
true recognition of honest merit. 



KREDERICK A. SIMONDS, general 
insurance agent, owns and occupies a 
pleasant residence at No. 4 Genesee 
Street, Attica, N.Y., and is one of the most 
energetic and enterprising business men of the 
town. He is a native of Wyoming County, 
Pike being the place of his birth, which oc- 
curred November 25, 1850. He is the only 
son of E. W. R. Simonds, a miller of Gaines- 
ville, and a grandson of the late Salmon Si- 
monds, who was born in this State in 1782, 
and settled in Wyoming County when it was 
in its original wildness. Salmon Simonds 
was a farmer by occupation, and reared a fam- 
ily of nine children; and of these E. W. R., 
the father of him of whom we write, and one 
sister are the only surviving members. 

E. W. R. Simonds was born October 12, 
1825, and after attaining his majority was 
united in wedlock with Mary Hutton, a 
daughter of Jonathan and Harriet (Watrous) 
Hutton. Her parents in their younger years 
were farmers and hotel -keepers in this section 



84 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



of the State. Both lived to an advanced age, 
Mr. Hutton dying at the age of eighty-five 
years and his wife at the age of eighty-six 
years. Three children were born to Mr. and 
Mrs. E. \V. R. Simonds, namely: Frederick 
A.; Celia, who died at the age of four years: 
and Ella, the widow of George Knapp. 

Young Frederick was the recipient of e.\xel- 
lent educational advantages, after leaving the 
district school attending the Pike Seminary, 
a well-known institution of learning. When 
sixteen years of age, he began to learn the 
trade of harness-making and buggy trimming, 
and worked at it steadily for five years. In 
December, 1872, at twenty-two years of age, 
he became Deputy Postmaster under A. J. 
Lorish, and retained the position thirteen 
years. The following two years Mr. Simonds 
was engaged in the retail grocer's trade, and 
since that time has been profitably employed 
as sewing machine and general insurance 
agent, carrying on a very successful and 
lucrative business, his genial and courteous 
manners and honorable dealings with his 
patrons winning him an extensive patronage 
and hosts of friends. 

On August 8, 1 87 1, Frederick A. Simonds 
was united in marriage to Miss Helen Ran- 
dall, a daughter of Gideon and Adelia 
(Winegar) Randall, esteemed members of 
the farming community of Pike. Mr. and 
Mrs. Simonds have two children — a daugh- 
ter, Estella, the wife of William M. Timms, 
of Broome County; and a son. Glen A., a 
young man of eighteen years, who is still pur- 
suing his studies. In his political views Mr. 
Simonds is a strong advocate of the principles 
of the Republican party, and religiously he is 
a valued member of the Methodist church. 



B 



R. EDWARD W. SOUTHALL, a 
very successful homoeopathic phy- 
sician of Geneseo, N.Y., was born 
in England, March 5, 185 1, son of 
Edward W. and Mary Ann (^Darby) Southall, 
both natives of England. 

His grandfather, Edward Southall, was an 
engineer, having cliargc of stationary engines; 
but his father, having received a very liberal 



education, became a school-master, and fol- 
lowed the profession for about twenty-five 
years. He was also an expert stenographer 
and a thoroughly competent musician, being 
at the early age of sixteen years able to lead 
the choir of the Wesleyan church in his 
native town in England. In 1872 Mr. 
Southall emigrated to the United States, 
and locating at Pittsburg, Pa., was employed 
there for a time as a clerk. Later he re- 
moved to Buffalo, N.Y., finding employment 
in the same capacity, but finally engaged as 
teacher of music and stenography, a profes- 
sion which he still follows, and in which he 
has been highly successful. He and his 
wife reared four children, as follows: Mary 
Ann, wife of Mr. Isaac Morris, chief teleg- 
rapher of the Western Union Telegraph 
Company, Cleveland, Ohio; Edward W., the 
subject of this sketch; Eliza, the wife of 
Mr. Joseph Marks, a collector of Buffalo; 
and Charles F. Southall, stenographer, of the 
same city. The mother was a member of the 
Methodist church, and died at thirty-five 
years of age. 

Edward W., the eldest son, received his 
early education in England, and at the age of 
eighteen years, with the consent of his 
father, came to the United States, and en- 
tered the machine-shops of P. P. Pratt, Esq., 
at Buffalo, N.Y., where he rapidly gained 
knowledge and promotion in his business. 
Here he remained until 1875, at which time 
he found himself financially able to gratify 
his long-cherished desire to enter professional 
life as a physician, and for that purpose be- 
came a student at the Buffalo University for 
one year, after which he attended the Ho- 
moeopathic Medical College in New York 
City for the same length of time, completing 
his four years' course of study at Cleveland, 
Ohio, where he graduated. 

Dr. Southall immediately commenced the 
practice of medicine in Geneseo, N.Y., com- 
ing here as an entire stranger. As a result 
of the skill and careful attention displayed in 
all cases intrusted to his charge, he has at- 
tained wide-spread popularity. During his 
residence in Geneseo he has successfully 
fought and conquered many difficult cases, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



8S 



thus creating among the citizens of the town 
and, indeed, of the entire locality perfect 
confidence in him as a reliable and safe 
medical adviser. In 1872 Dr. Southall was 
united in marriage to Miss Susanna George, 
a lady of English birth. They have had in 
all six children — Edward A., a graduate of 
the normal school, and now a student in the 
Medical University of Buffalo, N.Y. ; Flora, 
who died in her sixth year; Ethel May; 
Hattie Elva; Helen Gertrude; and Horace 
Gladstone. 

Dr. Southall is a gentleman of culture, 
possessing varied information upon many 
subjects, and is extremely popular among all 
classes. He is a member of the Masonic 
fraternity, being a member of the Geneseo 
Lodge, No. 214, A. F. & A. M., and also of 
Keystone Chapter, R. A. M., of Buffalo, 
N.Y. He is a member of the County Medical 
Society, and is a close observer of all modern 
and valuable discoveries in relation to his 
profession. In politics he is a Republican, 
and in creed a member of the Methodist 
church, in which he is officially interested. 




iRS. MARIETTA BINGHAM 
OLDER, daughter of the late 
William and Betsy (Knapp) Bing- 
ham, resides with her brother, 
William M. Bingham, in their pleasant home. 
No. 5 Geneseo Street, Warsaw, Wyoming 
County, N.Y., to which their parents re- 
moved thirty years ago. The Bingham fam- 
ily has been well known in these parts for 
three-quarters of a century or more, its pres- 
ent representatives inheriting, it is needless 
to say, in a marked degree the sturdy virtues 
of their New England ancestors. Mrs. 
Oldcr's father, William Bingham, was born 
in New Hampshire in 1800. 

When a young man, Mr. Bingham left the 
rocky hills of his native State, and came to 
New York, settling in the town of Avon, 
Livingston County, where he worked at the 
carpenter's trade with a Mr. Markham. He 
subsequently removed to the town of Perry, 
and there married a Miss Roe, who died a few 
years after, leaving two children, a son and a 



daughter, the former of whom died in infancy. 
The latter, named Matilda, married Daniel 
A. Knopp; and at the age of forty-two years 
she, too, passed from earth to the life beyond. 

In 1828 Mr. Bingham married Betsy 
Knapp, who was born in 181 r in the log 
house built by her parents in the town of 
Warsaw. Her union with Mr. Bingham was 
solemnized in Perry, where they lived for 
two years, coming from there to Warsaw in 
1830, when their son William, the first-born 
of their household, was an infant. F"or many 
years they kept a public house, owning hotels 
in Pike, Portage, Buffalo, and Dansville. 
On locating in Warsaw Mr. Bingham bought 
the Bingham House, which he managed suc- 
cessfully for more than thirty years. Dis- 
posing of that in 1865, he purchased the 
place now owned and occupied by Mrs. Older 
and her brother William. The dwelling is a 
large frame house, one of the oldest in the 
town, pleasantly located and in a fine state 
of preservation. Mr. Bingham died here in 
1869. His wife Betsy, surviving him, lived 
a long and useful life of fourscore years, de- 
parting to the home above March 12, iSgr. 
She was a true Christian woman, faithful in 
religious duty arid a consistent member of the 
Episcopal church. 

Of the seven children born to the parents 
of Mrs. Older three died in infancy; and one, 
Lucien W. Bingham, died March 28, 1885, 
at the age of fifty-four years. He married 
Lucy A. Bangs, of Georgetown, who lived 
but three short months after her marriage, 
dying August 15, 1867. Lucien W. Bing- 
ham was a man of more than average ability, 
and was held in universal esteem throughout 
the community. On the breaking out of the 
late Civil War, he promptly responded to the 
first call for volunteers, enlisting in April, 
1 86 1, in the Twenty-third New York Volun- 
teer Infantry, which was under the command 
of Colonel H. C. Hoffman. He was made 
Third Sergeant of Company K, under Captain 
N. H. Fowler, and was subsequently pro- 
moted for meritorious conduct, remaining 
with the regiment until the close of the war. 
The children of Mr. and Mrs. Bingham now 
living are: William M. Bingham, who has 



86 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



been an esteemed resident of the village of 
Warsaw all his life; Huldah, the wife of 
J. O. McClurc, also a resident of Warsaw; 
and Mrs. Marietta Bingham Older, with 
whose name this brief sketch begins. 




|MERSON JOHNSON was born August 
II, 1 812, in the town of Sturbridge, 
Mass., and comes of an ancestry of 
which he may be proud. His grandfather, 
James Johnson, was a New Englander, who 
served with distinction during the French and 
Indian and Revolutionary Wars, and fought 
gallantly at Ticonderoga and Crown Point. 
James Johnson married Miss Hannah Hard- 
ing, who bore him three children, one of 
whom, James, Jr., became the possessor of the 
family estate upon the death of his father. 

The wife of James Johnson, Jr., was Miss 
Ursula Belknap, a daughter of Peter Belknap, 
a farmer of Sturbridge, and of this union 
seven children were born, namely: Harding; 
Emeline, who married Mr. Darius Shaw, of 
Brimfield, Mass.; Peter and James, twins; 
Ursula, who married Cordis May, of Stur- 
bridge; Harriet, who married the Rev. Dr. 
Robert M. Loughridge; and Emerson. Only 
the two youngest of the group, Harriet and 
Emerson, are now living. Harriet is a grad- 
uate of Mount Holyoke Seminary, of which 
she was at one time Acting Principal; but 
this position she gave up to take charge of an 
institution in the South for the education of 
Indian girls. She and her husband have 
been largely engaged in missionary work, and 
are now living in Texas, where Mr. Lough- 
ridge is preaching. Mrs. Ursula Johnson died 
in the prime of her life and usefulness, at the 
early age of thirty-seven, in Sturbridge, Mass. 

Emerson Johnson, at seven years of age 
bereft of that incomparable blessing, a 
mother's love, did not fail to receive from 
his father an extra share of tenderness. His 
educational privileges were not limited to 
the common schools; but he pursued a higher 
course of study in the Wesleyan Seminary at 
Wilbraham and in Monson, so that at the age 
of eighteen he was entirely competent to take 
in charge the district school, engaging in the 



• Delightful task, to rear the tender thought, 
To teach the voung idea to shoot." 



an occupation he pursued for some years, after 
which he returned to the old homestead, and 
remained there until 1866. In 1861 Mr. 
Johnson was elected to the House of Repre- 
sentatives of Massachusetts, and in 1865 was 
elected a member of the Senate. Before 
these honors were conferred upon him he had 
held several offices in his immediate locality, 
having served six years as Assessor, for ten 
years on the School Committee as examiner 
of teachers. In 1866 he came to Brightside, 
the beautiful home of his son-in-law, Dr. 
James H. Jackson, in Dansville. Here he 
purchased a house, and after a time he be- 
came Steward. While the new sanatorium 
was in process of building, he went abroad 
and spent some months travelling in Great 
Britain and on the continent. 

Mr. Johnson married in 1838 Miss Hannah 
Arnold, a daughter of Richard Arnold, of 
Sturbridge. Three children were born to 
him by this marriage — James A., Catharine, 
and Hannah. James A. enlisted in 1861 in 
Company G, Fifty-sixth Massachusetts In- 
fantry. After the battle of Newbern in 
North Carolina, being seriously ill, he was 
discharged, and came home to die, as he 
thought, but recovered, again enlisted, and 
was killed in the battle of Spotts)ivania 
Court-house, while in temporary command of 
his company. Catharine married Dr. James 
H. Jackson (see sketch of James H. Jackson, 
M.D., on another page of this volume). She 
is a graduate of the New York Woman's 
College, and is in active practice, assisting 
her husband at the sanatorium. They have 
one son. Dr. James Arthur Jackson, who is 
business manager of his father's establish- 
ment. Hannah Johnson married F. W. 
Hurd, and has two children — Fanny and 
Anna. Mrs. Hannah Johnson died in 1844 
at twenty-eight years of age. Mr. Johnson 
married for his second wife Fanny L. Brown, 
a graduate of Holyoke, who had been a 
teacher, and was a daughter of Benjamin 
Brown, of Bloomfield, Conn. Two children 
were born of this union, one of whom, a 




EMERSON JOHNSON. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



89 



daughter, Lucy, lived to maturity. She mar- 
ried Mr. Smalley, of Atchison, Kan., and is 
the mother of six children — Orton, Cath- 
erine, Sarah, Emerson, Mary, and Mcrwin. 
The grand-daughter, Fanny Hurd, married 
Hugh Brown, and went with her husband as 
a medical missionary to Corea, but returned 
to Southern California, where they are now 
practising medicine. They have two chil- 
dren — Donald and Agnes. 

In political faith Mr. Emerson Johnson is 
a Republican, an evolution from the "old 
line" Whig. It is the lot of few men to see 
so many of his children occupying honorable 
and enviable positions as he has done. An- 
other page presents to view a portrait of this 
gentleman, who, like Tennyson's King 
Arthur, "has worn through all the track of 
years the white flower of a blameless life," 
and may here be set down as an example of 
our American nobility. 




'AMUEL R. NICHOLS, who has 
long been identified with the farm- 
ing interests of Wyoming County, 
has resided at his present home for 
seventy years, and has gained an excellent 
reputation as an honest, upright business man 
and a true and loyal citizen. His farm is lo- 
cated in the south-eastern part of the town of 
Attica, being the homestead property which 
his father, Zadock Nichols, Jr., wrested from 
the wilderness. Mr. Nichols was born in 
Oneida County, N.Y. , August 3, 1820, and is 
the worthy descendant of a hero of the Revolu- 
tionary War. 

Zadock Nichols, Sr. , his paternal grand- 
father, was born in Ireland, and, having emi- 
grated from there to Boston prior to the 
Revolution, assisted at the memorable Tea 
Party in the harbor, on the evening of Decem- 
ber 16, 1773. He was an active participant in 
the battle of Bunker Hill, and served through- 
out the subsequent seven years' struggle for 
independence under the command of General 
Washington. He had a family of six children, 
four sons and two daughters. Luther, a mer- 
chant in Massachusetts, reared a family of 
thirteen children. Stephen, a laboring man. 



who spent his life in the old Bay State, was 
the father of twelve children. David, also a 
laboring man, reared nine children. Zadock, 
Jr., was the father of Samuel R. Calista, a 
spinster, who lived to the age of ninety years, 
was a silk weaver, and used to raise the silk- 
worms, hiring people to pick the leaves for 
them to eat. Her sister Basha died at the age 
of sixteen years. The elder Zadock Nichols 
lived to celebrate his one hundred and first 
birthday, and only six months prior to his 
decease cut cord wood, on the mountain side, 
in Brimfield, Mass., where he had made his 
home for many years. His wife died at the 
age of fourscore. 

Zadock Nichols, Jr., was born in Brimfield, 
June 8, 1785, and, on leaving the parental 
roof-tree, went to the Mohawk valley in this 
State, where on the finst day of the year 181 5 
he married Melinda Marvin. Seven years 
later, accompanied by his wife and two chil- 
dren, he moved from Rome, N. Y. , where he 
had lived for a year, to Middleburgh, Scho- 
harie County, the journey thither being made 
on an old-fashioned ox sled. In P'cbruary, 
1824, he bought one hundred and fifty acres of 
wild land, which is now included in the pres- 
ent farm of his son .Samuel, paying five dollars 
per acre. He was in humble circumstances, 
unable to pay cash ; and Mr. Nichols of 
whom we write can remember walking to 
Batavia, barefooted, on two different occasions, 
to carry the interest money, the entire twenty- 
five dollars at one time being in silver, and 
proving a heavy load. The produce of the 
land was then very cheap; and he once drew 
seventeen bushels of wheat seven miles on an 
ox sled, over bare ground, and, selling it, re- 
ceived in payment a pair of stoga boots. Pre- 
daceous animals still prowled dangerously near 
the forest-girdled home, and in one night of 
1828 seventy sheep on this farm were killed by 
wolves. Here the father spent the remainder 
of his life, which was suddenly terminated in 
1849, the accidental upsetting of his sleigh 
causing fatal injuries. His widow lived until 
August 16, 1863, when her remains also were 
laid to rest in the rural cemetery at Dale. Of 
the children born to them several died in in- 
fancy, and the following grew to mature years: 



go 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Alonzo; Samuel R. ; Calista; Zadock, the 
third, who was accidentally killed December 
22, 1893; and Henry. 

Samuel R. was five years old when his par- 
ents brought him to the farm where, with the 
exception of five months, he has since lived. 
He received his education in the typical pio- 
neer school-house, his seat being the flat side 
of a slab. On October 26, 184S, he was 
united in marriage to Fidelia D. Scribner, 
who was brought from the place of her nativ- 
ity, Granville, Washington County, to Genesee 
County, at the age of twelve years, by her par- 
ents, Mr. and Mrs. Jay Scribner. They sub- 
sequently removed to Attica, where Mrs. 
Scribner departed this life in 1873, and her 
husband on the 9th of September, 1875. 
Their other children are as follows: Mrs. Bet- 
sey Rich, of Trumbull, Ohio; Sarah, wife of 
Silas Norton, of the same place ; Alonzo, a 
farmer in Eagle ; Mary Brakeman ; and Thomas 
Scribner, an ofificer in the army during the late 
Civil War. 

Seven children have been reared by Mr. and 
Mrs. Samuel R. Nichols, all but one of whom 
are married. Sarah Althea, the wife of Joseph 
Macauley, has eight children. Calista is at 
home with her parents. Lucy is the wife of 
Edward Warner, of Corning. Eugene, who 
carries on the home farm, married Mary Put- 
ney ; and they are the parents of three chil- 
dren. Mary, wife of Roll in E. Thompson, 
has one daughter. Lillian, wife of William 
Smith, of Perry, has five children. Ida, wife 
of Franklin Matteson, has one daughter. Re- 
ligiously, Mr. Nichols is a member of the Free 
Baptist church. In politics both he and his 
son are active members of the Republican 
party, and take an intelligent interest in every- 
thing pertaining to the highest interests of the 
town and county of which they are esteemed 
citizens. 




ILLIA:\r TOUSEV, a well-to-do 
farmer of the highest respectability 
in the town of Portage, Livingston 
County, N.Y. , was born in Genesee County, 
July 16, 1818. He is of New England an- 
cestry, his grandfather, John Tousey, having 



been a native of Connecticut, as was also his 
father, Alonzo Tousey. 

John Tousey removed to Genesee County, 
New York, bringing all his earthly possessions 
with him, and worked out until able to settle 
himself in life, which he very soon did upon 
a small farm in the town of Stafford, where he 
continued to reside until his death. Alonzo 
Tousey, son of John, received his education in 
Genesee County, and followed agriculture as a 
means of livelihood all his life. He came to 
Livingston County in 1835, ^^'^^ settled upon a 
farm of one hundred acres in the town of Por- 
tage. He was untiring in his efforts to suc- 
ceed, and ere long was in circumstances which 
enabled him to erect a very comfortable frame 
house. This house is still standing, and is 
now occupied by his son. The maiden name 
of his first wife was Sally Adams, and the fol- 
lowing children were born to them : Hiram, 
Jane E. , George T., and William. Mrs. 
Sally Adams Tousey died when her youngest 
son, William, of this sketch, was quite young; 
and her widowed husband married a second 
time, the lady being Betsy Curran. They 
reared three children — Thomas, Martha, and 
Alvin. Alonzo Tousey was about fifty-six 
years of age at the time of his death. He 
was a Deacon and a Trustee of the Methodist 
church, his first wife also being a member of 
that church. 

Their son William was educated as well as 
was possible at the district schools, and, like 
his father, preferred above everything else the 
independent life of a farmer. At the decease 
of his father he purchased the several interests 
of the other heirs, and continues to reside at 
the old homestead. He married in 1845 Sarah 
Bennett, daughter of Thomas T. and Betsy A. 
(Sherman) Bennett, who came to Livingston 
County in 181 8, and were pioneers. They 
settled in the town then called Nunda, and, 
building a plank house, carried on the clothing 
business, and also operated a saw-mill. They 
made all of their own clothing, the wheel on 
which the women spun and wove the material 
still being in the possession of the family. 
Thomas T. Bennett died in Portage; and his 
wife went to Michigan, where she passed the 
remainder of her days. Mr. and Mrs. Tousey 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



91 



have reared four children — Cornelia, Emma 
J., Caroline A., and Lucius C. Charles B. 
and William C. died in infancy. Cornelia 
married Augustine Godwin ; and they have two 
daughters — Edith G. and Grace T. Caroline 
married John J. Williams, and resides in 
Michigan. Emma J. is still at home. Lu- 
cius C. , the much loved son and brother, was 
taken from the family circle on October 20, 
1894, while residing in Michigan. His re- 
mains were brought home and interred in 
Hunt's cemeter}-. 

William Tousey has served the community 
faithfully in positions of trust and responsi- 
bility, having been Collector and Poor Master 
for many years, and also School Trustee. He 
has been a Republican since the formation of 
the party, casting his first Presidential ballot 
for General William H. Harrison, and his lat- 
est Presidential vote for Benjamin Harrison. 
Mr. Tousey is a worthy representative of the 
prosperous and intelligent farming population 
of Western New York, whose ancestors in the 
face of almost insurmountable difficulties made 
possible the grand results which are so plainly 
visible throutrhout the State. 



'OHN KLEIN, an energetic, industrious, 
and prosperous farmer, owning one hun- 
dred and eighty-five acres of land lying 
in District No. 13 in the town of 
Sheldon, Wyoming County, N. Y. , was born on 
the other side of the broad Atlantic, being a 
native of the town of Dehachy, Belgium, six 
miles from the city of Arlon, where his birth 
occurred in 1833, on the 24th of March. 

His parents, Erancis and Catherine (Leffer- 
ing) Klein, came to this country with their 
two children, Charles and John, leaving Havre, 
France, in a sailing-vessel, and being forty- 
four days on the water. P"rom New York City 
they came by canal to Buffalo, and thence to 
Sheldon, where the father bought thirty acres 
of woodland, paying si.\' dollars per acre. 
Having but nine dollars in money when he 
reached Sheldon, he had to run in debt for the 
property; but with the assistance of his two 
sons he cleared and improved the land, paid 
off the indebtedness, and bought another thirty 



acres, for which he gave nine dollars an acre. 
On the farm which he redeemed from the wil- 
derness Francis Klein lived until called to the 
brighter world, April 12, 1859. His widow, 
Catherine Klein, who outlived him a quarter 
of a century, retained her faculties to the last, 
and died at the advanced age of ninety-one 
years. 

John Klein, the second of the two sons 
named above, obtained a good practical educa- 
tion in the country of his nativity; and, after 
leaving the parental roof, he worked out as a 
farm laborer by the year, being four years in 
the employ of Ephraim Durfee, of CTrangeville, 
receiving thirty-six dollars wages the first 
year, fifty dollars the second, seventy-five dol- 
lars the third, and the fourth year he was given 
one hundred dollars and a pair of boots. He 
afterward worked for his former employer's 
son. Burton Durfee, nine months, receiving 
nine dollars a month. He continued thus 
laboring until the death of his father, the 
highest compensation he ever received having 
been one hundred and forty dollars per year. 
Forty-five acres of the paternal homestead fell 
to his share. He paid his brother for one- 
half of it, and farmed on this for twelve years 
before buying the farm where he now resides, 
which forms a portion of his one hundred 
and eighty-five acres. This he bought in 
1870, and the following year moved on to it 
with his family. Mr. Klein carries on mi.xed 
hu.sbandry, raising the staple grains of the 
county, and keeping a dairy of twenty cows, 
sending the milk to the factory. Diligent in 
his calling, honorable and upright in his deal- 
ings with others, he is held in high respect 
throughout the entire community, and is one 
of the valued citizens of the town. In poli- 
tics he is a stanch Democrat ; and, religiously, 
he and his family are members of the Roman 
Catholic church. 

Mr. John Klein was united in marriage in 
1859 with Catherine Redding, a native of Bel- 
gium. Of the ten children born to them, one, 
Lucy, died October 26, 1889, at the age of 
eight years. The record of the others is as 
follows: Lany, the wife of Michael D. 
George, of Sheldon, has four children. 
Frank, a single man, resides in Batavia. Ed- 



92 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ward lives at home. Mary lives in Batavia. 
Eva is at home. Albert is a farm laborer. 
John resides on the home farm. Henry works 
in Batavia. \\'illis, a boy of fourteen, lives at 
home with his parents. 



/^TlToRGE S. EWART, a highly suc- 
\ S~r cessful farmer of Groveland, Living- 
^— •^ ston County, and Chairman of the 
Democratic Central Committee, was born in 
the above-named town, January 12, 1835. 
His father, William Ewart, was a native of 
County Armagh, Ireland, and was the son of 
George and Sarah (Smith) Ewart, a sketch of 
whom appears also in this work. 

William Ewart came to America with his 
parents when he was very young, and was 
reared to agricultural pursuits. After attain- 
ing his majority, he became associated with 
his brothers in farming, and with them suc- 
ceeded to the ownership of the old homestead. 
By careful and prudent living he acquired pos- 
session of one hundred and forty-four acres of 
land, adjoining the old homestead on the 
south; and here he resided until his decease, 
which occurred in 1851. His wife was El- 
vira Stevens, a daughter of Walter Stevens, 
and a native of Vermont. Her father, who 
was born in New England, was a pioneer in 
the town of Richmond, Ontario County, N. Y. , 
where she was reared. Mrs. William Ewart 
lived to the advanced age of eighty-three years, 
and had si.\ children, as follows: Catherine 
S,, George S., Mary C, Anna, Jennie M., 
and Elizabeth. 

George S. , the only son of his parents, was 
educated at Temple Hill Academy, Geneseo, 
and, after finishing his course there, attended 
the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary at Lima. 
Having completed his education, he returned 
to the old homestead, resumed farming, and 
finally inherited the property. He has from 
time to time added purchases to his farm, and 
at the present time is owner of nearly four 
hundred acres of highly cultivated land. Aside 
from farming, he has for a number of years 
been in the wool business, and for the past 
six years has successfully conducted a brisk 
trade in grain at Groveland Station. In 1861 



Mr. Ewart married Marilla P. Merrell, of 
Richmond, Ontario County, N. Y, daughter of 
Nelson and Polly (Goodwin) Merrell; and they 
have two children — Helen M. and Fannie E. 
Helen M. is the wife of Orrin C. Lake. Fan- 
nie E. married Murray L. Gamble, and has 
three children — Roxy M., Mary L. , and 
Helen E. 

Mr. Ewart has always been a Democrat in 
politics, and cast his first Presidential vote for 
James Buchanan. He has held various offices 
of public trust, has been Chairman of the 
Democratic Central Committee of Livingston 
County since 1889, and served nine years as a 
member of the County Board of Supervisors, 
two years of which he was its Chairman. He 
was also Justice of the Peace for twelve years. 
He is Loan Commissioner, having been ap- 
pointed by Governor Hill, and at present is 
the sole commissioner in Livingston County. 
Mr. Ewart is also Treasurer of the Craig Epi- 
leptic Colony. Socially, he is a most amiable 
companion, sympathetic and liberal. He is a 
devoted brother of the Masonic fraternity, 
being a member of Geneseo Lodge, No. 214, 
A. F. & A. M. 




RY HARRISON, a carriage man- 
ufacturer of North Centre Street, 
Geneseo, N.Y., was born in Eng- 
land, October 9, 1844. His parents, 
John and Margaret (Latham) Harrison, were 
also natives of England, and worthy repre- 
sentatives of that distinguished people, who, 
with some faults, "have," it has been well 
said, "many virtues, many advantages, and 
the proudest history of the world." Mr. and 
Mrs. Harrison had three children, namely : 
two sons, John and Henry, and a daughter 
Elizabeth, who died in youth. 

Henry was but si.x years old when his father 
died, and he went to live with his maternal 
grandfather, who was a tailor and carried on 
the business. The lad attended school until 
he was fourteen, when he began to work as an 
apprentice, to learn the trade of gas-pipe 
manufacturing, which was then a hand prod- 
uct. He was employed in that business seven 
years; and then, having attained his majority, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



93 



his mother having passed away some time pre- 
viously, he came to America. After working 
for some time in Geneseo at the machinist's 
trade, which he had learned in connection with 
the gas-pipe manufacture, he bought up the 
property, and went into the carriage business 
on a small scale at first, but making his own 
designs, and later developing a more extensive 
establishment. Here he manufactures all kinds 
of carriage fittings, and fine grades of the lat- 
est patterns in road wagons, brakes, tops, four- 
in-hands, besides a great variety of fancy 
carriages and other travelling equipages. Mr. 
Harrison's work, which is done by hand, the 
materials being of the choicest kinds, has now 
become celebrated for its superior qualities, 
in all the large cities of the Union. 

This is a narrative of more than ordinary in- 
terest, as it shows what may be accomplished 
by an intelligent apiarehension of the laws 
which control mechanical design, coupled with 
patient perseverance and a thoroughness with- 
out which perfection cannot be attained in any 
work. From being a poor boy in ICngland, 
destined eventually to shift for himself, Mr. 
Harrison has gone steadily onward until at 
length he has achieved a deserved recognition 
of his work and its value. Perhaps a word 
might be said in passing as to the advantage to 
be gained by apprenticeship, which is more 
common in England than in the United States. 
The boy who enters a factory generally learns 
but one part of the work, as in the mills are 
found spinners, weavers, binders, and the like; 
but the boy apprenticed to a trade, if he has 
intelligence, learns the whole business, and 
becomes equipped by a varied knowledge which 
is valuable in any trade in which the same 
principles are applied. To such advantages 
may, perhaps, be attributed, in a degree, the 
business success of Henry Harrison. 

Mr. Harrison was married on February 23, 
1 87 1, to Miss Margaret Thompson, of Gen- 
eseo, whose father, Irwell Thompson, has long 
been a prominent resident of this town. Their 
children are two in number — William H., 
who has been through the college at Roches- 
ter, and is now studying law with Hubbard & 
Coyne; and Elizabeth, who is in a normal 
school, preparing to becimie a teacher. Mr. 



Harrison is a member of the Geneseo Masonic 
Grand Lodge, No. 214. He is a trustee of 
the village, advocates Republican principles, 
and is a member of the Episcopal denomina- 
tion. 




i:V. GEORGI-: KEMP WARD, who 
has been for more than twenty years 

ID ^ pastor of the First Presbyterian 
Church at Uansville, was born in the 
city of Rochester, N. Y. , January 9, 1848. His 
father, Levi A. Ward, and his grandfather, 
also named Levi, were natives of Connecticut, 
where the latter was a physician in the town 
of Lyme. Dr. Levi Ward removed to Bergen, 
Monroe County, N. Y., and later to Rochester, 
where he was a pioneer in the practice of 
medicine, and continued his professional ca- 
reer up to the time of his decease. He reared 
a large family. 

Levi A. Ward, son of Dr. Ward, was edu- 
catetl in the public schools of Rochester. 
When he was still a very young man, and 
Rochester was but a small town, he and his 
brother William started in trade. In 1838 
they dissolved partnership, and Levi A. ac- 
cepted a position as agent of the /Etna Insur- 
ance Co., of Hartford, Conn., having the very 
first insurance office established in Rochester. 
He continued to represent this well-known 
company until his decease, a son assisting him 
during his latter years; and the business is 
still carried on by a grandson of its original 
promoter. Levi A. Ward was a very promi- 
nent man in Rochester, highly successful in 
business, and was Mayor of that city about the 
year 1855. He died at the age of eighty 
years, esteemed and respected by a large circle 
of friends and associates, leaving a widow, 
whose maiden name was Harriet Kemp. Mrs. 
Ward's father was George Kemp, who had 
been a whaleship-owner at the Isle of Wight, 
England, and who, while emigrating to Mich- 
igan, stopped at Rochester, and, meeting some 
old friends, was finally induced to go up the 
Genesee valley to Groveland, where he pur- 
chased a farm known at the present time as the 
Kemp farm, upon which he resided for some 
time. Later he removed to Michigan, where 



94 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



he died at the age of eighty years. The 
Kemps were members of the Congregational 
church. Harriet was one of a large family, of 
whom seven are still living. She was the sec- 
ond wife of Mr. Levi A. Ward, and reared six 
out of eleven children, including: Mary E. ; 
Levi F. , who followed his father in the insur- 
ance business; George Kemp, the subject of 
this sketch; Frank A., business manager of 
Ward's Natural Science Establishment, Roch- 
ester; and Herbert L. , a lawyer of the above- 
named city. Mrs. Harriet Kemp Ward still 
resides in Rochester, at the age of eighty- 
three, and is a member of St. Peter's Presby- 
terian Church of that city. 

George K. Ward passed his boyhood in 
Rochester, obtaining his preparatory education 
at the Geneseo Academy, which he attended for 
three years, and the Rochester Collegiate In- 
stitute. In 1864 he entered the University of 
Rochester, but, after pursuing his studies for a 
period of si.\ months, was obliged to relinquish 
them for a time on account of illness. The 
ne.xt year he entered Princeton College, class 
of 1869, was graduated at the end of the 
course, and for a year was a private tutor in 
Rochester. He then returned to Princeton, 
entering the Theological Seminary, where he 
pursued a three years' course of study. At 
the end of his second year he was called to the 
pastorate of the First Presbyterian Church in 
Dansville. He, however, preferred to com- 
plete his theological course before entering 
upon the arduous duties of a pastor, and was 
not ordained till after graduating from the 
seminary. Since Mr. W'ard became pastor of 
this church in 1873 its membership has in- 
creased from two hundred and twenty-one to 
over four hundred. The present new structure 
was erected in 1891 at a cost of about eighteen 
thousand dollars. With one exception, it is 
the finest church edifice in the county. The 
society is the very strongest, and, under the 
wise guidance of Mr. Ward, is in a most flour- 
ishing condition, financially as well as spirit- 
ually. 

In 1873 the Rev. George K. Ward was 
united in marriage to Miss Caroline E. Pier- 
pont, the estimable and accomplished daughter 
of J. E. Pierpont, of Rochester, Secretary and 



Treasurer of the Monroe County Savings Bank, 
and a prominent business man of that city. 
She was one of four children. Mr. and 
Mrs. Ward have five children, as follows: 
Edward P., Levi Alfred, Ruth, Charles 
Sloan, and Kenneth Kemp. Edward P. is 
a graduate of the Dansville public schools, 
and now a student at Princeton, in the class 
of 1896, preparing for a professional life. 
Levi Alfred was educated at the public 
schools of Dansville, and is now occupying 
a position as assistant book-keeper in the 
Merchants' and Farmers' National Bank of 
Dansville. 

The Rev. Mr. Ward has always been a very 
close student, not only of theoU)gy and kindred 
branches, but in other fields of thought and 
learning. At college he was a member of the 
Delta Psi. He has devoted considerable time 
to literature, and this, too, with success. 
Among his productions may be mentioned a 
very interesting volume entitled "After Nine 
Years," a history of his class for that number 
of years after graduation. Later this was car- 
ried forward in "The Vigentennial, " or the 
record of the class for twenty years. His last 
publication, issued in 1894, is a unique, taste- 
ful little volume called "The Record of a 
Life," containing poems appropriate to various 
phases and events, such as birth, baptism, par- 
entage, the covenant of marriage, and death. 
It has received flattering notices from the 
press, and has called forth numei'ous compli- 
mentary personal letters. 

During his long residence in Dansville the 
Rev. Mr. Ward has always taken a deep inter- 
est in social, moral, and political questions, 
as well as religious matters, and his influence 
has been widely felt as a power for good in the 
community. He is a worker of untiring en- 
ergy. His preaching is simple, forcible, and 
interesting; and his popularity as a pulpit 
orator is made manifest by the large numbers 
outside of its regular membership who attend 
his church. His long and unbroken connec- 
tion with his society is sufficient proof of mut- 
ual esteem and unaffected love. Mrs. Ward is 
a most able and faithful helper in all church 
affairs, and is President of the Woman's So- 
ciety for Foreign Missions. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



95 



VALENTINE WELKER, a progres- 
sive, prosperous, and enterprising agri- 
culturist of Wyoming County, is the 
owner of two hundred and sixty-four 
acres of well-improved land, pleasantly located 
in the town of Attica, where he carries on 
general farming, stock-raising, and dairying on 
a large scale. He was born in 1836 in Baden- 
Baden, which was also the birthplace of his 
parents, Valentine and Mary (Ribzalp) Welker. 
The father left Germany in the year 1845, 
sailing from Havre, and being forty-four days 
crossing the ocean. He was accompanied by 
his wife and si.x children, and the journey to 
Buffalo was made via the canal. Another 
child was born in Bennington, Wyoming 
County. Valentine Welker was possessed of 
means, and bought sixty acres of land in 
Bennington, situated about three miles west 
of Attica. Six years later he sold that, and 
bought a farm of eighty-five acres lying in 
the south-east corner of Bennington, and pay- 
ing twenty-nine dollars per acre. Here he 
carried on mixed husbandry until his decease, 
which occurred in 1884, when he was seventy- 
five years of age. He accumulated cjuite a 
property, leaving an estate worth about seven 
thousand dollars. His first wife departed this 
life in 1859, aged forty-nine years. She bore 
him seven children, of whom four are now 
living, namely: Henry, a farmer in Benning- 
ton; Elizabeth, widow of Christian Ripstine; 
J. Valentine, of Attica; and Lena, widow of 
Coonrode Dauber, of Bennington. He subse- 
quently formed a second matrimonial alliance; 
and of that union five children were born, of 
whom all are living with the exception of a 
daughter who died when a miss of twelve 
years. 

J. Valentine Welker received a good com- 
mon-school education, and did not leave home, 
except to work out three summers, until his 
marriage. He is now the owner of two farms, 
which he has carried on with very [profitable 
results for more than thirty years. These two 
farms are connected ; and he occupied the 
brick house on the south half of the estate sev- 
eral years before moving into his present sub- 
stantial frame house, near which are situated 
the spacious and conveniently arranged barns 



and necessary farm buildings for successfully 
carrying on his work. He keeps twenty-four 
cows, sending the milk to Buffalo, has also a 
few sheep, and works six horses. On his farm 
are two large orchards, which in former years 
yielded an abundance of fine fruit, but, like 
others in Western New York, are at present 
nearly barren. 

On January 14, 1863, Mr. Welker was 
united in marriage with Evena Clor, a native 
of Wyoming County, and a daughter of Adam 
and Margaret (I<.aymer) Clor, both of whom 
were born in Germany. Her father died on 
his farm in Orangeville in 1864, aged fifty- 
three years; and her mother, in 1889, aged 
seventy-four years. All of the eight children 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Clor married; and all 
are now living except one daughter, who died, 
leaving three children. Six are residents of 
this county; but the youngest daughter, Sarah, 
is the wife of the Rev. W. Morley, of Beaver 
Falls, N.Y. Two children have been born 
to Mr. and Mrs. Welker. The eldest, Willard 
G., is principal of the Dalton Union School, 
of Livingston County. He is finely educated, 
having been graduated from the Attica school 
and from the Buffalo Normal School. He 
married Miss Jennie Baldwin, and they have 
one son and one daughter. The youngest son, 
Arthur J. Welker, a youth of fifteen years, is 
still in school. In politics Mr. Welker affil- 
iates with the Democratic party; and, relig- 
iously, he and his family are believers in the 
doctrine of the Baptist church. 




ARKLEY MILLER, the scion of a 
pioneer family of Livingston County, 
is not only the owner of the home- 
stead property on which his father 
and grandfather first settled, but is the propri- 
etor and manager of a mill in the town of 
Mount Morris, where he and his brother, as 
equal partners, are carrying on an extensive 
business. Mount Morris is the place of his 
birth, February 14, 1838, being the date 
thereof. His father, Barkley Miller, Sr., was 
a native of Warren County, New Jersey; and 
of that State John Miller, his grandfather, 
was a life-long resident. 



96 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Barkley Miller, Sr. , was brought up on a 
farm, and engaged in agricultural work in his 
native State until 1831, when, accompanied by 
his wife and their three children, he migrated 
to New York. They made the journey with 
teams, bringing their entire stock of worldly 
goods. Mr. Miller bought a tract of partly 
improved land in Livingston County, two and 
one-half miles from Tuscarora toward the 
north-west ; and into the small frame house 
which stood upon the place he moved with his 
family. A very few acres of the land had 
been cleared ; and he at once began the her- 
culean task of felling and removing the re- 
maining forest trees, grubbing out the stumps, 
and preparing the land for tillage. He was 
subjected to many of the inconveniences of the 
very early pioneer settlers, the nearest market 
being Geneseo, whither he had to draw his 
wheat, which was then shipped down the river. 
He was quite successful in his farming opera- 
tions, and added more land to his original pur- 
chase, carrying on mi.xed husbandry until his 
decease. He moved twice, and spent his last 
days near Tuscarora, where he departed this 
life at the age of si.xty-seven years, sui'vived 
by his good wife, who lived fourscore years. 
Her maiden name was Catherine Smith ; and 
she was a daughter of Peter and Hannah Ann 
.Smith, whose entire lives were .spent in New 
Jersey. Ten children were born to Barkley, 
Sr. , and Catherine (Smith) Miller; namely, 
Hiram, Hannah M. , Catherine, Lilizabeth, 
Peter, Sarah J., Barkley, Garrett, David, and 
Tarn son. 

Young Barkley, who was one of the later- 
born children, remained at home until attain- 
ing his majority, receiving a common-school 
education, and a very practical training in 
agricultural labors on the home farm, where 
with the e.xception of the year 1859, which he 
spent in Iowa, he remained until his marriage. 
Prior to this important event Mr. Miller had 
bought land twt) and one-half miles from Tus- 
carora; and there he and his young wife lived 
until 1872, when he removed to the village of 
Tuscarora. In 1871 he bought an interest in 
the mill with his brother Garrett, and has 
since been engaged in milling, although he is 
still interested in agricultural pursuits. He is 



a man of well-known business capacity, sound 
judgment, and one whose opinions are held in 
general respect. 

The marriage ceremony uniting the destinies 
of Mr. Miller and Mary Helen McDuffy was 
performed in 1869. Of this union two chil- 
dren have been born — Carl and Harvey. 
Mrs. Miller is a native of Seneca County, New 
York, where her parents, Harmon and Mar- 
garet McDuffy, were residents at the time of 
her birth. Politically, Mr. Miller is a stanch 
Democrat ; and he and his excellent wife are 
conscientious members of the Presbyterian 
church. 




|AJOR HENRY A. WILEY, at 
present an agriculturist, whose 
residence is in the village of 
Springwater, Livingston County, 
was born in Springwater, August 4, 1835. 
His great-grandfather came to America from 
Ireland; but his grandfather, Samuel, and his 
father, John Wiley, were natives of Berkshire 
County, Massachusetts. The family has a not- 
able military record, both grandfather and 
great-grandfather having served in the War 
of the Revolution, and the father in the War 
of 1S12; while the two sons, Henry A. and 
Robert, were in the War of the Rebellion from 
1861 to 1865. 

John Wiley spent his early life as a boy on 
his father's farm, attending the district school 
and helping in farm work. Before attaining 
his majority, he went to the Black River coun- 
try, in Lewis County, New York, not remain- 
ing there long, however, but coming in 181 3 to 
Springwater, which at that time had only a few 
log cabins scattered here and there. He pur- 
chased here a small tract of land, built a card- 
ing-machine mill, and for a while followed 
blacksmithing and milling, having a saw-mill 
and a grist-mill on the site of the old mill in 
the village. These occupations he carried on 
for many years ; but later, having come to a 
realization of the transitoriness of the earthly 
life and the supreme importance of preparing 
for the life to come, he was converted from his 
love of the world and entered the Methodist 
ministr\- as an itinerant preacher. His house 




EDWARD BURRELL. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



99 



soon became the home of the circuit riders 
throughout all this region ; and the Major, his 
son, well remembers capturing one and an- 
other of the horses of the ministers and riding 
off in the evening for a midnight "lark," 
somewhat after the fashion of Brom Bones, as 
related by Irving in "The Legend of Sleepy 
Hollow." These exploits enlivened the labors 
of the farm, and doubtless aided in the devel- 
opment of those cjualities of dash and daring 
that stood him so well in the exciting experi- 
ences of the war in which he later took so 
active a part. 

Becoming somewhat broken in liealth, the 
Rev. John Wiley was appointed by the confer- 
ence of which he was a member to solicit sub- 
scriptions for the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary 
and the Genesee College. In the years 1849- 
50 he became quite prominent, in connection 
with Mr. John McGee, in collecting subscrip- 
tions for locating and carrying forward to com- 
pletion the railroad from Corning to Rochester. 
After this work was well under way, he went to 
Ohio as a contractor, taking the job of the 
masonry on the railroad between Cleveland and 
Sandusky, through Vermilion and Huron. 
While engaged in this great undertaking, his 
health broke down, and he was obliged to 
return to Springwater. This was in 1859. 
After becoming a settled resident of the town, 
he was elected to the Assembly, and was re- 
elected in i860. 

John Wiley married for his first wife Miss 
Betsy Southworth, by whom he had three chil- 
dren — Sarah, Eliza, and John S. , all of whom 
are still living. Sarah, the eldest daughter, 
was married to the Rev. John J. Brown, who 
was for many years an instructor in the Dans- 
ville Seminary, Cornell University, and the 
University of Syracuse. Mr. Wiley's second 
wife, mother of Major Henry A. Wiley, was 
Miss Julia 1?. Hyde, a daughter of Robert 
Hyde, and niece of General Harper. They had 
seven children, namely: Harper, who married 
the daughter of Charles Carroll, of Carrollton ; 
Robert II. ; Charles Wesley; Henry A. ; Cyn- 
thia E. , now deceased, who married G. R. 
Wilder; Emily Tucker, who married Mr. 
W. W. Capron, of Wayland ; and George H. 
Mrs. Julia B. Wiley was born in Virginia, 

LOf C 



October 2, 1799, and died in Springwater, De- 
cember 16, 1865. She was a member of the 
Methodi.st church. Her husband, the Rev. 
John Wiley, died at the age of seventy-three 
years, having well served his day and gener- 
ation. 

Henry A. Wiley grew up in the town of his 
birth, attending the district .school and the 
Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, also assisting his 
father until he entered the army in October, 
1861, as a private in Company B, One Hun- 
dred and P'ourth Regiment. He was soon pro- 
moted to the office of Lieutenant, and then to 
First Lieutenant on the organization of the 
company. His promotions continued rapidly, 
raising him to Captain in 1862, then Major, 
and then to Lieutenant Colonel, in which 
capacity he served until his discharge in 1865. 
Major Wiley served in all the prominent en- 
gagements of the Army of the Potomac. He 
was taken prisoner August 19, 1864, while 
with the forces before Petersburg, Va. , and 
was sent first to the Libby Prison, whence he 
was transferred to Salisbury, N.C. , and four 
weeks later to Dansville, Va. , where he re- 
mained in confinement till finally he was 
paroled. He was discharged at Annapolis in 
March, 1865, and then came North to his 
home and friends. 

Major Wiley has been very prominent in 
Grand Army matters, and has a fine collection 
of medals and badges, about fifty in number, 
each one commemorating some association or 
gathering. Four generations of citizen sol- 
diers! Such men are the heroes, the real bul- 
warks of the nation. Ever ready to defend its 
honor and to promote its welfare, they make 
worthy inheritors of the country's prosperity. 



DWARD BURRELL. In the language 
of Archbishop Whately : "Man, consid- 
ered not merely as an organized 
being, but as a rational agent and a member 
of society, is perhaps the most wonderfully 
contrived, and, to us, the most interesting 
specimen of divine wisdom that we have any 
knowledge of." P'ew gentlemen are more in- 
telligent and social than Mr. Burrell, who 
commands the resjject of the peoijle among 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



whom he has passed his life, being in every 
way an enterprising and sagacious agriculturist 
and business man. Though of late years liv- 
ing a retired life in Canaseraga, he was born 
in Ossian, Livingston County, on May 15, 
1823, the year when the President announced 
that policy in regard to foreign occupancy of 
North America which has since been known as 
the Monroe Doctrine. 

His father, Isaac Burrell, was a native of 
the Northumberland district of England, and 
was there bred a cabinet-maker. Coming to 
this country in his early manhood, Isaac Bur- 
rell worked six years at his trade in Seneca, 
Ontario County, but, deciding that the part 
of Allegany which is now Livingston County 
would be preferable as a permanent residence, 
bought land in the town of Ossian, though this 
meant hard work in clearing away the prime- 
val forest and enduring all sorts of hardships. 
There were only three or four log houses in the 
neighborhood, and the development of a farm 
involved the disposal of large amounts of tim- 
ber. By patient labor Isaac Burrell brought 
his land into a fine state of cultivation, and 
died thereon at the age of sixty-three, in 1857, 
having been born in 1794, during Washing- 
ton's second administration. His wife was 
Margaret Burrell, her surname being the same 
as his own. In fact, they were already dis- 
tantly related, she being a native of England, 
a daughter of Edward Burrell, who crossed the 
seas to settle in Seneca, near Geneva, like his 
cousin^ Isaac Burrell. She and her husband 
had eight children, of whom four survive. Of 
these, the eldest is the subject of this sketch, 
Edward Burrell, named for his maternal grand- 
father. Elizabeth Burrell became Mrs. Knapp. 
Jane Burrell married Stephen Monday, and 
resides in Illinois. Mary Burrell resides un- 
married in Dansville; and with her the mother 
spent her last days, dying at eighty-nine, firm 
in the Presbyterian faith, her husband being 
an attendant of the same church. 

Edward Burrell spent his early years on the 
homestead, went to the district school, and 
aided his father in the arduous labors of farm- 
ing. In 1850, at the age of twenty-seven, he 
bought of Thomas P. Smith a farm in the town 
of Nunda, Livingston Countv, and in course of 



time was able to erect the frame buildings 
wherein he resided for a score of years. After 
the death of his father, however, he returned 
to the ancestral home in Ossian, and remained 
there until 1875. Then he moved to Dans- 
ville, where he lived till his brother, who had 
been managing the home farm, was killed by a 
falling tree, when he again took charge of the 
farm, which he still owns, although he now 
resides in Canaseraga. His marriage took 
place in 1849, when twenty-six years old, the 
bride being Henry Rollins's daughter Betsey, 
a native of South Dansville, where she grew 
up on her father's farm, one of several chil- 
dren. She died in 1872, after twenty-three 
years of wedded happiness. A few years later 
Mr. Burrell married a second time, his wife 
being Mrs. Catherine Allen, the widow of 
Emery Allen, and a daughter of Jacob Eve- 
land, belonging to an old Dansville family. 

Mr. Burrell has long been prominent in the 
order of Grangers ; and he is a stockholder and 
Director in the T. G. Wooster Furniture Man- 
ufacturing Company, of Canaseraga. He was 
for many years an Assessor in Ossian. In 
politics he may be called an independent Dem- 
ocrat, often voting for the best man, and not 
as a partisan. In religion he follows the pa- 
rental lead as a Presbyterian, though very lib- 
eral in his religious views; but Mrs. Burrell 
is a Methodist in belief. He owned a large 
saw-mill, and has been an extensive dealer in 
lumber. In 1881 he had the misfortune to 
lose his mill by fire, and this is a loss hardly 
to be repaired; but he still has the homestead 
of over two hundred acres of fine tillable land. 

Such men are a nation's bulwarks. A very 
good likeness of this worthy citizen meets the 
eye of the reader on another page. 



TT^HARLES J. BENEDICT, a success- 
I \y ful farmer in the town of Perry, 

y^lU^^ Wyoming County, N.Y., was born 
March 20, 1823. He is the grand- 
son of Samuel and Anna (Seward) Benedict, 
both of whom were born in Connecticut. 
They afterward settled in Vermont, where 
Samuel Benedict occupied himself in cultivat- 
ing his farm. They had a family of five sons 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



and two daughters — Graham, William, Solo- 
mon, Truman, Samuel, Sally, and Anna. 
Samuel Benedict died at the age of seventy- 
six years, and his wife lived to the advanced 
age of ninety-two. He was a Whig in poli- 
tics, and was a member of the Presbyterian 
church, as was also his wife. 

Graham, son of Samuel Benedict, was born 
in Connecticut, July 27, 1785. Tn his youth 
he left his native State, and went to Man- 
chester, Vt., where on September 25, 18 14, 
*he married Lucy Hickox. In February of 
the following year they started for their new 
home in Lima, Livingston County, N.Y., 
and for two weeks journeyed with their ox 
teams over rough and uncleared roads. In 
1 8 16 Mr. Benedict bought one hundred acres 
of land on what was called the Van Rens- 
selaer tract in the town of Perry, and re- 
moved thither with his family. This country 
was then a primeval forest; and here Mr. 
Benedict made a clearing for his log house, 
erecting the structure which served for a 
home for his family for many years. Sawed 
timber was then seldom seen in this part of 
the country, and therefore blankets were used 
for doors. While these improvements were 
being made, Mr. Benedict and his wife re- 
sided near by with the Norris family, who, 
with the hospitality characteristic of those 
times, offered to the new-comers a home until 
their own was ready for occupancy. Graham 
Benedict cleared most of his land, and soon 
fields of waving wheat and corn replaced the 
dense forest. This land proved very produc- 
tive, and by selling fifty acres he was enabled 
to build a house and barn when the accommo- 
dations of the log cabin were no longer 
sufificient for his increased family. Event- 
ually he bought one hundred and five acres 
more, and was very successful in the cultiva- 
tion of his extensive farm. Graham Benedict 
died January 13, 1862, at the age of seventy- 
six years; and in March, 1870, his wife 
passed away at the age of seventy-nine. She 
was a member of the Presbyterian church, 
while her husband belonged to the Episcopal 
church. He was a Whig in politics, and for 
many years an Overseer of the Poor, Com- 
missioner of Highways, and Inspector of 



Common Schools. Their children were: 
Harriet, who married M. Stratton, and is 
now dead; Eunice A., who married J. A. 
Thompson, of Perry Centre, and who was the 
mother of three children; Samuel; and the 
subject of this sketch. 

Charles J. Benedict was educated in the 
district schools of his native town, and at the 
early age of sixteen years he took full charge 
of the old homestead. When twenty years of 
age, he engaged in farming in company with 
his brother-in-law, J. A. Thompson; but 
after three years the partnership was dis- 
solved, and he continued the work in his own 
interest. His brother Samuel lives with 
him. January, 1850, Mr. Benedict married 
Florilla Herd, daughter of Samuel and 
Aurelia (Canfield) Benedict, of Arlington, 
Bennington County, Vt. They have had 
three children. The eldest, Frank C, born 
September 16, 1852, is a commercial trav- 
eller; his first wife was Estelle Miner, 
who died, leaving one child, Charles Miner, 
after which he married Elizabeth Walker, of 
Manchester, Vt., his business headquarters 
now being 46 Lincoln Street, Boston. Hat- 
tie E., born October 26, 1857, married 
George W. Silver, a machinist, and lives 
at Perry Centre, having one child, Lucy. 
Fred G., born December 16, 1868, married 
Bertha Bingham, and lives at the old home- 
stead. 

Charles J. Benedict, besides buying the 
home farm, has bought and sold several other 
pieces of land, has remodelled the house and 
barns, building a new wagon house adjacent 
to the homestead, and owns several fine tene- 
ment houses. His finely cultivated farm in- 
cludes about eight acres of orchard land, upon 
which he has set out three hundred trees. In 
addition to these trees is an apple orchard, 
consisting of trees raised from seeds which 
were planted by his father. 

Mr. Benedict was Highway Commissioner 
for three years, and in politics is a Republi- 
can. During the Rebellion, being unable to 
leave home, he furnished a substitute for the 
army. His wife was a member of the Con- 
gregational church.- She died in 1886, when 
but fifty-seven years of age. Mr. Benedict 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



has by his energy and industry greatly im- 
proved his farm and buildings, and enjoys 
well-deserved prosperit}'. 



/^TeORGE W. CLAPP, one of the 
I •) I prominent residents of the town of 

— York, Livingston County, N.Y., is 
of New England stock, having been born in 
Windham County, Connecticut, September 4, 
1 8 14. His father, whose name was Nathan B. 
Clapp, was also a native of that State. He 
came to Livingston County in 1820 with wife 
and six children and all his worldly effects in 
a wagon. Planning to create a home for them 
all in time, though aware that a great deal 
had to be done first, he took up about fifty 
acres of land, which was at that time a wilder- 
ness; and by degrees he cleared it of the 
forest growth, drained the moist land, divided 
the fields, and planted the virgin soil with 
grain and vegetables. Thus going on by 
steady, untiring effort, he increased his estate 
so that at the time of his death he was the 
owner of a farm of one hundred acres. He 
lived to be eighty-two years old. 

Nathan B. Clapp married Miss Eunice 
Durfee; and they raised a family of nine chil- 
dren, named respectively Charles, Erastus, 
Lucy, Emily, Carrie, George W., James D., 
Thomas B., and Lowell H. The mother of 
this large family deserves special mention, so 
much was in reality owing to her prudence 
and thrift, and the patient courage with 
which she met the numberless privations and 
hardships incident to the first settling in the 
country, the care and training of the children 
also largely depending on her. She died at 
an advanced age. George W., the sixth 
child and fourth son of Nathan and Eunice 
Clapp, was about six years old when his 
father emigrated from Connecticut to Living- 
ston County, New York; and he became a 
student first at the public school and later 
at the Wyoming Academy. Being an apt 
scholar, he was proficient in his studies when 
he left the pupil's desk, and was able to take 
the important position of training the young. 
This he continued till he had taught as many 
as fifty-two terms, all in the town of York, 



where it is evident his abilities as an in- 
structor of youth were appreciated. In con- 
nection with his brother James, he owned a 
farm, on which in the intervals of the school 
terms he occupied his time. In 1884 he gave 
up school-keeping altogether, selling the 
farm or his part interest in it. 

Mr. George W. Clapp was married August 
21, 1844, to Sarah M. Wells, the daughter of 
Joseph and Harriet Wells, of Connecticut. 
The children of Mr. and Mrs. Clapp are three 
daughters — Arabelle E., Auzella C, and 
Frances A. Arabelle E. married James A. 
Dow, a war veteran residing in York; and 
their one child is a daughter named M. 
Estelle, who is a teacher in Wyoming 
County. Auzella is the wife of Mr. H. 
Walker, a Supervisor of the town of York. 
Frances married Mr. Fred Robinson, of the 
town of Media, Delaware County, Pa. They 
have one child, Edna M. 

Mr. Clapp has been a superintendent of 
the commom schools of the town, and has 
served as Justice of the Peace eight years. 
He has also been part of the time these later 
years an Assessor. In politics Mr. Clapp 
has been a member of the Republican party 
since its formation. His first Presidential 
vote was cast for that great statesman, Daniel 
Webster, in 1836. 



bTRFJ 



REDERIC DAVIDSON, a prosperous 
r* merchant in the town of Nunda, has 
been actively engaged in business here 
for the past forty years, and by his honorable 
and upright methods of dealing has won the 
regard and confidence of the entire com- 
munity. He comes of stanch New England 
ancestry, and was himself a native of the 
Granite State, June 21, 18 16, being the date 
of his birth. 

His father, James E. Davidson, was also 
born in New Hampshire, where he lived for 
upward of threescore years. He was a 
cabinet manufacturer by trade, and was also 
engaged in mercantile pursuits for many years 
in Hillsboro County. In 1854 he sold out 
his business there, and came to Livingston 
County, settling in the town of Nunda, which 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



i°3 



was then an enterprising village, having fully 
as large a population as at the present time. 
He had been a prominent man in the place of 
his nativity, having served as Selectman for 
several years. He died on October 29, 18S2, 
having then almost reached the ninety-third 
anniversary of his birth. His wife, Jane 
Emerson, daughter of Stephen Emerson, of 
New Hampshire, passed to the life eternal 
July II, 1871, at the age of seventy-eight 
years. Of the three sons born to them, 
James 5., George R., and Frederic, the latter 
is the only one now living. (For further 
parental history, see genealogy of the David- 
son family.) 

Frederic Davidson was reared amid the 
rugged hills of his native State, and after 
pursuing his studies in the district schools 
and the Hillsboro Academy entered upon a 
mercantile career, entering first the store of 
his father in Concord, N.H., where for about 
five years he made himself useful, and gained 
at the same time a knowledge of the details 
of the business. Mr. Davidson then spent a 
year in the city of Boston, going thence to 
the city of New York, where he was employed 
for six years as a book-keeper in a Broadway 
establishment. In 1847 he came to Nunda, 
where he opened a store for general merchan- 
dise, and also became a partner in the foundry 
which was then established. He has since 
then been continuously engaged in his pres- 
ent business, being one of the oldest and 
foremost merchants in this vicinity, the store 
having been first established in 1855. 

Mr. Davidson was married in 1839 ^° Miss 
Charlotte M. Hurd, of Rochester, N.H.; and 
their union has been blessed by the birth of 
two children, one of whom, Charles F.. the 
first-born, passed to the higher existence at 
the early age of twenty years. The other 
child, F"rancis U. Davidson, is now in busi- 
ness with his father. Politically, Mr. David- 
son was in the earlier years of his life a 
stanch member of the old Whig party, but is 
now closely identified with the Democratic 
party. His first Presidential vote was cast 
for William Henry Harrison in 1840. He 
has never been an aspirant for official honors, 
but allowed his name to be used as a candidate 



for the State legislature in i860, and has 
also been a candidate for supervisor. 




APTAIN JACOB A. SCHLICK, a 
veteran of the Grand Army of the 
Republic, born in the village of 
Dansville, Livingston County, 
April I, 1839, h^s been prominently con- 
nected with the agricultural interests of Wy- 
oming County for many years. He is a 
well-known resident of Bennington, where 
he owns a fine farm of one hundred and sixty- 
two acres, which is now managed by his 
eldest son, P^rank A. Schlick, who carries on 
general farming and dairying. 

Nicholas Schlick, the Captain's father, 
was born in Prussia in February, 1809, and 
came to America in 1833 with a party of Ger- 
man emigrants, who settled in Dansville at a 
time when the country thereabout was com- 
paratively new, Geneseo, eighteen miles dis- 
tant, being their nearest market and milling- 
point. In this company of colonists were 
Francis Gunther and his wife Catherine, 
whose daughter, also named Catherine, Mr. 
Schlick married the following year. Nicho- 
las Schlick was a tailor, and followed his 
trade some forty years. To him and his wife 
twelve children were born, ten of them being 
sons, four of whom served bravely in the late 
Civil War. 

Jacob was reared to manhood in the place of 
his nativity, and until eighteen years old 
worked on a farm. He then served a three 
years' apprenticeship to the blacksmith's 
trade; and subsequently, thinking a change 
of climate might prove beneficial to his 
health, he removed to Wisconsin. On the 
19th of April, 1861, responding to the first 
call for volunteers, he enlisted at Baraboo, 
Wis., in a company which was quickly and 
rapidly filled in the expectation of joining 
the First Wisconsin Regiment; but, there 
being fifty companies ahead of it, the Baraboo 
company was assigned to the Sixth Wisconsin 
Volunteer Infantry as Company A. Its com- 
mander, Captain Malloy, was promoted 
through the various ranks to that of Briga- 
dier-general. Mr. Schlick entered the com- 



I04 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



pany as a private, was promoted to be First 
Sergeant, and on the reorganization of the 
company in 1862 was made Second Lieu- 
tenant in the Twenty-third Wisconsin Volun- 
teer Infantry. In August of that year he was 
again promoted, becoming Captain of Com- 
pany F. His military record was one of 
which he may well be proud, and covered a 
period of more than four years. He was in- 
jured at the close of the war by a drunken 
soldier in New Orleans, and now receives a 
small pension. 

On October 23, 1866, Jacob A. Schlick 
was united in marriage with Florence E. 
Day, a native of Bennington, N.Y., and the 
daughter of Volney and Electa (Gratton) 
Day, the former of whom was born in Con- 
necticut and the latter in Oneida County in 
this State. The Day family originated in 
Wales, its first representative on American 
soil being Robert Day, who arrived in Bos- 
ton, Mass., in 1634, living there until 1639, 
when he removed to Hartford, Conn. The 
grandparents of Mrs. Schlick, Linus and 
Lydia (Holcomb) Day, were early pioneer 
settlers of Bennington, coming here from 
their Connecticut home in 181 3, journeying 
through the trackless woods with ox teams, 
and out of their scanty hoard of money buying 
fifty acres of wild land, from which they im- 
proved a farm. 

The pleasant wedded 
Mrs. Schlick has been 
three children, all of 
their names being as 
Volney D., and Agnes 
Schlick is a straight 
earnest advocate of the principles of that party 
He was reared to the Catholic faith, but he has 
not adhered to the doctrines of that church. 



life of Captain and 
blest by the birth of 
whom live at home, 

follows: Frank A., 

E. In politics Mr. 

Republican and an 



-ACOB MOVER HAGEY, M.D., a 
gentleman of high social and profes- 
sional standing, is one of the most 
eminent physicians of this section of 
Livingston County, and has a large and lucra- 
tive practice in Mount Morris, where he has 
resided since 1881. He was born in the town 
of Line Lexington, Montgomery County, Pa. 



The Hagey family, whose name was origi- 
nally spelled Haguy, had its origin in the 
province of Alsace-Lorraine, and was first 
represented on American soil by three 
brothers of that name, all of whom emigrated 
to the United States in Colonial days. One 
brother, it is said, was a member of General 
Lafayette's staff, and after the Revolution 
settled in the South. One brother located 
near St. Louis; and the other, the great- 
grandfather of the Doctor, became a resident 
of Eastern Pennsylvania, where he followed 
the trade of a watch and clock maker as long 
as he lived. Jacob Hagey, the Doctor's 
grandfather, was born in Lower Salford, Pa., 
and, having learned the trade of his father, 
carried it on for some years in the town of 
his nativity. Removing to Hilltown, Bucks 
County, he there bought a farm, which he 
superintended, at the same time pursuing his 
former occupation until the time of his 
decease. He married Sally Gerhart, a native 
of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, and 
the descendant of a well-known German 
family. 

George Hagey, son of Jacob, was born dur- 
ing the residence of his parents in Lower 
Salford, and, having become proficient in 
the trade by which his immediate ancestors 
had acquired a livelihood, removed to the 
village of Trappe, Montgomery County, where 
he engaged in watch and clock making until 
the year 1S49. Then, buying the homestead 
property of his parents, he engaged in general 
farming in Bucks County for six years. 
Selling his farm, he removed to Sterling, 
Whiteside County, 111., where he carried on 
a successful jewelry business until his death, 
at the advanced age of eighty years. His 
wife, whose maiden name was Sarah Moyer, 
was a native of Upper Salford and of German 
ancestry, her parents having been Jacob and 
Sarah (Detwiler) Moyer, natives of Pennsyl- 
vania. 

Jacob M. Hagey, son of George and Sarah 
(Moyer) Hagey, completed his academical 
education at Washington Hall Academy in 
the village of Trappe, and at the age of seven- 
teen years commenced teaching, which he 
followed till he was twenty-one, when he 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



i°S 



began the study of medicine with Drs. Keeler 
and Groff, of Harleysville, Pa. He after- 
ward studied for a few months under the 
tutelage of his uficle, Dr. Joseph Moyer, of 
Norristown. In 1855 he removed to Ster- 
ling, 111., going by railway as far as Dixon, 
which was then the terminus of the railway, 
thence by stage to Sterling. He engaged in 
teaching in that vicinity, and when not so 
employed was associated with his father in 
the jewelry business. In 1857 he resumed 
his medical studies with Dr. Hudson, a 
leadjng physician of Sterling, and subse- 
quently attended lectures at Rush Medical 
College in Chicago, being graduated from 
that institution in February, 1862. Com- 
mencing the practice of his profession in 
Sterling, Dr. Hagey remained there until 
1865, when he removed to Peoria, where he 
practised for six months. Returning to Ster- 
ling, he continued his practice for four years, 
and in 1869 returned East, locating his office 
in East Gainesville, Wyoming County, N.Y. ; 
and there he had a successful professional 
career until 1881, when he came to Mount 
Morris. 

The nuptial ceremony uniting the lives of 
Dr. Hagey and Saphina Calysa Briggs, a na- 
tive of Castile, N.Y., was celebrated in 
1865. Into this happy home circle three 
children have been born — Maude, Blanche, 
and John Briggs. Among his professional 
brethren Dr. Hagey occupies a prominent 
place. He is a member of the Livingston 
County Medical Society, of which he has 
been President, a member of the Central 
New York Medical Association, and also of 
the American Medical Association. He 
likewise belongs to the American Public 
Health Society, having been made a member 
of that body at a meeting held in the city of 
Mexico in 1892. Dr. Hagey is an influential 
member of the Genesee Valley Lodge, An- 
cient Order United Workmen, and of the 
Royal Legion of Select Knights. He is 
also prominent in the Masonic fraternity, be- 
longing to Mount Morris Lodge, No. 122, 
A. F. & A. M., and is a member of Mount 
Morris Chapter, No. 137, R. A. M., in which 
he is High Priest. He is also a member of 



Cyrene Commandery, No. 39, K. T., Roches- 
ter, N.Y. The Doctor is also a member of 
Fraternal LInion, A. H. P., of the State of 
New York. 



B 



;L0S PAINIC, who is a native and to 
the manner born, his birth ha\ing 
occurred in the town of Nunda, April 
2, 1840, is thoroughly identified 
with the agricultural and industrial interests 
of this section of Livingston County, as one of 
its thrifty and prosperous farmers and dealers 
in lumber. He is a son of Carlos G. Paine, a 
brother of the father of William H. Paine, a 
sketch of whose life may be found on another 
page of this work. 

Carlos G. Paine came to Nunda when there 
were but few settlers in the place, and, buying 
a tract of land, improved a good farm. He 
erected a frame house, which is still standing 
and in a comparatively good condition. In 
addition to farming, he built the brick hotel 
known as the Nunda House, where he enter- 
tained the travelling public for several years, 
winning quite a reputation as a pleasant and 
accommodating host. Endowed by nature 
with a fine physique, being tall and well pro- 
portioned, he seemed peculiarly adapted for the 
]50sition of Constable of the town and of Dep- 
uty Sheriff of the county, an office which he 
filled at a time when this town was included 
within the limits of Allegany County. This 
section was then troubled by timber thieves, 
who stole shingles, lumber, etc., at every op- 
portunity. Many times he made arrests, and 
was obliged to take his prisoners to Angelica 
for trial. The maiden name of his fir.st wife, 
the mother of him of whom we write, was Je- 
rusha Swift. She was a native of Herkimer 
County, and to them three children were born, 
namely: Delos; P'anny A., who married the 
Rev. A. M. Town, of Nunda; and Harriet J., 
the wife of Henry Starrett, of Michigan. The 
mother died in 1854; and Mr. Paine sub.se- 
quently married Nancy Burdick, who bore him 
one son, Nathan A. 

Delos Paine obtained his education in the 
place of his nativity, attending the district 
schools and the Nunda Academy, and during 



io6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



the days of his boyhood and youth received a 
practical training in the labors of the farm, 
which has been very beneficial to him in his 
career as a farmer and stock-grower. In the 
prosecution of his chosen calling he has exer- 
cised a sound judgment and a careful manage- 
ment that have been rew-arded with exxellent 
success, and have given him a fine position 
among the agriculturists of influence and afflu- 
ence. He is a man of strong and earnest 
convictions, very popular with his fellow- 
townsmen; and his life record is without re- 
proach. He uniformly casts his vote with the 
Republican party, and is an ardent advocate of 
its principles. In local affairs he upholds all 
enterprises tending toward the improvement of 
the social, educational, or moral status of the 
town, being one of its most faithful and loyal 
citizens. He is a member of the Masonic fra- 
ternity, and has also served for many terms as 
Assessor of his district. 

Mr. Paine was united in marriage in 1866 to 
Miss Harriet M. Lowell, a daughter of Eben 
and Hancy (Bowen) Lowell; and their union 
has been blessed by the birth of two chil- 
dren, a son and a daughter — Welcome L., 
a prosperous farmer ; and Grace J., who is an 
excellent and successful teacher of Nunda. 




RED NORRIS, editor and proprietor of 
the Castilian, occupies a prominent 
place among the newspaper men of 
Wyoming County. He was born in Canastota, 
Madison County, N. Y. , October 8, 1862, son 
of Archibald R. and Helen M. (Shipman) 
Norris, and grandson, on the paternal side, of 
Nathaniel and Lucy (Belding) Norris. Na- 
thaniel Norris was born in Connecticut, Oc- 
tober 5, 1785, and removed thence to Broadal- 
bin, Fulton County, N. Y. , where he died April 
30, 1871, having been a prosperous farmer and 
a much respected citizen. His wife, Lucy 
Belding, to whom he w^as married October 2, 
1808, was born January 15, 1791, and died 
December 3, 1870. They were members of 
the Baptist church. Their thirteen children 
were: Ruth A., Chauncy, Lucinda, Elizabeth, 
Samuel, Ephraim, Nathaniel, Lucy, Archibald 
R. , Alexander, James, Mary M., and George. 



Archibald R. Norris was born in Broadal- 
bin, and learned the carpenter's trade in his 
native town. In those days money was scarce ; 
and his first earnings were obtained by turning 
a wheel to spin tow, for which he received the 
value of sixpence a day in linen cloth, which 
at that time was fourpence a vard. At the age 
of thirteen he entered a sash and blind factory 
at Troy, and after working there some time he 
went to New York City as agent for the com- 
pany. During the construction of the New 
York Central Railroad he was employed as 
overseer of the grading and bridge-building. 
He now resides at Canaseraga, Allegany 
County, where he owns a large farm. He 
married in 1852 Helen M. Shipman, daughter 
of David Shipman, a farmer, who was the 
manager of the noted Temperance Hotel of 
Gerrit Smith in Madison County. Mr. and 
Mrs. Archibald R. Norris became the parents 
of six children, as follows: Eugene P., w'ho 
resides at home ; Charles, who died at the age 
of seven years; Lucy, living with her brother 
Frank at Attica, N. Y. ; Fred, who is the sub- 
ject of this biography; Frank, who is in the 
newspaper business at Attica; and Nina, who 
died at an early age. 

Fred Norris, after graduating from the high 
school at Canaseraga, learned the printer's 
trade with F. S. Mills, of the Canaseraga 
Times. In 1888 Mr. Norris, in company with 
his brother Frank, came to Castile and bought 
out the interests of Mr. A. Gaines, the editor 
of the Castilian, a bright and newsy weekly- 
paper, which is foremost in advocating needed 
reforms. In May, 1884, Mr. Norris bought 
out his brother's interest in the paper, and now 
conducts the business alone. 

On July 12, 1893, Mr. Norris was joined in 
marriage to Julia A. Pickett, daughter of Dan- 
iel S. and Eliza (Graves) Pickett. Daniel 
Pickett, the father, was born in the town of 
Castile, August 30, 1827, and was the son of 
James K. and Elizabeth (Havens) Pickett. 
James K., the grandfather of Mrs. Norris, 
was born January 26, 1786, in Washington 
County, New York, and at the age of thirteen 
was bound out to service ; but, finding restraint 
irksome, he ran away from his master and went 
to sea. For seven years he followed a seafar- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



107 



ing life. In 180S he was taken from his ship 
with a comrade, and impressed into the British 
service, where he remained for three years. 
He was present at the battle of Flushing. 
When war was declared between the United 
States and luigland, they refused to serx'e 
longer, and demanded that they be treated as 
prisoners of war. Their demands were acceded 
to, and they were confined in a prison ship. 
Mr. Pickett was exchanged about si.\ months 
after. Returning home, he married Elizabeth 
Havens and about 1818 came to Castile, Wy- 
oming County, where he bought fifty acres of 
land near Silver Lake. This part of the coun- 
try being at that time a complete wilderness, 
thickly wooded, he cleared the land, built a 
log house, and here passed the remainder of 
his life, dying August 8, 1S57. He and his 
wife had seven children — Ephraim, Joseph, 
Goodman H., Sarah, Daniel S., William E., 
and Elizabeth. 

The marriage of Daniel S. Pickett to Eliza 
Graves occurred in 1854. She was born De- 
cember 22, 1833, and was a daughter of Joseph 
and Mary (Ridsdale) Graves, both of whom 
came to America from Yorkshire, England, 
about 1827, and settled in Castile, where they 
resided during the remainder of their lives. 
Daniel S. Pickett soon after his marriage set- 
tled in Castile, where he bought land and has 
since done a large business as a dealer in agri- 
cultural implements. He and his wife have 
three children. Mary E. , born January 15, 
1856, married C. J. Smith, and resides in 
Fresno, Cal. Agnes, born January i, i860, 
married F" red Smith, and lives in Omaha, Neb. 
Julia, born December 8, 1863, is the wife of 
Mr. Norris, of this sketch. 

Mr. Norris has an interest in the Elitsac 
Manufacturing Company, but is best known 
through his connection with journalism. He 
supports the Democratic party, and conducts 
his paper with marked ability, meeting with a 
well-merited success. 



r3RGE T. EWART, ex-member of 
the County Board of Supervisors, and 
a member of the Supervisors' Associ- 
ation of Livingston County, was born in Grove- 



land in i860, where his father, Harvey Ewart, 
was also born, March 15, 18 10. His grand- 
father, George Ewart, was a native of County 
Armagh, Ireland, and of Scotch ancestry. So 
far as known, the latter and his brother John 
were the only members of the family who came 
to America. 

The grandfather was reared and married in 
his native land, and about the year 1807 came 
to America, accompanied by his wife and 
seven children. They crossed the ocean in a 
sailing-vessel, and, landing in Philadelphia, 
proceeded to Harrisburg, Pa., and from there 
to Geneseo in New York State, where he 
became a pioneer. After remaining in that 
town one year he moved to Groveland, pur- 
chasing a tract of land upon which was a log 
house and a few farming utensils. With 
these, which constituted his only possessions 
in life, he began his career as an American 
farmer. At this time there were no railroads 
or canals, and the farmers were obliged to take 
their surplus produce by team to Rochester for 
a market. The people lived chiefly upon the 
products of the land, and Mr. Ewart' s wife 
clothed her family in homespun of her own 
spinning and weaving. He made steady im- 
provement in spite of the many hardships of 
pioneering, and became a successful farmer. 
He died at Groveland at the age of eighty-four 
years. The maiden name of his wife was 
Sarah Smith. She is a native of the same 
county as her husband ; and she died at the age 
of eighty-one, after having reared ten children, 
whose names were as follows: Nancy, Sally, 
Mary, Maria, Harvey, Samuel, William, 
James, Jane, and John. George Ewart and 
his wife were members of the Presbyterian 
church, of which he was an Elder for many 
years. 

Harvey Ewart is probably the oldest native- 
born citizen in the town of Groveland. He 
was reared to agricultural pursuits, and, with 
the exception of some time spent in travel, 
has always lived upon the farm where he was 
born. When about twenty-three years of age, 
his health being somewhat impaired, he was 
advised to try a sea voyage; and he went to 
Ireland, where he remained a year. He then 
returned to the United States, going first to 



io8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Ohio, and from there to Virginia, where he 
taught school for a time, and after an absence 
of three years came back to Groveland and re- 
sumed farming. He succeeded to the owner- 
ship of the home farm, and has resided upon 
it ever since. His first wife was Matilda 
Begole, a native, it is supposed, of Wayland, 
Allegany County, X. Y. She was the daugh- 
ter of Thomas Begole, a farmer of Groveland, 
and died May ii, 1861. His second wife, 
whom he married March 24, 1863, was Eliza- 
beth Sears, daughter of F"ranklin and Eliza- 
beth (Shadders) Sears, natives, respectively, 
of Barre, Mass., and Hagerstown, Md. Mr. 
Ewart's three children are: Mary Ann, Nancy 
M. E. , and George T. Mary Ann married 
Fred Van Antwerp, and resides at Hinton, 
W. \'a. , where he is a merchant. Nanc\- 
M. E. married Azel Ford, a real estate 
dealer, who has ser\ed as a member of the 
West Virginia legislature. They have five 
children — Anna, Grace, Harvey, Marion, and 
Cecil Ford. 

George T. Ewart attended the State normal 
school at Geneseo two years, and afterward 
assisted his father on the farm until 1884, 
when he went to West Virginia. He remained 
there four years, being engaged in mercantile 
business. In 1888 he returned to Groveland- 
to assume charge of the home farm, and has 
since remained there. He is a very active 
and intelligent young man, a fair-minded and 
consistent politician, and a general favorite 
with all who know him. He has a. future be- 
fore him, and his fellow-townsmen will watch 
his advancement with pride. Besides being 
Supervisor, he has already served six years as 
Justice of the Peace. 




P. BURKHART, M.D.S., a skilful 
and successful dentist of Dansville, 
N. Y. , a citizen closely connected 
with every interest of local im]X)r- 
tance in the town, was born in Cleveland, Ohio, 
May 17, 1852. His father, Jacob, was of Ba- 
varian birth, and lived for a time in New York 
City, where he followed the trade of a cooper. 
Removing to Cleveland, Ohio, he there became 
a manufacturer of barrels, casks, and tanks. 



He died at the age of fifty years. He was an 
active member of the National Guard of Ohio, 
being connected in \'arious positions with one 
of the leading military companies in Cleveland. 
He was one of the best rifle shots in the city. 
At the breaking out of the war in 1861, with 
the assistance of several friends, he organized 
a company of sharpshooters, but he was not 
accepted on account of physical disabilities. 
The maiden name of his wife, who is still liv- 
ing in the West, was Binna Buckholts. She 
reared five children, namely: A. P. Burkhart, 
the subject of this sketch ; Laura; Julia; Har- 
vey; and William. Laura married Charles 
Keppler, a Western gentleman. 

A. P. Burkhart was very young when his 
father died. He was educated at the public 
schools in Cleveland, and afterward attended 
Bryant & .Stratton's Business College in that 
city. He later taught one year in the Collegi- 
ate Institute at Towanda, Pa., after which he 
taught several years in the union school in 
Lyons, Wayne County, N. Y. P'rom there he 
came to Dansville in 1873, and began the 
study of dentistry with Dr. Ouigley. He 
completed his studies, and entered into prac- 
tice, having purchased his principal's interest; 
and in 1879 the degree of M. D. S. was con- 
ferred upon him by the State Board. He has 
also taken several courses at the post-graduate 
school. The business which he purchased in 
1874 was established in 1838 by Farley & 
Bristol, who were succeeded by Dr. A. Ouig- 
ley, Dr. G. C. Daboll, and Dr.' BurkhartT It 
will be seen, therefore, that the present busi- 
ness has been established nearly sixty years. 
Dr. Burkhart enjoys a very large general prac- 
tice. He also attends to the dental work of 
the Sanatorium, which speaks highly for his 
professional ability. He has been a member 
of the Eighth District Dental Society for 
many years, and has filled the office of Presi- 
dent of same, and for a number of years that 
of Secretary. He is a member of several 
secret and other social societies, has held 
nearly all the offices in the Independent Order 
of Odd P'ellows, and was District Deputy. 
He joined Phoenix Lodge, No. 115, A. F. 
& A. M., and has held all the chairs of that 
lodge, having served as Master five years. 




A. P. BURKHART 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



In the Equitable Aid Union he has held the 
office of Supreme Accountant, handling in 
two years one and one-half million dollars, 
and has represented New York State in the 
supreme body as supreme representative since 
1886. 

Dr. Burkhart married Miss Sarah Ouigley, a 
daughter of Dr. Ouigley, his instructor in den- 
tistry, of whom he purchased his business. 
They have two children ^ George and Vera. 
The Doctor is a Republican in politics. He 
has served on the Town Committee several 
years, has been active in county politics, and 
is a hard worker during Presidential campaigns. 
He is also a member of the Royal Arch Chap- 
ter, being High Priest. He is District 
Deputy at this time (1894) of the Twenty- 
second Masonic District, which is composed of 
four counties, having been appointed in 1893 
by the Grand Master. He is Secretary of the 
Dansville F"air and Racing Association, in 
which he takes an active interest. He was the 
first Treasurer of the new union school, and 
was very active in its establishment, and in se- 
curing and forwarding the erection of this 
beautiful school building. He is a communi- 
cant of the Episcopal church, of which he is 
one of the Vestry, and was for a number of 
years the Treasurer. 

The many sterling qualities of Dr. Burkhart 
are greatly appreciated by the entire commu- 
nity in which he lives; and the exceptionally 
prosperous condition of his business, together 
with the numerous social distinctions that have 
been conferred upon him, speak much more 
forcibly than words of the high esteem in 
which he is held by his fellow-townsmen. 
His portrait on an adjoining page will be 
viewed with pleasure b}' many acquaintances 
and friends. 



KYMAN S. COLEMAN, Postmaster of 
Castile, Wyoming County, N. \'. , is a 
successful produce dealer in this 

]5lace. He was born in West Haven, 
Rutland County, Vt., August 30, 1840, being 
the younger son of Sidney A. and Emily L. 
(Webster) Coleman, and grandson of Erastus 
and Cornelia (Billings) Coleman. Erastus 



Coleman and his wife were natives of Litch- 
field, Conn. ; and in that place they were mar- 
ried. He was a woollen manufacturer, and 
subsequently removed to West Haven, where 
he died at the age of eighty years. In politics 
he was a Democrat, and he and his wife were 
members of the Baptist church. Their six 
children were : Eliza, who married A. Benson, 
and is now dead; Hiram, who married Ange- 
line Church, and lives in Iowa; Cornelia, who 
married Isaac Dickinson, and is now dead ; 
Erastus, deceased ; Sidney, who is the father 
of the subject of this biography; and Fannie, 
who married Professor McCandless. 

Sidney Coleman was born at West Haven, 
Vt. , in 1 8 16. He received a district-school 
education; and, being naturally of an inventive 
turn of mind, he gave his attention to mechan- 
ical pursuits, and invented an engine for boats 
and a machine for fulling cloth, both of which 
have been used with much success. He also 
studied surveying ; and, when only twenty- 
eight years of age, while surveying the coast of 
North Carolina, he fell a victim to yellow- 
fever and died, leaving a wife and two children. 
He was buried at Newbern, N. C. His wife, 
Emily Webster, was born in Hampton, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., April 2, 1814, being 
the daughter of Wait and Hannah (Wheat) 
Webster. Wait Webster, a well-known farmer 
of Hampton, N. Y. , was born in New Hamp- 
shire, and died at the age of seventy-seven' 
years. He had a family of five children — 
Anna, Emily, Horace, Isabelle, and Hiram. 
He was a private in the War of 1S12, and in 
politics was a Democrat. The children of 
Sidney Coleman were Clayton W. and Lyman. 
Clayton was born January 14, 1838, and mar- 
ried Ida Jacobs, who died, leaving five chil- 
dren. He lives in Louisiana, and is a lumber 
merchant and a manufactmer of sashes and 
blinds. 

Lyman Coleman was born in the same house 
and in the same room where occurred the birth 
of Horace Greeley. After receiving an educa- 
tion at the district school, he began farming at 
Genesee Falls, on a farm of eighty acres. 
Four years later he went to Castile and started 
in business on Main Street. In 1870, selling 
out that business, he built two storage houses, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



which he stocked with produce, and carried on 
a large trade. In 1887 he went to New Or- 
leans, and there operated a sash and blind fac- 
tory, which is now under the management of 
his' son, who also does an extensive business 
in buying and selling lumber. In connection 
with the produce business, Mr. Coleman deals 
in grain and fertilizers, and also has a large 
coal yard. 

In i860 Mr. Coleman married Miss Lucy A. 
Bliss, who was born in the town of Pike, Sep- 
tember 8, 1840, daughter of Scuyler and Mary 
E. (Porter) Bliss. Scuyler Bliss was a native 
of Hartwick, Otsego County, whence he re- 
moved to Pike, and afterward to Genesee 
P'alls. In the latter place he owned two hun- 
dred and sixty acres of uncultivated land, 
which he cleared and improved, and on which 
he erected frame buildings. He and his 
wife died when about eighty years of age. 
They were the parents of two children — 
Guilford D., who married Pllizabeth Post, 
lives in Castile, and has one child; and 
Lucy A., who is the wife of the subject of this 
biograph)'. 

Mr. and Mrs. Lyman Coleman have had four 
children, two of whom have passed away; 
namely, Emily and Sidney. The two now 
living are Scuyler B. and Etta. Scuyler B. 
Coleman was born May 15, 1865, and now 
lives in New Orleans, where he has the man- 
agement of his father's factory. His wife's 
maiden name was Estelle Hamblen, and they 
have two children — Scuyler and Vera — a 
daughter, Rosetta, having died. Mr. Cole- 
man's daughter Etta was born April 30, 1867, 
and is now the wife of P. L. Hunblen, a hard- 
ware dealer of Houston, Tex. 

Mr. Coleman is a Democrat, and was ap- 
pointed Postmaster Januarys, 1894. He was 
United States Loan Commissioner for twelve 
years, is a Corporation Trustee, has been on the 
School Board for twenty years, and was Deputy 
Postmaster in 1879. He is a member of Oak- 
land Lodge, A. F. & A. M., No. 379, and of 
Wyoming Chapter, No. 181, at Warsaw, N. Y. 
He is an influential and esteemed citizen of 
Castile, where he is well known through his 
successful business career and his many offices 
of public trust. 




LLEN AYRAULT, one of the fore- 
most business men of the village of 
Mount Morris, N.Y., occupies an 
important position among the enter- 
prising and influential citizens of this section 
of Livingston County. He was born in the 
town of Allen, Allegany County, May 31, 
1849. He comes of substantial New England 
stock, being a grandson of Roswell Ayrault, 
who migrated to this State from New Hamp- 
shire, becoming one of the pioneers of Alle- 
gany County, where the last years of his life 
were spent. One of his brothers, Allen 
Ayrault, grand-uncle of the gentleman to 
whom we refer in this brief sketch, was for 
many years one of the leading financiers of 
Livingston County, being a well-known 
banker of Geneseo. 

Lyman Ayrault, son of Roswell, was born 
during the residence of his parents in Short 
Tract, Allegany County, and was there 
reared and educated. He was a man of 
marked ability and force of character, and 
early in life embarked in a mercantile career. 
Removing to this county, he established 
himself in the town of Dalton, and was for 
many years one of its most successful mer- 
chants and esteemed citizens, but subse- 
quently changed the base of his operations to 
New York City. He is now engaged in the 
produce and commission business at iio 
Povina Avenue, Jersey City. His wife, 
whose maiden name was Baldwin, became the 
mother of two children — Nella, the wife of 
W. H. Upson, of Lockport, N.Y., and Allen, 
of Mount Morris. 

Allen Ayrault received a substantial foun- 
dation for his education in the public schools 
of Dalton, going thence to the high school in 
Rochester, and subsequently taking a thor- 
ough commercial course at the Poughkeepsie 
Business College. After his graduation Mr. 
Ayrault entered the store of his father, and 
while associated with him acquired a practical 
knowledge of mercantile affairs. In 1889 he 
opened his present elevator at Mount Morris, 
where he has built up a large and lucrative 
trade as a produce dealer, handling among 
other articles of traffic beans, grain, wool, 
baled hay, straw, and apples, his energy. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



"3 



capability, and honorable methods winning 
him prosperity and success in his various 
undertakings. 

The union of Mr. Ayrault and Miss Jennie 
E. Carson was celebrated in 1872; and the 
joys of their wedded life have been increased 
by the birth of five children — William L., 
Lillian C, J. Allen, Arthur H., and 
Marion. Mr. Ayrault is extremely public- 
spirited, ever lending his influence and 
assistance to promote the welfare and ad- 
vancement of his town and county, and is 
everywhere recognized as a man of sterling 
qualities of mind and heart. In politics he 
is a straight Republican, and cast his first 
Presidential vote in 1S72 for General Grant. 
He has served for several years as school 
Trustee, and takes an active interest in educa- 
tional matters in general. Socially, Mr. 
Ayrault is a member of the Masonic frater- 
nity, of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows, and of the United Workmen. Both he 
and his estimable wife are communicants of 
the Episcopal church. 




iALVIN BLAKE, a well-known citizen 
of the town of Gainesville, Wyoming 
County, N. Y. , is a native of the 
Green Mountain State, having been 
born l^'ebruary 20, i8ii, in the town of Sut- 
ton, Caledonia Count}-. His father, James 
Blake, probably belongs by birth to the same 
State, as his boyhood and youth were spent 
there; and there his marriage took place. 
When his son Calvin was two years old, in 
1813, James Blake moved to Perry, bought a 
tract of timbered land about one-half mile west 
of Perry Centre, erected a house, and resided 
there a few years. He then sold out and 
went to live at West Perry, from which place 
he removed in a short time to the Inlet, near 
Perry Village, and, establishing a brick-yard, 
introduced the industry of brick-making. 
Having continued in this business for some 
years, he gave up his interest in the concern, 
and went back to Perry Village and opened a 
hotel, which he carried on under his own 
supervision till the time of his earthly labors 
was ended. His wife was before marriage 



Miss Hannah French. She was born in Ver- 
mont, and was a daughter of Obadiah French, 
of that State. The children she bore to James 
Blake were three in number, two of whom are 
still living and holding honored places in the 
community, namely : Calvin ; and Polly, wife 
of Obadiah Howe. John died at the age of 
nine years. In religion the father was a Uni- 
versalist, and the mother was a member of the 
Congregational church. After the death of 
her first husband Mrs. Blake contracted a sec- 
ond marriage, and was the mother of three 
other children not named in this account. 
She spent her later years in Montgomery 
County, Illinois, and died there at the age of 
seventy-two years. 

Calvin Blake spent his early years under the 
paternal roof, attending school, and later 
going for a year to the Middlebury Academy. 
After this he taught school for a year, and 
then went to work in the employ of his uncle, 
Rozell Morgan Curtiss, a lumber merchant of 
Castile. He remained in this occupation till 
he was twenty-four, and then concluded to set 
up for himself. In the year 1834 he was mar- 
ried, and purchased a farm in Castile, consist- 
ing of about seventy-five acres of land cleared 
off the Flats. He remained on this place, get- 
ting it gradually under cultivation, three years, 
and then sold it and went to Montgomery 
County, Illinois, where he taught school for a 
year, subsequently carrying on a farm for some 
years longer. Having an opening presented 
to him which promised tobe advantageous, he 
returned East to Lament, and became the very 
successful proprietor of the hotel in that town. 
He held the management of this enterprise 
four years, from 1842 to 1S46, and then sold 
out his interest in the business, and, going 
back to the scene of his early days, bought 
eighty acres of land in Castile, where he re- 
mained for a brief period. He next bought 
the Temperance House in Gainesville, which he 
finally sold, and purchased a farm of seventy-six 
acres in this town, on which he has remained 
till the present time. Mr. Blake has erected 
all the buildings now standing on the estate, 
and has put the land under such successful 
cultivation that it [presents a fine appearance. 

In October, 1834, Mr. Blake was united in 



114 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



marriage to Miss A. Diana Dudley, of Castile. 
She was born in Rutland, Vt. ; and her parents 
were pioneers in this part of the country. 
Her only child, Willard D. Blake, was a brave 
young man, who, responding to his country's 
call, went to the field of action in the New 
York Twenty-fourth Battery, and during ser- 
vice was taken prisoner and conveyed to the 
pri.son at Andersonville, where he subse- 
quently died at the early age of twenty-five. 
Mr. Blake's first wife died at the age of thirty- 
seven. His second wife was Miss Laura Ann 
Bedell, who became the mother of six children 
— Hannah, a school-teacher in Victor, Monroe 
County, N. Y. ; John, deceased ; Mary ; Frank, 
a farmer in Gainesville, married to Estelle 
Sheffield, who has one child, John C. ; James 
F. ; and Rozell Curtiss, who conducts his 
father's farm. Two of the sons are on a farm 
of one hundred and eighty acres, situated 
about two miles from the Gainesville Semi- 
nary, from which one of Mr. Blake's daughters 
was graduated, and which was considered a 
flourishing school. The parents attend the 
Congregational church, and Mrs. Blake's fam- 
ily are also members. In politics Mr. Blake 
holds to the Democratic party. His first Pres- 
idential vote was for Andrew Jackson ; and at 
every succeeding Presidential election he has 
voted for his party's candidate, with the excep- 
tion of Franklin Pierce. 




kEV. THOAIAS AITKEN, who was for 
over forty-five years the faithful pastor 
of the Presbyterian church at North 
Sparta, Livingston County, N.Y., 
was born at Falkirk, Stirlingshire, Scotland. 
From early youth he .showed marked intellect- 
ual ability, and in consequence was allowed 
to pursue the course of study for which he was 
best qualified, so that, when twenty years of 
age, he was graduated from the University of 
Glasgow. With the knowledge thus acquired 
Mr. Aitken felt himself called to the highest 
of professions, and soon began the study of 
theology at the Secessionists' Seminary at 
Selkirk and Glasgow. He was there grad- 
uated with high honors in the class of 1823. 
He was licensed to preach by the Presbytery 



of Stirling on June 8, 1824, and was sent in 
1825 as a missionary to the Orkney Islands, 
where he lived and preached among the people 
for two years. On June 2, 1829, he was 
ordained at Cupar, and preached at St. An- 
drew's for nine years. In 1838 the Rev. 
Thomas Aitken came to America, and first 
settled in Fall River, Mass., preaching there 
six months, at the end of which time he was 
called to the church in North Sparta, N. Y. 
This pastorate he held until his death in 1884. 

Thomas Aitken was first married in 1827 
to Agnes Smith, who died in 1870. In 1871 
he married for his second wife Margaret Mann, 
daughter of Samuel M. Mann, one of the early 
pioneers of the town of Groveland. Mr. Mann 
was born in Horsham, Montgomery County, 
Pa., and was the son of Samuel Mann, of the 
same town. His grandfather, John Mann, was 
born in the northern part of Ireland of Scotch 
ancestry, and came to this country when a 
young man. Purchasing a tract of land in the 
town of Horsham, he erected a stone house, 
which is standing at the present day. After 
his death his son Samuel succeeded to the 
ownership of the old homestead, carrying on 
lumbering and farming there until he, too, 
passed onward to the silent realms. Samuel 
Mann enlisted in the patriot army at the time 
of the Revolution. He married Margaret 
Keith, a native of Bucks County, Pennsylva- 
nia, and a daughter of William Keith, whose 
home was noted as having been the head- 
quarters of Washington for a season during the 
Revolutionary War. 

Samuel M. Mann, son of Samuel and Mar- 
garet, and father of Mrs. Aitken, followed the 
trade of- blacksmith in his native State until 
1805, when he made his first visit to New 
York, and was so impressed with the advan- 
tages of this part of the country that he bought 
a tract of timbered land in what was then 
Sparta, Ontario County, but is now Groveland, 
Livingston County. Here he cleared land and 
built a log cabin, after which he returned to 
Pennsylvania for his family. In 1806 the 
journey was made in wagons containing all 
their earthly possessions, and for two weeks 
they were upon the road. Persevering through 
toils, privations, and hardships that can be 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



IIS 



scarcely appreciated by those who live in the 
present clay, the Mann family established a 
pleasant home, where Mr. Mann dwelt until 
his death at the age of seventy-eight years. 

He married Susan Burrows, a native of 
Philadelphia and daughter of General John 
Burrows. Her grandfather, also John Bur- 
rows, was born in England, whence he came to 
America, settling first in New Jersey and 
afterward in Pennsylvania. At the time the 
capital was established at Washington Mr. 
Burrows removed there and was employed as a 
clerk in the Post-office Department. P"ive of 
his sons and two step-sons served in the Revo- 
lutionary War; and of the se\en but two 
returned, one of these being General John Bur- 
rows, the father of Mrs. Mann. He was com- 
missioned as General of the State militia, and 
afterward raised a regiment, which he com- 
manded in the War of 1812. The home of 
General Burrows was about two miles from 
Williamsport, where he built a flour-mill and 
carried on a large farm. His wife was Jane 
Torbert. He was a man much interestetl in 
all public affairs, and was ever ready to do 
what he could for the common weal. He died 
at the age of seventy-seven years. His daugh- 
ter, Mrs. Mann, died when eighty-two years of 
age, having reared eight children — Samuel 

A. ; John B. ; William K. ; Josiah S. ; Jane 

B. ; Margaret, Mrs. Aitken; Mary W. ; and 
Nathaniel B. Mann. 

Since the death of her husband Mrs. Mar- 
garet Aitken has continued to occupy her old 
home, which is j^l feasant ly located in the 
southern part of the town of Groveland. Rev. 
Mr. Aitken was a man of pure and noble char- 
acter, and was greatly beloved by his parish- 
ioners and fellow-citizens, who will ever revere 
his memory. 




RANCIS MARION FERINE, M.D., 

of Dansville, Livingston County, N. Y. , 
a physician of ripe experience and high 
standing, was born in this village on March 
27, 1831. His family history, on the internal 
side, dates back to the early part of last cen- 
tury, when his ancestor came to America and 
settled in New Jersey. The Doctor's grand- 



father was born in that State; but later in lifo 
he moved to Cambridge, N. Y. , and thence by 
team to Williamsburg, near the present site of 
Geneseo. After a residence of two years in 
Williamsburg he finally removed in 1799 to 
Dansville, where he occupied the fifth resi- 
dence in the village. During the Revolution- 
ary War he served for five years under General 
Marion, whose honored name is borne by the 
grandson of whom this sketch is written. In 
Dansville, where the declining days of his 
long and laborious life were passed, he reared 
a family of ten children, and died here in his 
ninety-fourth year. 

His siin, Peter Perine, was born in the year 
of the removal to Dansville, and was brought 
up with an accurate and practical knowledge of 
farm life and duties. At his father's death 
Peter came into the possession of the family 
estate, where he spent his entire life, which 
extended over a period of eighty-four years. 
He was a member of the United Presbyterian 
church. His wife was Miss Catherine Rice, 
one of a family of ten children, whose parents 
lived near Troy, in the eastern part of the 
State. Of the four children born to Peter and 
Catherine (Rice) Perine, three lived to matu- 
rity, namely : Lucy, who married Charles Hall, 
formerly a merchant of Allegany County, and in 
Dansville also, and a member for two terms of 
the Assembly from Allegany County; Thomas 
L. , a retired farmer, now a resident of Paines- 
ville, Ohio; and Dr. Perine, of the present 
sketch. 

P'rancis Marion Perine passed the care-free 
and happy years of boyhood in Dansville, 
where he attended the public school and acad- 
emy. At twenty he was sent to college, in 
185s graduated from Buffalo Medical L^ni- 
versity, and in the following spring began 
practising his profession in West Sparta. Si.x 
years later he came to Dansville, where he has 
been actively engaged in professional duties 
for thirty-three years. In 1855, the year that 
he received his medical degree, he was married 
to Miss Emily P. Bingham, a daughter of 
Nathaniel Bingham, a piano manufacturer of 
Rochester. Mr. Bingham, who had been an 
invalid for some years of his life, and had been 
greatly benefited b^• water cure at Clifton 



ii6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Springs, was a strong promoter and advocate 
t)f that system of treatment. Beinu; thor- 
oughly acquainted with the advantages that 
this locality offered, and having strong faith in 
the success of such an institution in Dans- 
ville, he built and established the old sanato- 
rium which occupied the site of the present 
large and elegant building. 

Dr. Perine's public spirit has manifested 
itself in various directions, and he has for a 
number of years taken a leading part in all 
matters pertaining to the welfare of the village 
of his birth. He has been for five years High 
Priest of Dansville Royal Arch Chapter, No. 
gi, and is a member of the Phoenix Lodge, 
A. ¥. & A. M. He belongs to the Livingston 
County Medical Society, of which he has been 
President, is a member of the Central New 
York Medical Society, and is also a permanent 
member of the State Medical Society. He 
was one of the founders of the Livingston 
County Historical Society, which he has 
served as President, was President of the vil- 
lage of Dansville for a year; and for twenty 
vears he has held the office of Coroner. He 
has led a life of constant and varied activity 
and usefulness, that has endeared him to 
the community; and he has thus acquired an 
influence stronger and more widespread, per- 
haps, than any other one individual in this 
vicinity. 

In the multiplicity of professional and social 
obligations, religious duties have not been 
neglected. He was Chairman of the Building 
Committee of the Presbyterian church in this 
place, of which both he and his wife are mem- 
bers, and of which he has been for many years 
the Trustee. His political creed is formu- 
lated in the enunciated principles of the Re- 
publican party, to which he strongly adheres. 
Besides his professional, civic, and other ser- 
vices. Dr. Perine has rendered himself a pub- 
lic benefactor to the people of Livingston 
County by the introduction of grape culture 
here — an industry hitherto untried, and 
which has proved of great value. 

Through all the coming years 

Of shade and sun. 
He shall live remembered 

In works well done. 



2 EVERETT S. BAKER, now living in 
retirement in the village of Bliss, in 
^ the county of Wyoming, has been a 
thrifty and successful farmer; and 
the tranquil life he now leads is a just reward 
for his many years so laboriously spent in 
turning to good account nature's bountiful re- 
sources. He was born June 26, 1834, in this 
same town of Eagle, of New England parent- 
age, his father, Philip, and his grandfather, 
tilisha Baker, having been natives of Vermont. 
The latter, who was a life-long farmer, resided 
in that State from his birth to his death; and 
the former, while yet a boy, removed with a 
brother to Wyoming County, New York. 
They came the whole distance on foot, with 
knapsacks containing bread and bacon on their 
backs, travelling by day and stopping at night 
on account of the wolves, the whole expense of 
their journey not exceeding twenty-five cents. 

Settling at Eagle, he began life with noth- 
ing to assist him save his New England cour- 
age and perseverance. These, however, were 
sufficient ; for at the age of eighteen he pur- 
chased a tract of timber land, which he pro- 
ceeded most diligently to clear and improve, 
bringing the wild soil into a state of cultiva- 
tion, and undergoing the many hardships of a 
pioneer life. Through prudent husbandry and 
patient toil he was enabled to erect in due 
time, opposite the primitive log shelter, a 
commodious frame house, the transit from one 
to the other being like coming from the dark- 
ness into the light. Philip Baker occupied 
the substantial farm-house for many years, 
during which his possessions continued to in- 
crease ; and at the time of his death, when he 
was seventy-six years old, he owned two hun- 
dred and eighteen acres of valuable land, all 
the result of his own unaided exertion. 

Philip Baker was twice married. His first 
wife, Lucy Rogers, died at the age of twenty- 
two years, leaving two children, one of whom, 
Vertulon S. Baker, was born March 2, 1826, 
married Jane Lyon, and now lives near Bliss, 
a retired farmer. Mr. Baker's second wife, 
Betsey Leavenworth, daughter of Samuel 
Leavenworth, reared seven children, three of 
whom are still living, namely: Leverett S., 
the subject of this brief record; Emily, wife 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



117 



of James Flint, of Pike; and Mary, wife of 
Albert Gage, of Eagle. The mother passed 
her declining years at the home of her son 
Leverett, and died at the age of seventy-six 
years, having been a faithful member of the 
Methodist church. 

Leverett S. Baker received a common-school 
education, and at home, working with his 
father from early bo}hood, was practically 
trained in every department of agriculture. 
After his marriage he assumed full charge of 
the farm, residing there until 1882, when he 
erected his present comfortable residence at 
Bliss, and has lived in this village since. The 
old home farm of two hundred and eighteen 
acres, which he still owns and carries on, has 
been possessed by the family upward of seventy 
years, and is still exceedingly productive. 

Mr. Baker on September 11, 1859, was 
united in marriage to Miss Wealthy, daughter 
of Norman Howes, of Eagle. They have two 
daughters — Henrietta and Belle, ladies of 
talent and varied accomplishments, who re- 
ceived their education at Pike Seminary. The 
former is the wife of Leonard Uttley, of 
Canandaigua, now a farmer in Dakota, having 
two daughters — Frank and Nola. Belle 
Baker married Wilbur Rugg, son of Henry 
Rugg, and has two daughters — Berta and 
Jessie. Mrs. Baker herself was very liberally 
educated, and before marriage taught school 
with marked success. She is a lady of refined 
and cultured tastes, being a valued helpmate 
to her husband, and a most tender and affec- 
tionate mother to her children. 

Mr. Baker is a member of the Masonic fra- 
ternity, and a Republican in politics, taking 
a lively interest in public affairs without seek- 
ing office ; and the family, which is a promi- 
nent one in this locality, enjoys much social 
distinction. 




^AMUEL CRAIG CULBERTSON, 
y/~\ who died at his home in the town 
^^ — ' of Groveland, Livingston County, 
N. Y. , January 24, 1858, was born 
in 1799, in what is now the town of Conesus. 
He was a son of Andrew Culbertson, who was 
born, it is thought, in Pennsylvania. 



Andrew Culbertson was the son of James 
and Ann McNair Culbertson, both natives of 
Pennsylvania. The Culbertson family suffered 
greatly from the hostilities of the Indians, as 
did so many of the white settlers, while the 
Revolutionar)' War was in progress. During 
an attack from these savages in 1777 James 
Culbertson and his son John were killed. The 
widow of James survived him many years, and 
in 1790 came to Livingston County, New 
York, where she spent the remainder of her 
life. Her son, Andrew Culbertson, married 
Elizabeth Craig, came with his wife to Liv- 
ingston County, and lived for a short time in 
Conesus, but finally purchased a tract of tim- 
bered land in the southern part of Groveland, 
and here made for himself a home, clearing 
the farm upon which he resided until his 
death, his wife surviving him but a few years. 
They were the parents of nine children — 
John, James, Craig, Samuel, Maria, Ann, 
Margaret, Eliza, and Robert. 

Samuel Craig Culbertson bore his mother's 
family name. He was reared and married in 
his native town, and for a period of four years 
had charge of Judge Carroll's farms, which 
was no small undertaking, and showed the abil- 
ity of the man in this line of work. At the 
end of this time he settled on the farm, where 
he spent the remainder of his life, with the 
exception of two years. He was well known 
and highly esteemed as an industrious, up- 
right, and honorable man. When he first took 
up his residence on this farm in Groveland, it 
was but a little removed from its natural wild- 
ness, a log house and two or three acres of 
cleared land constituting the improvements; 
but, by giving his undivided attention to clear- 
ing off the forest and preparing and tilling the 
soil, in a few years he made vast alterations 
for the better, so that at his death Mrs. Cul- 
bertson was the possessor of a far different 
home from that which at first greeted her. 

In April, 1828, Mr. Culbertson married 
Nancy Johnson, who was born in the town of 
Geneseo, Livingston County, N. Y. Her 
father, Michael Johnson (formerly "John- 
ston"), was born in County Derry, Ireland, 
and was of the race called Scotch-Irish, having 
been of Scotch ancestry. Michael Johnson's 



ii8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



father reared fourteen children, nf whom five 
sons and two daughters came to America, 
namely : James, Campbell, Alexander, Mi- 
chael, Robert, Sarah, and Margaret. Michael, 
the father of Mrs. Culbertson, grew to man- 
hood in his native land, married Margaret 
Crossett, of County Derry, and with his bride 
crossed the Atlantic, making the voyage in a 
sailing-vessel, which was three months on the 
water. They landed at New York, went from 
there via Hudson River to Albany, and then to 
Geneseo, making this journey in a lumber 
wagon. After residing in Geneseo about two 
years, Mr. Johnson bought a tract of land cov- 
ered with a heavy growth of timber in the east- 
ern part of the town of Groveland near Lake 
Conesus, and devoted his time to farming for 
the remainder of his life. The work at first 
was hard and tedious, as trees had to be felled 
for building material and to make room for the 
log cabin to be erected, for which boards must 
be split to cover the roof. For a time there 
was no door to this temporary home, a quilt 
having to do ser\ice in that capacity. As was 
the custom in all the families of those early 
days, the wife spun and wove the wool with 
which the members of her household were 
clothed. Mr. Johnson died when about 
seventy years old, and his wife at the age of 
seventy-si.K, both having spent their last days 
on the farm. There were five children in their 
family — Nancy, Margaret, Matilda, John, and 
Richard. Of these Mrs. Culbertson is the 
only one now living. She resides on the old 
homestead with two of her children, Edward 
and Matilda, and is undoubtedly one of the 
oldest of the native-born citizens of Livingston 
County. Both she and her husband joined the 
Presbyterian church after their marriage. 
They had nine children — John, Trank, Margaret 
Samuel, Elizabeth, Michael, Nancy, Matilda, 
and Edward. (A sketch of Captain Samuel 
Culbertson appears elsewhere in this volume. ) 



EEWIS M. CLOSE, a progressive and 
prosperous farmer of Livingston 
^ County, is the owner of a well- 
improved farm, pleasantly located 
within the limits of the town of Nunda, where 



he has spent his entire life of nearly three- 
score years, his birth having occurred here 
July 3, 1838. 

John Close, the father of him of whom we 
write, was a native of Pennsylvania, and there 
grew to the estate of manhood. His parents, 
of whom very little is known concerning their 
antecedents, were in straitened circumstances; 
and he was bound out when quite a boy, and 
learned the shoemaker's trade. In 1825 he 
started on foot for Livingston County, coming 
as far as Geneseo, where he lived as a farm 
laborer for about six years. Coming then to 
the town of Nunda, he bought fifty-eight acres 
of land on P2ast Hill; and after clearing an 
opening he built a log house, in which the 
elder children of his household were born. 
He labored with well-directed, untiring 
energy, and after getting his land into a pro- 
ductive condition erected a frame house, con- 
venient barns, and out-buildings; and there he 
and his faithful and wise helpmeet passed the 
remainder of their lives. Farm work in those 
days was laborious and slow, the machinery 
that now lightens the toil of the agriculturist 
not then having been even thought of. The 
same was true in other kinds of work. Mr. 
Close, who carried on quite an extended lum- 
ber business, used to make shingles by hand. 
John Close married Rebecca Van Dyke, a 
daughter of William and Rebecca (Van 
Scoick) Van Dyke; and they reared the fol- 
lowing children: Sarah A., Mary E., Will- 
iam, Eleanor, Lewis M., David, Rebecca, 
Harriet, and Ruby A. One son, David, was 
killed during the late Civil War, in one of 
the hotly contested battles fought on Georgia's 
soil. Both parents were strongly imbued with 
true religious fervor, and were active mem- 
bers of the Methodist church. 

Lewis M. Close, the second of the sons 
named above, was reared upon the parental 
homestead, and during the seasons of seed- 
time and harvest assisted his father o.n the 
farm. In the winter he attended the district 
school, his services not being needed at home. 
After his father's death, on the settlement of 
the paternal estate he received seven hundred 
dollars as his portion; and this he invested in 
twenty-seven acres of land, which are now 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



included in his present estate. Industriously 
and sagaciously continuing his agricultural 
labors, he has achieved good results, and has 
been enabled to buy additional property, his 
farm now containing one hundred and seventy 
acres of as valuable and fertile land as can be 
found in this part of the county. On it he 
has made essential improvements, including a 
fine set of farm buildings; and his land is 
under a high state of cultivation. 

The marriage of Mr. Close and Miss Clara 
J. Brown, the daughter of Aaron and Martha 
(McCoy) Brown, of Allegany County, was 
solemnized in the year 1867, and their happy 
home has been brightened by the birth of six 
children; namely, Murrell E., Anna M., 
William E., Charles, Mary M., and Jessie I. 
All of these children are still members of the 
parental household, with the exception of the 
eldest, Murrell E., who married Lillie Wildy, 
and established a home of his own, into which 
two little daughters have been born — Louisa 
M. and Helen M. In politics Mr. Close is a 
steadfast Republican and an earnest advocate 
of the temperance movement. Religiously, 
both he and his wife are consistent members 
of the Methodist church, and take a lively 
interest in religious work. 



KRANK H. WILSON, now a resident of 
the village of Bliss, in the town of 
Eagle, Wyoming County, and Presi- 
dent of the Bliss Manufacturing Company, is 
well known in these parts as having been for 
a number of years one of the most extensive 
produce dealers in Western New York. He 
was born in the town of Middlebury in this 
county, April 11, 1S37, son of Heman Wil- 
son, a native of Middlebury, Vt., who came 
to Wyoming County at a very early age with 
his parents. 

Heman Wilson attended the district 
schools, making the best of the opportunities 
within his reach for procuring a good educa- 
tion, also assisting his father in clearing and 
improving a farm, continuing to reside at 
home until his marriage. After that he was 
engaged in mercantile business till 1837, when 
he moved to the town of China, where he 



acquired possession of one thousand acres of 
land, some of which he sold; but he cleared a 
large tract himself, and resided thereon for 
many years. He was a man of sound judg- 
ment, and attained a leading position in his 
community, serving as Supervisor several 
terms, and was a Justice of the Peace for 
thirty-six years. He was largely interested 
in the Attica & Allegany Valley Railroad, of 
which he became Vice-President. He passed 
his declining years in the village of Arcade, 
where he died at the age of eighty-six years. 

His wife, whose maiden name was Eleanor 
Vanepps, was born in 1800 at Schenectady, 
N.Y., her parents afterward coming to be 
early settlers in Middlebur_v, Wyoming 
County. Mr. and Mrs. Heman Wilson reared 
seven of nine children, four of whom are still 
living — Truman, a retired farmer, residing 
in Bliss; Ziba, wife of Stafford Wade, a resi- 
dent of Arcade: Henry W. ; and Frank H. 
Wilson, the subject of this sketch. Mrs. 
Wilson spent her last years in Arcade, where 
she died in 1853, having been a member of 
the regular Baptist church, of which her hus- 
band was for many years a Deacon. 

Frank H. Wilson received his education in 
the district schools of Arcade and the Perry 
and Wyoming Academies. After completing 
his studies he taught school for one year, and 
at the age of twenty-two went to Perry, where 
he engaged in the cattle business, also run- 
ning a number of meat wagons through the 
various villages in the vicinity. Selling out 
at the end of two years, and removing to 
Wethersfield, he there carried on a similar 
business for three years more, but finally sold 
out his meat wagons for good, and gave his 
entire attention to the shipping of cattle to 
New York, Philadelphia, and other cities. 
This business he followed extensively and 
successfully until 1880, when, retiring from 
that, he engaged in the purchase and sale of 
hay, together with all kinds of country prod- 
uce. In 1885 he removed to Bliss, where he 
purchased his present residence, also owning 
a large block situated on Main Street. In 
1893 he sold a great part of his business, since 
which time he has lived practically retired 
from active pursuits. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



In politics Mr. Wilson is a Democrat. He 
served as Supervisor at Wethersfield two 
years, and held the ofifice of town Auditor 
four years, or until it was dispensed with. 
After his removal to Eagle, which may always 
be depended upon for a Republican majority 
of one hundred and thirty votes, he was 
elected Supervisor in 1887 by a majority of 
one hundred and one, and re-elected the fol- 
lowing year by one hundred and fifteen major- 
ity. While officiating as Supervisor the 
second year, the County Board stood ten 
Republicans to six Democrats, yet he was 
elected Chairman. In 1889 the Republican 
county officers were elected by fourteen hun- 
dred majority; but Mr. Wilson was chosen as 
County Superintendent of the Poor by a ma- 
jority of four hundred and forty-one votes on 
the Democratic ticket, and held the office 
three years. On being renominated he de- 
clined to serve further. He is at present a 
member of the County Committee, upon 
which he has served for several years, and has 
been Chairman for the last two years, and 
continues to maintain an active interest in 
county. State, and national affairs. 

On April 10, 1859, Mr. Wilson was very 
happily married to Miss Ellen A. Jenkins, 
daughter of William and Mary A. (Jaynes) 
Jenkins, of Arcade, where her father was an 
early settler, being a prominent farmer and 
Master Mason. Her mother was a New York 
lady, and had in all thirteen children. 

Mr. and Mrs. Wilson have been called 
upon to mourn the untimely decease of their 
son and only child, a remarkably intelligent 
and active young man, at the age of twenty- 
two years, a sad and an irretrievable blow to 
their happiness. He graduated from Pike 
Seminary at the age of nineteen, and at once 
entered business with his father, although he 
held the county scholarship at Cornell Uni- 
versity. He was born May 2, 1866, and died 
after a brief illness. May 16, 1888. He was 
very highly esteemed by a large circle of 
friends and acquaintances, especially so by 
the members of his class and the faculty at 
the seminary, where he stood pre-eminent 
both as a scholar and a gentleman ; and, al- 
though time mav soften or subdue in a meas- 



ure the bitterness of his parents' affliction, 
the vacancy in the family and the warm place 
he occupied in their hearts can never be filled. 

Mr. Wilson attends and contributes toward 
the support of the P'ree Will Baptist Church, 
of which his wife is an earnest member. 

Mr. Wilson is a Master Mason, being a 
member of the Blue Lodge at Pike and of the 
Royal Arch Chapter at Warsaw. He is also 
connected with the Ancient Order of United 
Workmen. He is one of the best-known men 
in Wyoming County, being the owner of four 
well-cultivated farms in this vicinity, aggre- 
gating eight hundred and thirty-four acres, 
and three hundred and twenty acres of land in 
the State of Kansas. He is very popular 
with all classes, being a valuable citizen, a 
stanch supporter of American institutions. 



/§> 



EORGE L. KREIN, general insurance 
\ '3 I agent, and one of the foremost young 
business men of Dansville, was born 
in this village on December 6, 1866. He is 
of French and German extraction, his father, 
James Krein, having been born at Merelbach 
in the Canton de Forbach, Arrondissement de 
Sarreguemines, Departement de la Moselle, 
France, February 25, 1825. His paternal 
grandfather was also named James, and was a 
native and life-long resident of the same de- 
partment. 

Mr. Krein's father received a liberal edu- 
cation, and taught school in his native can- 
ton. At the age of twenty-one he emigrated 
to America, going first to Rochester, N.Y., 
and later to Nunda, Livingston County, where 
he taught the French language during the 
years 1848 and 1849 in exchange for his edu- 
cation in the English language. In 1850 he 
came to Dansville, and was employed as a 
clerk by the firm of Sikes & Wood, remaining 
with them in this capacity for some time. 
He then established himself in the grocery 
business, in which he continued successfully 
until 1876. During his career as a merchant 
he struggled manfully against many discour- 
agements, the greatest of which was the loss 
of all he possessed by fire, his store being 
burned soon after its establishment. He 




GEORGE L. KREIN 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



123 



again started in business, only to again suffer 
a second time from the same cause. Persist- 
ing, however, in his efforts, he ultimately 
became a prosperous merchant, well known 
and highly respected. After his retirement 
from the grocery business in 1876 he engaged 
in the insurance business, which he conducted 
up to the time of his death, which occurred 
January 21, 1892. The maiden name of his 
wife was Catherine Lander. She was a na- 
tive of Germany, daughter of Frederick 
Lander. At the age of three years she came 
to America with her parents, who settled upon 
a farm in Steuben County. James and Cath- 
erine (Lander) Krein had nine children, six 
of whom lived to become of age, namely; 
Mary C, Frederick W., Adina H., Elizabeth, 
George L., and James E. Frederick W. died 
at the age of thirty. Adina H. married 
Charles H. Rowe, former postmaster of 
Dansville. Mrs. Krein now resides with her 
son George at his pleasant home in Dansville. 
She is a member of the German Lutheran 
church, where the father was for many years 
organist, and also very prominent in church 
matters. 

George L. Krein passed his early boyhood 
in Dansville. He received his education at 
the Seminary, and after leaving school en- 
tered his father's store. Later he was en- 
gaged as a clerk for Dyer Brothers, in the dry- 
goods business. He then entered the office of 
the Erie Railroad as agent, clerk, and tele- 
graph operator, remaining seven years, after 
which he was chief billing clerk at the com- 
pany's offices in Rochester for one year. In 
1889 he returned to Dansville, and was em- 
ployed as an assistant in his father's office. 
Since the death of his father he has conducted 
the business alone, and the large amount 
transacted by him is the best evidence of his 
success. Mr. Krein is noted for his business 
energy and promptness. Socially, he is a 
general favorite, and is an active member of 
Phoenix Lodge, No. 115, A. F. & A. M., of 
which he is Master, having passed through all 
of the chairs. He is also a member of Dans- 
ville Royal Arch Chapter, No. 91, having 
held some of its offices. He is a member of 
the Independent Order of Odd P^ellows, in 



which he has also held all the important 
offices, and is now Deputy Grand Master of 
the district. He is President of the Protec- 
tive Fire Company, also the President of the 
Dansville Fire Department, Chairman of the 
Protective Club, and Secretary of the Board 
of Trade. He is now serving his third term 
as Town Clerk, having been re-elected in 1893 
for two years. Mr. Krein is interested in the 
Geiger, Acme, and Hoffman Land Company, 
of which he is Secretary. He is alive to all 
matters of interest in the village and ever 
ready to lend his aid in the furtherance of 
any movement which tends to benefit the 
community at large. Mr. Krein is a sup- 
porter of the Democratic party in politics, 
and is a member of the German Lutheran 
church. 

An excellent portrait of this well-known, 
influential, and progressive citizen claims the 
reader's attention on another page, where it 
will be recognized with pleasure by many 
friends. 



KRED W. FROST, a successful farmer 
and well-known citizen of Mount Mor- 
ris, was born in this town, October 
19, 1859. He is a lineal descendant of Sam- 
uel Frost, who many long years ago came 
from England to this county, and settling on 
a farm in Framingham, Mass., lived there till 
his death. He left the farm to Samuel Frost, 
Jr., and it descended to the eldest son Samuel 
for four generations. The fifth Samuel mar- 
ried a Miss Lydia Bixby, of the same place, 
and then removed to Newfane, Windham 
County, Vt. There were born to them seven 
children, as follows: Artemissa B., Amasa 
T., Samuel, Jr., George S., Daniel E., Wil- 
lard A., and John B. In 1825 they came to 
Western New York, sojourning in Allegany 
County for two years, then removing to Gene- 
see County, township of Covington, where 
five children were added to their household ; 
namely, Almon B., Lydia L., Louis A., 
Franklin B., and Marshall M., numbering in 
all twelve children. 

In 1841 they all moved to Michigan except 
Wil'iard A., who finally settled in Mount 



124 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Morris, N.Y. Here learning the mason's 
trade, he followed it some twelve years, seven 
years of which he worked for one man by the 
name of Thatcher. His first day's work at 
his trade was done on the basement of a build- 
ing at the river guard lock, then known as the 
Red Jacket, now used for a dwelling-house. 
Mr. W. A. Frost next purchased a farm on 
the State Road, where he resided a few years, 
after which he removed to the old homestead 
of his wife's family, and engaged in agricult- 
ural pursuits, remaining there until his 
death, December 15, 1S90, at the age of 
seventv years. His wife, Sarah Ann Miller, 
was born in Warren County, New Jersey, 
October 16, 1S27. Her father, William Mi'l- 
ler, was a native of the same county and a son 
of John Miller, a life-long resident of that 
State. In 1S31 William Miller migrated 
with his wife and five children and all their 
earthly possessions to the State of New York, 
which he had previously visited, purchasing a 
tract of land. Part of this land was cleared, 
and a log house had been erected; and the 
new owner at once began to clear the re"- 
mainder and cultivate a farm, residing there 
until his death, when sixty-two years of 
age. W'illiam Miller's wife was Mary 
Potts, a native of New Jersey, and daughter 
of Joseph and Catherine Potts. She died in 
her sixty-ninth year, leaving a family of 
eight children — Catherine, John, Elizabeth, 
Sarah A., Daniel, Harriet, Joseph, and 
Charles. 

Fred W. Frost is the only child of his par- 
ents, the late Willard A. and Sarah A. Frost, 
was reared to farm life, and succeeded to the 
management of the property after the death 
of his father. Here he lives with his family 
and his mother, the farm being one of the 
finest in the town, and containing with the 
old Miller homestead two hundred and thirty- 
four acres. On December 17, 1890, he mar- 
ried Miss Mary L. Alvord, who was born in 
West Sparta, daughter of Martin and Abbie 
Alvord. Mr. and Mrs. Frost have one son, 
Willard A., born January 7, 1893. Mr. 
Frost is a Republican, a firm supporter of the 
principles of that party ; and, wherever he is 
known, he is most highly esteemed. 




BED THORNTON, an honored and 
revered citizen of Arcade, Wyoming 
County, N.Y., has outlived by three 
decades the allotted span of earth 
life, and has already spent more than a cen- 
tury of years on this planet, seemingly taking 
no note of "the god of bounds, who sets to 
seas a shore," although he realizes with the 
poet of old that "the port, well worth the 
cruise, is near." Mr. Thornton was born in 
Richmond, Cheshire County, N.H., January 
30, 1794, being a son of Laban and Elizabeth 
(Fisher) Thornton, and the second child in 
order of birth -of their fourteen children. Of 
these children one died in infancy, thirteen 
grew to maturity, and Daniel, the eldest 
child, died during the War of 18 12. Laban 
Thornton was a native of Rhode Island, born 
in 1758; and his wife was of Massachusetts 
birth. They began their wedded life on a 
farm in New Hampshire, where in addition to 
tilling the soil he owned and operated a saw- 
mill. He lived to the age of sixty-two years, 
and his faithful wife survived him some 
eleven years. 

Obed Thornton was reared within sight of 
old Monadnock's brow; and, although de- 
prived by reason of imperfect vision from the 
advantages of a school education, his quick 
and comprehensive mental powers readily 
retained such information as came within his 
reach, and he became very apt at figures. 
After leaving the parental roof, he spent one 
year in Rhode Island and three years in Mas- 
sachusetts, working by the month at farming 
or in a brick-yard. In 1818 Mr. Thornton 
came to Wyoming County, driving two yokes 
of oxen, which were hitched to one large 
wagon, containing three families and their 
household goods. He walked the entire dis- 
tance, which occupied a period of twenty- 
eight days, receiving from his companions no 
compensation for his services as driver, and 
paying his own expenses. Arriving in 
Gainesville, he and Solomon Gage continued 
their journey to Arcade, the present home of 
Mr. Thornton, where he bought a tract of 
wild land, paying twenty-five dollars down, 
and keeping his remaining twenty-five dollars 
for living expenses. He worked for the 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



"S 



neighboring farmers, and began the improve- 
ments on his own property in the meanwhile, 
continuing thus six years, when he married 
and moved into the small log house, eighteen 
feet by eighteen feet, with a small loft over- 
head. In 1835 he removed into the first 
frame house built in that locality, living 
there until 1858, when, on the day before 
Thanksgiving, he took possession of the house 
he now occupies. His farm contains one hun- 
dred acres of land, and is well improved and 
highly cultivated. 

Mr. Thornton was united in marriage Sep- 
tember 26, 1824, to Clarissa Lord, a native of 
Galway, Saratoga County, N.Y., daughter of 
Freedom Lord, who became a resident of Wy- 
oming County in the spring of 1818, locating 
in what was then known as Sheldon, but is 
now known as Java. Eight daughters and 
four sons were born of their union, of whom 
eight children grew to adult life, and three 
are now living, as follows: Louisa, widow of 
Nathaniel French; Eunice; and Freedom. 
These chikhxn, of whom the two latter never 
married, are all living with the father, form- 
ing a harmonious and happy household. The 
children that passed away after reaching years 
of maturity were Sarah, who died October 28, 
185 1, at the age of twenty-two years; Mary 
E., in November, 1852, aged nineteen years; 
Dorcas Jackson, July 12, 1868, aged thirty 
years; Diana French, September 29, 1890, 
aged sixty-five years; Laban, June 2, 1891, at 
the age of sixty-three years. Mrs. Thornton 
passed to the life eternal on February 25, 
1864; and since her decease Mr. Thornton 
has been tenderly cared for by his children 
and grandchildren, of whom there are nine, 
besides eight great-grandchildren. He is still 
remarkably vigorous for a man of his unusual 
years, frequently walking to and from Bliss, 
besides attending to the chores about the 
house. 



-OHN CRAIG, M.D., a physician of 
Gencseo, N.Y., and a member of the 
Livingston County Medical Society, 
was born June 3, 1809, in Antrim 
County, Ireland. His ancestors on the pa- 



ternal side were Scotch, on the maternal 
English. 

William Craig, the doctor's father, was 
born in Paisley, Scotland; but, when he was 
two years old, his parents moved to Ireland, 
buying land in the county of Antrim. He 
there grew to manhood, and married. A 
number of years afterward, in 1832, he came 
to New York, and bought a farm in East 
Sparta, and resided there till his death. By 
his wife, Ellen Taylor, daughter of James 
Taylor, of Yorkshire, England, he had nine 
children. Those now living are Dr. Craig, 
the subject of this biography, and his sister, 
Ellen, who married James W. Roberts, of 
Nunda, N.Y., a sketch of whom appears else- 
where in this work. 

The early education of John Craig was ob- 
tained in his native country, where he attended 
Ballycastle Academy and later Ballymena 
Academy. He came to America in 183 1, 
sailing from Belfast on the ship "Jessie," 
arriving after a voyage of five weeks. He 
worked for three months as clerk in a dry- 
goods store in Scottsburg, Livingston County, 
N.Y., and was next engaged for a few months 
in a Dansville drug store, an occupation which 
he doubtless found more congenial than his 
previous calling. Being shortly thrown out 
of employment by the failure of the proprie- 
tor, he took up the study of medicine, attend- 
ing lectures at Yale College, New Haven, 
Conn.: and some time later he received his 
diploma from Bellevue Medical College. 
He began the work of his profession in 
March, 1840, in the town of York, N.Y., 
continuing there till May, 1865, when he 
removed to Geneseo, where for many years he 
had an extensive and successful practice. 
Now at about eighty-six years of age this ven- 
erable physician attends only to office work. 

In 1836 Dr. Craig married Margaret Robin- 
son, who was born in Ireland in 1813. Her 
parents were of Scotch ancestry, and were also 
natives of Ireland. Dr. and Mrs. Craig have 
had five children — Elizabeth, who died at the 
age of twenty-seven; Ellen A.; Mortimer, 
who graduated from Buffalo Medical College, 
and commenced practice in Rochester, but 
died at the beginning of a promising career, at 



126 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



the age of twenty-three; William, who was a 
successful commercial traveller, and who also 
died in the prime of life, at the age of thirty- 
two, leaving his wife, Anna M. Doyle, and 
one child, Marie; Margaret, who married 
Charles H. Knowles, of Minneapolis, and has 
one child, Ethel Craig Knowles. During Dr. 
Craig's long period of professional activity, 
he has been remarkably successful, and has 
made many warm friends. Both he and his 
wife are members of the Presbyterian church. 




MOS O. DALRYMPLE, who is a well- 
to-do agriculturist, is a worthy repre- 
sentative of the native-born citi- 
zens of Mount Morris, Livingston 
County, where his birth occurred September 6, 
1 83 1. He comes of sturdy Scotch ancestry, 
being the descendant of one of three brothers 
who emigrated from Scotland to America in 
early Colonial times, and settled in New- 
Jersey. In that State, his paternal grandfather, 
John Dalrymple, was born, bred, and died. 

Asa Dalrymple, son of John and father of 
Amos, was born in Hunterdon County, New 
Jersey, and was there reared to the honorable 
occupation of farming, residing in the place of 
his nativity until after his marriage. In 1826 
he started with his family for Livingston 
County, performing the entire journey with 
teams, and being eight days on the road. At 
that time there were but three frame houses 
on the site of the present village of Mount 
Morris, and the surrounding country was a 
dense wilderness, populated entirely by the 
bears, deer, wolves, and other wild animals 
that roamed about at their own sweet will. 
Mr. Dalrymple bought a heavily timbered 
tract, and in the midst of the forest erected a 
hewed log house, which was much the finest 
dwelling in the vicinity. The facilities for 
transporting his surplus grain and other pro- 
ductions were then very meagre, as before the 
completion of the Genesee Valley Canal or 
any railroad he had to do his marketing and 
milling in Rochester or Canandaigua, hauling 
his produce by teams. Laboring with the 
energy and industry characteristic of the early 
pioneer, he cleared a good farm, on which he 



made substantial improvements, among others 
being the erection of a complete set of frame 
buildings, and there lived until his death, at 
the advanced age of eighty-six years. His 
wife, whose maiden name was Eleanor Belles, 
was a daughter of John Belles, who served five 
years in the War of the Revolution. She 
also lived to a ripe old age, dying in her 
eighty-fourth year. She and her husband 
reared ten children — Thomas, Eli, Isaac, 
Samuel, Susan, Levi, John W., Mary E., 
Hannah, and Amos O. 

It fell to the lot of Amos, the youngest of 
this large family, to be the recipient of excel- 
lent educational advantages. After leaving 
the district school, he pursued his studies at 
Mount Morris and at the Genesee Wesleyan 
Seminary in Lima. When eighteen years old 
he began teaching, being thus employed for 
eight terms, four of which were in one dis- 
trict, the latter fact indicating in some meas- 
ure his success and popularity as an instructor. 
At the time of his marriage Mr. Dalrymple 
settled down to farming on the homestead 
in which he was born, and subsequently suc- 
ceeding to its ownership has since resided here, 
energetically and ably engaged in its manage- 
ment. He has served as Assessor three terms 
and as Highway Commissioner two terms. 

An important step in the advancement of 
the prosperity of Mr. Dalrymple was his mar- 
riage to Frances M. Darling, which was sol- 
emnized June 28, 1854. Mrs. Dalrymple was 
born in the town of Nunda, November 29, 
1832. She is of New England antecedents, 
and the descendant of a well-known pioneer 
family of this county, her paternal grand- 
father, Willard Darling, a native of the old 
Bay State, having been an early settler of 
Nunda. He died while visiting a son who 
resided in Cayuga County. Otis Darling, the 
father of Mrs. Dalrymple, was born in Massa- 
chusetts, and when a young man came to this 
State, locating in Cayuga County, where he 
married. In 1828 he and his wife came to 
Livingston County, where he bought a tract 
of land, situated about four miles from the 
village of Nunda. The log cabin, which was- 
his first home, he at length replaced with a 
fine frame house; and this he occupied until 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



127 



after the birth of his children. In 1857, fol- 
lowing the advancing steps of civilization, he 
removed to Wisconsin, and buying a farm in 
Columbia County lived there a number of 
years. He subsequently took up his abode in 
Milford, Winnebago County, 111., where he 
rounded out a long and useful life. The 
maiden name of his wife, the mother of Mrs. 
Dalrymple, was Electa A. Young. She was 
born in Cayuga County, New York, being a 
daughter of Israel and Sarah Young, who were 
among the original settlers of that county. 
She, too, closed her earthly life in Milford, 
111., living to an advanced age. .To her and 
her husband nine children were born; namely, 
Henry O., Frances M. (Mrs. Dalrymple), 
Margaret J., Mandeville, Janette, Emma, 
Hattie, Ella, and Electa A. Darling. 

The wedded life of Mr. and Mrs. Dalrymple 
has been blessed by the birth of several chil- 
dren and grandchildren, of whom we chronicle 
the following: Melvin L., born May 18, 

1855, married Hattie Phillips, and they have 
one son, Lloyd E. ; Ida M., born August 14, 

1856, married John H. Knappenberg, and 
they have one child living, Vera D. ; Nellie 
M., born November i, 1857, lives at home; 
Asa C, born June 29, 1859, married Minnie 
Bergen, and they are the parents of three chil- 
dren — Evangeline D., Theron E., and Carrie 
v.; Frankie A., born February 10, 1S61, 
passed to the higher life August 5, 1880; 
Jennie E., born October 3, 1862, died Octo- 
ber 13, 1881; Carrie E., born January 23, 
1865, married Malcolm R. Vanderbilt, and 
after a short wedded life died May 9, 1894, 
leaving one son, Howard L. ; Amos H., born 
January 3, 1867, is single and lives at home; 
Delia E., born October 15, 1868, passed on- 
ward February 9, 1882. 




^ROFESSOR SILAS L. STRIVINGS, 

the efficient principal of the Gaines- 
ville Union School, was born in 
Mount Morris, Livingston County, 
N.Y., May i, 1865. 

His grandfather, James Strivings, was 
among the early pioneers in that town, where 
he cleared a tract of land and resided for a 



time, but finally removed to Moscow, in Liv- 
ingston County. He was the father of seven 
children, namely: three living in the West; 
Leander, who died in the War of the Rebell- 
ion; Eunice, also dead; Sarah; and Sher- 
man, father of Silas L. 

Sherman, the youngest of the children, was 
born in Wethersfield Springs, Wyoming 
County, N.Y. He assisted his father on the 
farm when not engaged with his studies at the 
district school; and, when he was of age, he 
went to work for himself by the month, later 
working a farm on shares. On the first farm 
that he bought, situated near Dansville, Liv- 
ingston County, he lived four years, and then 
sold it and purchased the farm on which he 
now resides in West Sparta. Sherman Striv- 
ings married Miss Eliza Lowrey, one of a 
large family of children of Richard Lowrey, 
of We-st Sparta, formerly of West Union, Alle- 
gany County, where she was born. Mrs. Striv- 
ings became the mother of two children — Silas 
L., of this sketch, and Minnie, who is the wife 
of William Green. Both parents are mem- 
bers of the Methodist church in West Sparta. 

Silas L. Strivings passed his early years in 
Mount Morris, near Dansville, attending the 
district school and helping on the farm out of 
school hours. Later he went to the Geneseo 
Normal School, where he spent the most of 
four years. He then went to Portageville, 
Wyoming County, and taught the village 
school four years. During these years he 
took the State examination at Buffalo, com- 
pleting the course and securing a State di- 
ploma. At the end of that time he changed 
his sphere of work to the new school in 
Gainesville, of which he became principal and 
head master, continuing till the present time, 
a period of five years. Three years ago he 
put the school under the regents of the State of 
New York, increasing the number of teachers, 
and now has a school extending to its pupils a 
superior grade of scholarship, and offering every 
facility for the acquirement of a good education. 

In 1888 Professor Strivings was married to 
Miss Mae Townsend, a daughter of David A. 
and Sarah (Dewey) Townsend, her father 
being a farmer of Pike, where she was born 
and spent her early life. Her maternal grand- 



128 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



parents were originally pioneers in Pike, 
where the grandfather located in 1808 on a 
tract of one hundred and ninety acres, and 
built the log house in which the children were 
nearly all born, subsequently, however, erect- 
ing a more convenient and comfortable home 
for the family. He died there at the age of 
seventy-five years. His wife, Beulah Abel, 
was from Whitehall, on the southern extrem- 
ity of Lake Champlain. She was well edu- 
cated, and taught the first school opened in 
Pike. Her death occurred at the old home- 
stead late in life. From being a farmer in 
early years David A. Townsend in middle life 
became a merchant, and lived in Pike in that 
capacity for two years, and then went to 
Kansas, and became interested in the raising 
of sheep, at the same time attending to other 
enterprises; but later he went to Michigan, 
where he has since resided on a farm. His 
wife was born in Livingston County, and 
reared a family of six children. She died at 
Genesee Falls, aged forty-one. Both she and 
her husband were Baptists. 

Mrs. Strivings received her education in 
her girlhood, as Mae Townsend, at I^ike Sem- 
inary, and afterward taught both district and 
graded schools in Portageville. By her mar- 
riage she has become the mother of two chil- 
dren — Roy Townsend and Frank Irving. 
Professor Strivings is a devoted class leader 
and Sunday-school teacher in the Methodist 
church, of which he is a member. He is a 
member of the Knights of Maccabees and In- 
dependent Order of Good Templars, is a 
Republican in politics, and is one of the fore- 
most citizens in the community in which he 
lives, being one who in the instruction of the 
young represents the educational force which 
is to shape the thought and career of many in 
the future; for, as Emerson has said, "'Tis 
the fine souls who serve us, and not what is 
called fine society." 



ANIEL J. WALKER was born in 
Madison County, New York, on 
May 15, 18 1 5. His father, James 
Walker, a Scotch emigrant from 
Perthshire, came to America, and settled in 



M 



Johnstown, Montgomery County, when that 
portion of the State was but thinly populated, 
and the life of a farmer was one of incessant 
struggles and unremitting toil. He did not 
remain permanently in Montgomer}', but 
moved to Madison County, where he made but 
a temporary residence. In York, Livingston 
County, he found an abiding-place to his 
mind; and in this town in 1833 he bought 
a farm of one hundred and sixty acres. 
Here he lived the remainder of his life, died, 
and was buried. His wife, Catherine Mc- 
Naughton, was a Scotch lassie; and their 
children may lay a just claim to an inheri- 
tance of industry, thrift, sturdy independence, 
and loyalty of faith from their ancestry on 
both sides. James Walker lived to be eighty- 
five years of age, and his wife died at an age 
which added one year more to its mortal ac- 
count than that of her husband. Their nine 
children were: Gilbert, Jane, Mary, Jean- 
nette, Daniel J., Alexander, Elizabeth, Char- 
lotte, Catherine. 

Daniel J. was the second of the three sons 
in this family group. He was educated in 
the district schools of Madison County, and 
after leaving school stayed on his father's 
farm until he was thirty years of age. There 
seems to be an element of calm strength about 
the man who is content to stay in one region 
and do what his hand finds to do, undisturbed 
by illusory visions of brilliant achievement 
in far-ofT quarters. Of such a temperament is 
Mr. Walker, who has been a farmer all of his 
life, and who has never left his native State. 
For six years he lived in the adjoining town 
of Caledonia, but after the expiration of that 
period returned to York, and purchased an 
estate, upon which he now resides. This 
place was bought in 1855. 

The realization of the Biblical enunciation, 
"It is not good for man to live alone," ap- 
pears, as all great simple truths seem to be 
more clearly apprehended by those who live 
simple natural lives, to come as a matter of 
course and beyond disputation to the man who 
tills and plants and gathers; and one rarely 
finds a bachelor farmer. Following the brave 
old fashion, clearly the better way, Mr. 
Walker sought a "helpmate" betimes, and 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



129 



was married to Miss Asenath Calvert, a 
daughter of Robert Calvert, of York. They 
have only one child, a daughter, Beldenia, 
who married Mr. Watson G. Mallett, of Or- 
leans County; so the father and mother are 
living alone, like a young couple, on their 
farm. 

Mr. and Mrs. Walker are both members of 
the United Presbyterian Church of York. 
The former has been a loyal Republican since 
the formation of the party, but cast his first 
Presidential vote for the Whig candidate in 
1836. 




RTEMUS L. HUNT, M.D., is a 
A'cll-known and highly esteemed phy- 
sician living in Springwater, Liv- 
ingston County, N.Y. He was 
born in this town, June 24, 1826. Dr. Hunt's 
grandfather, Aaron, and also his father, 
Aaron J. Hunt, were natives of Massachu- 
setts, belonging to the good old New Eng- 
land stock, from which so many are justly 
proud of having sprung. Aaron Hunt, al- 
though born in Massachusetts, came out as 
pioneer to Ontario County, New York State, 
in middle life, and settled in a place after- 
ward named for him, Hunt's Hollow. 

Aaron J., the son, on reaching manhood, 
followed his father's example, and became a 
farmer, living first in Hunt's Hollow, where 
he had been brought up, then moving to 
Naples, Ontario County, and later to Spring- 
water. At this town, in 1823, he purchased 
a neck of land on the Cohocton River, built a 
mill, and settled down for twenty-five years. 
Then, following the pioneer instincts of his 
father, he pushed westward, and, finding a 
suitable place to settle, near Dansville, Mich., 
he bought a farm, and resumed the agricult- 
ural pursuits of his early years. He died 
after fifteen years of continuous labor in till- 
ing the soil, having reached the age of eighty- 
six years. 

The wife of Aaron J. Hunt, Miss Lucy 
Garfield, before her marriage was a daughter 
of Solomon Garfield, an uncle of the late 
noble President of that name. She, too, was 
a New Englander, born in Worcester, Mass., 



where she spent her early life on her father's 
farm. 

There were eight children as a result of 
that marriage — • Eliza, who married Rens- 
selaer Paine, and has already passed away; 
Joseph; Catharine, who married Levi Robin- 
son, and after his death Mr. Miller, of Michi- 
gan; Andrew; Marietta; Artemus L. ; Sarah 
Jane, who married Charles Smith, and is now 
dead; and Sarah Ann, who lived but a few 
years. Mrs. Hunt lived to see her children 
well started in life. She died in Springwater 
at the age of fifty-nine years, leaving a good 
record for faithful and helpful service. Both 
parents were members of the Christian 
church. 

Artemus L., second son of Aaron and Lucy 
Hunt, as named above, spent his early life in 
Springwater, attending the district school and 
assisting his father till he was of age, when 
he went to work on a farm about four miles 
from the village. This farm he was able 
finally to purchase; and he lived on it for 
several years, following the carpenter's trade. 
But unwilling to settle down to that occupa- 
tion, and having a longing for higher educa- 
tional advantages, he went to Ann Arbor, 
Mich., and took a full course of study, was 
graduated, and began practising medicine in 
Springwater, where he now is successfully 
established. 

Dr. Hunt married in 1844 Miss Lydia Ann 
Rix, daughter of Samuel Rix, a well-to-do 
farmer, and member of one of the old families 
of this town. Their only child, Joseph A. 
Hunt, is a commercial traveller. In 1886 
this wife died at the age of fifty-four years; 
and in 1888 Dr. Hunt married for his second 
wife Miss Emma S. Hickok, a daughter of 
Samuel R. Hickok, a farmer and resident of 
Canadice, Ontario County, in which place 
Mrs. Hunt was born. Mrs. Hunt's mother, 
Eliza Wiley, was a daughter of the Rev. John 
Wiley, and a native of Springwater, where his 
people were among the earliest settlers. She 
brought up a family of eight children — Hora- 
tio H., a pastor of the Advent church at 
Stephens's Mills, Steuben County; George 
W. ; Mary E. ; Samuel R., who is no longer 
living; Hattie E. ; Emma S. ; Jennie S., who 



'3° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



also died; and John W. Samuel R. Hickok, 
Mrs. Hunt's father, was a son of Dr. Henry 
Pell Hickok, of Ontario County. He died in 
1877, at the age of fifty-nine years. His 
widow, Mrs. E. Wiley Hickok, is still living, 
and is a member of the Methodist church 
at Hemlock Lake. 

Dr. Artemus L. Hunt is a member of the 
Eclectic Society of Geneseo valley, holds a 
diploma from the State society, and has been 
voted into the national society. He is a 
Free Mason, a member of the Phceni.x Lodge, 
No. IIS, A. F. & A. M., of Dansville, and 
has also been one of the coroners of Living- 
ston County. Politically, he is and has 
always been a firm believer in the Republican 
principles. Both Dr. and Mrs. Hunt are con- 
nected with the Advent church, of which Dr. 
Hunt is a Trustee. 



Wj 



ROBERT WEEKS BOGART, a native- 
born citizen of Livingston County, 
has grown with its growth, and since 
attaining the estate of manhood has 
done no unimportant part in the great work 
that has resulted in making it the heart of 
one of the richest farming centres of the Em- 
pire State. He worthily represents one of the 
oldest settled families of Mount Morris, his 
father, Andrew Van Middlesworth Bogart, a 
native of New York City, and the son of a 
practising physician, having come here as 
early as 1815, removing from Cayuga County 
after living there a short time. 

Mount Morris was then included in Gene- 
see County, and was very sparsely settled, 
being in fact but a wilderness, through which 
the traveller found his way by means of blazed 
trees. Andrew V. M. Bogart, then a young 
man, bought a tract of wild land, which is 
included in the farm now owned by the sub- 
ject of this sketch. Building a log cabin for 
himself and wife, he began the clearing of the 
land; and the ringing blows of his axe did 
good execution among the giants of the forest. 
With his other industries he kept sheep and 
raised flax; and his good wife used to card, 
spin, and weave the material for the garments 
in which her family were dressed, being as 



busy with domestic duties as he was in his 
agricultural labors. He improved an excel- 
lent farm, and here resided until his decease 
in 1846. His wife, whose maiden name was 
Rachel Weeks, was a daughter of Robert 
Weeks, one of the earliest pioneers of West 
Sparta. At the time Mr. Weeks settled 
there, railways and canals were unheard of; 
and he had to take his grist on horseback to 
Avon, the nearest milling point, being two 
days on the trip. Bread-stuffs were often- 
times scarce; but deer, bears, pheasants, and 
smaller game were plentiful, and supplied the 
family larder with meat. Mr. Weeks re- 
claimed a good farm from the wilderness, and 
remained there during his declining years. 
Four children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Bogart, two of whom are now living. Eliza- 
beth, now deceased, married Marcus Dun- 
ning; Jacob Henry resides in Greenfield, 
Ind.; Robert W. is the subject of this brief 
record; Andrew died in childhood. The 
mother survived her husband many years, 
making her home with her son on the old 
homestead property, and passed away in 1884, 
at the age of seventy-seven years. 

Robert Weeks Bogart was but ten years old 
when his father died; and he continued to 
live with his mother, who trained him to 
habits of usefulness and industry, and in- 
stilled into his mind the lessons of truth and 
honesty that have guided his course through 
life. He succeeded to the ownership of the 
home farm, which he has managed with excel- 
lent judgment, and has since bought adjoining 
land, being now the proprietor of one of the 
best and most finely equipped farms in the 
neighborhood, containing one hundred and 
seventy-eight acres of rich and well-tilled 
land. 

In 1866 Mr. Bogart was united in the holy 
bonds of matrimony with Miss Belle Snyder, 
a native of West Sparta, and the daughter of 
Henry and Anna Snyder. After a happy 
wedded life of twenty-five years death sun- 
dered the silver chain that bound the twain, 
Mrs. Bogart passing to the world beyond on 
January i, 1891. In January, 1894, Mr. 
Bogart was married to Miss Grace Perrine, a 
native of this county, daughter of one of the 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



131 



pioneer families, her parents being William 
T. and Harriet (Stevens) Perrine. The 
father is now deceased, and the mother is a 
resident of West Sparta. 




ure. 



He 



'ILAS F. CLOUGH, a dairy farmer 
residing in Arcade, Wyoming 
County, has made a success of both 
mercantile business and agricult- 
was born at Fabius, Onondaga 
County, N.Y., October 11, 1831, being a son 
of Ephraim Clough, who was a native of the 
same county, and grandson of Abel Clough, 
whose birthplace was in New England. 

The grandfather, having migrated to Onon- 
daga County, followed agriculture success- 
fully, and spent the remainder of his life 
there, enjoying a bountiful prosperity as a 
reward for persistent and untiring industry. 
Ephraim Clough early entered into the 
spirit of his father's calling, acquiring from 
him a thorough knowledge of farming, and on 
becoming of age branched out extensively as a 
farmer on a very large scale, purchasing and 
managing farms at Fabius, Onondaga County, 
and in other towns. Coming to Arcade in 
1854, he purchased a farm of one hundred 
acres, situated directly within the village, 
and established a dairy, which he conducted 
for a time. Later, having divided the farm 
into village lots, which he sold to good advan- 
tage, he bought a small place in the village 
for a residence. Here he lived until called 
to his long home at an advanced age. 

His wife, whose maiden name was Emeline 
Fitch, was a daughter of Silas Fitch, of 
Franklin, Delaware County, where she was 
born. She reared six children, five of whom 
are still living — Silas F., of whose career 
this brief article is a chronicle; Abel, who 
responded to his country's call at the breaking 
out of the Civil War, and was killed by the 
explosion of a shell while following Sherman 
to the sea, leaving a wife and two children; 
Esther, wife of Abraham 
Delos W. ; Charles; and 
wife of William Howard, 
in Arcade at the advanced age of eighty-eight 
years. 



Allen (deceased); 

Frances, now the 

The mother died 



Silas F. Clough, who was named for his 
maternal grandfather, acquired a good knowl- 
edge of agriculture in his younger days by 
assisting his father in the farm duties at 
home, not neglecting his education, however; 
for he attended the district schools and also 
the Fabius Academy, thus placing himself in 
readiness to commence the battle of life. 
This he did by entering as a clerk the store 
of B. H. McClethem at Arcade, where he re- 
mained one year and a half, at the expira- 
tion of which period he purchased a building, 
stocked it with a full and complete line of 
general merchandise, and began business for 
himself. He conducted his store very profit- 
ably for eighteen months; but, out-of-door life 
being more to his tastes, he then sold the 
whole establishment, and bought a farm of 
one hundred and sixty-six acres, at that time 
in a semi-improved state, containing an old 
house and equally ancient out-buildings. He 
diligently applied himself to the task of 
bringing his farm to a proper state of cultiva- 
tion, with results which have been more than 
satisfactory; and he has not only increased 
his acreage, but has also replaced the old 
buildings with well-appointed structures of 
more modern style, his new residence being 
especially comfortable and substantial. About 
the year 1873 Mr. Clough bought the Arcade 
grist-mill and also the tannery, employing 
several workmen in the latter making leather 
for the Boston market. This business he car- 
ried on with profit for about fifteen years, 
then sold it, and has since devoted his whole 
time to the farm. His place now consists of 
two hundred and forty acres, devoted to dairy 
interests, keeping thirty to fifty cows, some of 
the milk of which is sold to the creamery, and 
the remainder partly made into butter on his 
own premises, but mostly made into cheese at 
the factory. 

In 1855 Mr. Clough was united in marriage 
to Miss Lucretia Woodworth, who was born 
in Cazenovia, Madison County, daughter of 
Daniel Woodworth. They have three chil- 
dren, namely: Alta, who married Albert Den- 
nison, a dealer in musical instruments, having 
one child, Isabel; Nellie, a music teacher, who 
is exceedingly proficient ; and Homer, a gradu- 



'32 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ate of the Rochester University, now attached 
to the Weather Bureau at Nashville, Tenn. 

Mr. Clough is a Republican in politics, and 
has served as a Trustee of the high school, tak- 
ing a great interest in educational as well as 
political matters. Both himself and family 
are members of the Baptist church, of which 
he is a Trustee and Deacon, having given much 
valuable time and money to the promotion of 
religious interests in the community. 



(bfTHo: 



HOMAS E. GALLAGHER, now hold- 
tI ing the position of special agent of the 
-^ ^'Etna Insurance Company of Hartford, 
Conn., resides in Dansville, N.Y., where he 
was born July 31, 1848. His grandfather. 
Miles Gallagher, was a farmer in Ireland, and 
lived to the extreme age of ninety-five years. 
His father and mother, Owen and Catherine 
(Fergus) Gallagher, came to America in 
1847, bringing with them one child, who, 
however, died on the voyage. Their second 
child, Thomas E., was born a year after their 
arrival in this country. 

Miles Gallagher settled in Dansville, and 
worked as a laborer for some years. He 
afterward found employment in the machine- 
shop of G. Sweet & Co., where he learned the 
moulder's trade, at which he worked for a 
long time; but since 1879 he has been pros- 
perously engaged in the flour and feed busi- 
ness. Mrs. Owen Gallagher was also of Irish 
birth, and was one of a large family. She 
was the mother of six children, four of whom 
survive — Thomas E. ; Mary; Ellen, who 
married James Brogan, a farmer of Portage, 
N.Y. ; and James. The parents were both 
communicants of St. Patrick's Roman Cath- 
olic Church, of which the father was a Trustee 
for thirty-five years. 

And so it came about that Thomas attended 
the parochial and other schools in Dansville, 
and received a solid education in those 
branches necessary for a man in practical life. 
He remained with his father till he came of 
age, though before that time he had begun a 
commercial life as a clerk, entering a grocery 
store when he was only thirteen years old. 
This firm, Gilder & Co., kept the lad for three 



years, after which he was employed by Mr. 
Snyder during the years previous to his two 
years' stay in Elmira. Returning to Dans- 
ville, Mr. Thomas E. Gallagher was engaged 
in the grocer)' business fourteen years, during 
the first five being in partnership with Albert 
Sweet, and afterward continuing it alone 
nine years, besides conducting a branch store 
at Mount Morris. At the expiration of nine 
years he sold out and moved to Elmira, where 
he entered a commercial partnership with his 
brother. He next became one of the firm of 
T. Perry & Co., local insurance agents of El- 
mira, in which he remained for three years 
before he took the position of State agent for 
the Washington Company, of Boston, the 
duties of which were to take charge of the 
agencies and attend to the adjustments in 
the State. After eighteen months this com- 
pany retired from business, and he became 
general State agent for the Continental In- 
surance Company, of New York. Six years 
later he formed a connection with the ^-Etna 
Insurance Company, of Hartford, which en- 
gagement he still holds. 

In 1874 he was married to Miss Sarah A. 
McCurdy, a daughter of John McCurdy, a rep- 
resentative of the oldest family of the county. 
(See sketch of John McCurdy.) Of this mar- 
riage four children have been born — Elsie, 
Gretchen, Grace, and Vincent. The eldest 
daughter graduated with the highest honors 
from the Convent of the Sacred Heart in 
Rochester. She is a fine musician. The 
second daughter, Gretchen, is also highly 
endowed with musical talent. She was as a 
child sent to the parochial school, and pre- 
pared for the Sacred Heart Convent. Her 
musical progress under Professor Henri Appy, 
a celebrated musician in this locality, has 
been remarkable; and, though only fifteen 
years old, she has a large class of music 
pupils under her instruction, has repeatedly 
played for large audiences in Rochester, and 
has received most flattering press notices. 
The violin is her instrument. 

The Gallaghers are all members of the 
Roman Catholic church here, of which the 
father has been for many years a Trustee. 
He is also a member of the Catholic Mutual 




:% 



RICHARD M. JONES. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



13s 



Benefit Association and President of the St. 
Patrick's Total Abstinence and Benevolent 
Society. He has been Town Clerk, an officer 
of the Union Hose Company, and a village 
Trustee, and a member of the Board of Edu- 
cation. In politics he is a firm supporter of 
the Democratic party. 




ICHARD M. JONES, an able mem- 
ber of the County Board of Super- 
visors, representing the town of 
Geneseo, was born in Springwater, 
March 13, 1836. The native place of his 
father, Richard Jones, was Pittsfield, N.H.; 
and his grandfather, Joseph Jones, was a life- 
long resident of New England. 

Mr. Jones's father learned in his youth the 
trade of clock-making; and after he reached 
maturity he left his home and went out to On- 
tario County in New York State, where he 
followed that calling, and also conducted a 
foundry. After his marriage he removed to 
Springwater in Livingston County, where he 
continued to work at his trade until his death, 
which occurred in 1846. Richard Jones's 
wife, mother of Richard M., whose life story 
is here narrated, was Lucy A. Hickock. She 
was born in West Bloomfield, Ontario County, 
N.Y., and was a daughter of William Hick- 
ock, a well-known farmer of Ontario County. 
She died in 1890, at the advanced age of 
eighty-four years. She was the mother of a 
family of twelve children, who all grew to 
maturity — Joseph, Carlos, Lucinda, John H., 
Caroline, Catherine, Myron R., Richard M., 
Henry C, Emily, James S., and Lucy. 

Richard M., the eighth in the above-named 
group, was but ten years old when his father 
died; and, as his mother was left with four 
younger than he and in very limited circum- 
stances, the boy was early obliged not only to 
earn his own living, but also to assist in the 
support of the family. He found work on a 
farm, and continued in that occupation until 
he enlisted, June 13, 1861, in Company A, 
Third New York Cavalry, the first volunteer 
company of cavalry mustered in the United 
States service. Mr. Jones was with the 
Union army in all its various campaigns and 



battles. He twice had a horse shot from 
under him. Once he shed blood for his coun- 
try, when wounded by a ball, which grazed 
his forehead but spared his eyesight. He was 
honorably discharged at Jones's Landing on 
the James River, July 17, 1864. After that 
he returned home, and for a time worked land 
on shares. Then he rented land of Mr. 
Wadsworth for almost twelve years. In 1884 
he purchased the farm of one hundred and 
twenty acres, situated two miles out from 
Geneseo, where he is now happily and pros- 
perously settled. The estate is well man- 
aged, and yields considerable fruit, as well 
as general farm produce. 

In 1865 Mr. Richard M. Jones was married 
to Miss Amanda A. Jennings, a native of 
Springwater, a daughter of John Jennings. 
Her mother before marriage was Miss Mary 
Frost. Mr. and Mrs. Jones have two children 
— Caroline E. and Richard. Mr. Jones is a 
member of A. A. Curtis Post, No. 392, Grand 
Army of the Republic, of which he has been 
Commander. He is a Republican in political 
opinions, and was elected Supervisor in 1894. 

A portrait of this patriotic, useful, and 
highly esteemed citizen may be found on an- 
other page of the "Review." 




cember 
Phineas 



EV. ALFRED KELLEY BATES, 
the Presbyterian clergyman in Lima, 
Livingston County, N.Y., was born 
in the city of Columbus, Ohio, De- 
14, 1853. His great-grandfather, 
Bates, was a Massachusetts man; and 
his grandfather, Stephen Bates, was born in 
Granville, in the western part of that .State. 

Stephen Bates came to Canandaigua, On- 
tario County, N.Y., when only eighteen years 
of age, working as a farmer and miller. He 
was one of the pioneers who cleared the tim- 
ber off what is now Main Street in that vil- 
lage. He owned a grist-mill at 
which he operated from 1832 till 
he removed to Wisconsin, where 
the fall of the same year. In 
years from 181 3 to 1815, during the progress 
of the last war with Great Britain, he was a 
member of the State Assembly; and later. 



Littleville, 
1845, when 
he died in 
the trying 



^3(> 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



under Governor Clinton, he was in the State 
Senate. During a great part of his active life 
his home was near Canandaigua. His wife 
bore the sweet name of Naomi and the prac- 
tical name of Handy. 

Stephen Bates's son, James Lawrence, the 
father of our special subject, was born in 
Canandaigua in 1815, and attended the local 
schools besides the Canandaigua Academy 
and Hobart College. For a while he worked 
in his father's mill; but in 1832 he went to 
Ohio, where he studied law and was admitted 
to the bar, pursuing his profession the rest of 
his days in Columbus, holding the office of 
District Circuit Judge for fifteen years. His 
wife was Maria Kelley, a native of Cleveland, 
Ohio; and they had six children, the first of 
whom, Julia, died in infancy. Edward Bates 
died at the early age of eighteen. Then came 
a sister, Mary Bates. Lucy Bates married 
Colonel J. T. Holmes, a leading attorney in 
Columbus, Ohio; and they have four children 
— Mabel, Constance, Lawrence, and Eleanor 
Holmes. Fanny Bates married William P. 
Little, of Columbus; and they have three 
children — Helen, Evelyn, and Robert Little. 

Their fifth child, Alfred Kelley Bates, was 
named for his mother's father. He was edu- 
cated in the schools of his native State and 
at Princeton College, where he was graduated 
in 1874, when twenty years of age. Later 
he was also graduated from the Chicago Theo- 
logical Seminary, and at once, in 1878, 
ordained a Presbyterian clergyman in Spring- 
field, 111., the home of the martyred President 
Lincoln. After a year's experience there he 
went to Mount Vernon, Ohio, and then came 
to Lima. A few years later he went to Coun- 
cil Bluffs, la., and then successively to Cedar 
Rapids in the same State, to Cadiz, Ohio, and 
to Scranton, Pa., whence in 1893 he came 
again to Lima, where he is still pastor of the 
Presbyterian church. 

His marriage took place about the time of 
his ordination, in 1878, the bride being 
Louise Strong, daughter of the Rev. Addison 
K. and Medorah (Elder) Strong, now settled 
near Syracuse. From this marriage have 
come eight children — James, born in 1879, 
and named for his paternal grandfather; 



Ethel, born in 1880; Janet, born in 1882; 
Naomi, born in 1884, and named for her 
great -grandmother Bates; Alfred, born in 
1889, and named for his father; Edward, born 
in 1889, and named for an uncle; Mary, born 
in 1891; Gertrude, born in 1893. Their 
father is unusually fond of children, and 
might ask with the sage, Marcus Aurelius, 
"Who is there whom bright and agreeable 
children do not attract to play and creep and 
prattle with them?" and this trait is espe- 
cially attractive in a gentleman of his pro- 
fession. 

" Of such the kingdom ! " . , . And truly 
'• We need love's tender lessons taught 
As only weakness can. 
God hath his small interpreters; 
The child must teach the man." 




SA A. LUTHER, a highly esteemed 
citizen of Warsaw, was born in Cas- 
tile, November 21, 1842. He was 
the son of Lymus C. and Caroline 
P. (Dudley) Luther. Asa Luther, father of 
Lymus C, was one of the early settlers of 
Wyoming County and a pioneer Baptist min- 
ister, an earnest preacher of the gospel, well 
known in his day, when churches in this 
region were few and far between. It is said 
of him that he had many times preached in a 
barn. He died in Castile, when forty years 
of age. His wife outlived him, and married 
again. The Rev. Asa Luther had three chil- 
dren, one son and two daughters, all of whom 
lived to grow up; and one, Mrs. Mary Hunt, 
is still living, her home being in Iowa. The 
other daughter was Savina, who became the 
wife of Mr. Holden. 

The son, Lymus C, grew into manhood in 
Castile, his native town, and there learjied 
the carriage-maker's trade, which he followed 
in later years. During the earlier part of his 
life he was interested in farming, but after- 
ward removed to Wisconsin, and there estab- 
lished a carriage-making btisiness, in which 
he was highly successful. He was a member 
of the Congregational church, and in politics 
a Republican, He served as Deputy Sheriff 
in Wisconsin, and all through his life was an 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



137 



active business man. He died in Wisconsin 
at the age of sixty years. He was twice mar- 
ried, and had three children by his first mar- 
riage and two by the second, all of whom 
grew up, and four of whom are now living, 
their names being: Asa A., Laura, Helen, 
Clara, and Carrie. Laura is the wife of J. 
Thomson. Helen, who married Ira Vail, of 
Wisconsin, died at the age of twenty-six, in 
California, where she had gone for her health. 
The other two daughters, twins, are both 
married. 

Asa A., the eldest child of Lymus C. 
Luther, received his education partly in Cas- 
tile and partly in Wisconsin. At the age of 
fourteen he commenced work at the carpen- 
ter and joiner's trade in the factory of James 
B. Bradish, remaining with him for two years. 
At this time the Civil War broke out, and he 
enlisted August 31, 1861, in Company F, 
Fifth New York Cavalry, commanded by 
Captain Wheeler. His war experiences were 
particularly active, he being in thirteen 
engagements, including the battles of Bull 
Run, Chantilly, Manassas Junction, and 
Fredericksburg, besides many skirmishes. In 
Kilpatrick's raid, in March, 1864, he was capt- 
ured, and was detained in Libby and Ander- 
sonville Prisons for nine months. He was 
paroled in November of that year, but did not 
reach the Union lines until some time in De- 
cember. Before he was taken prisoner he was 
said to have weighed one hundred and fifty- 
seven pounds, and on his release his weight 
was but sixty-eight pounds. He was honor- 
ably discharged in February, 1865. When Mr. 
Luther returned to Warsaw at the close of the 
war, he took up the occupation of carpenter, 
contractor, and builder, and was foreman of 
the Warsaw Manufacturing Company for about 
seven years. In 1876 he bought a farm, which 
he has cultivated and upon which he has re- 
sided until the present day, this farm consist- 
ing of ninety-four acres of land. He is a hard 
worker, and has made what he has by his own 
industry and perseverance. 

Mr. Luther has been twice married. In 
1867 he was united in marriage to Calista 
Keeney, who died in 1869. Two years later 
he married Mary E. Keeney, daughter of 



Sheldon C. and Ann H. Keeney. Five chil- 
dren were born to them — Kendrick A., now 
attending a medical school; Ralph E., hold- 
ing a position in A. B. Bishop's drug store at 
Warsaw; Anna B. and Guy S., who reside at 
home; and Elmer D., who died at the age of 
seven years. 

Mr. Luther has held the office of Highway 
Commissioner for nine years, and is now one 
of the directors of the Wyoming County Agri- 
cultural Society and superintendent of horses 
for the society. He and his wife are mem- 
bers of the Congregational church at Warsaw, 
and in politics Mr. Luther is a Republican. 
He is also a member of the Gibbs Post, No. 
130, Grand Army of the Republic, and of the 
Ancient Order of United Workmen, No. no. 
He occupies a high position among his fellow- 
townsmen, having a good record as a patriotic, 
useful citizen both in war and in peace. 




LLIOTT W. HORTON, the signally 
successful editor of the Livingston 
Democrat, was born in Batavia, Gen- 
esee County, N.Y., November 3, 1858, and 
was but a lad when his father, Samuel Hor- 
ton, a farmer, died in that town. Elliott was 
cared for by his mother, who removed to 
Phelps, Ontario County, where she gave him 
such education as she could afford. 

He commenced the work of life by laboring 
on a farm; but the next season he and his 
mother moved to Sodus, and later he went to 
Palmyra Union School. At Palmyra he 
learned the printer's trade in the office of the 
Wayne County younial, and advancing rap- 
idly was made associate editor. From here 
he went to Washington, D.C., where, after 
being employed one year in the government 
printing-office,' he conducted a job office for a 
year. In the fall of 1885 he came to Gene- 
seo, and during the ensuing year worked as 
foreman in the office of the I.ivingston Dciiio- 
c?-at, of which he has ever since been editor 
and manager. This paper was started in Au- 
gust, 1885, with a very small list of sub- 
scribers, but soon increased in popularity, and 
in the course of two years attained the largest 
circulation of any paper in the county. Mr. 



138 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Horton is a newspaper man of much ability, 
and has always advocated such enterprises as 
were calculated to benefit Geneseo and Liv- 
ingston County, the Livingston Danocrat 
being the first paper to favor a system of 
water-works, electric lights, and many other 
improvements of this progressive age. 

In June, 1890, Elliott W. Horton married 
Emma Argue, daughter of William Argue, of 
Canada; and they have one child, Elliott A. 
Horton. Mr. Horton is foreman of the Wads- 
worth Hose Company, the most noted fire 
company in Western New York, and in 1889 
was presented with a beautiful silver, gold- 
lined fireman's trumpet as an expression of 
appreciation for his services as drill-master, 
showing the esteem in which he is held by his 
associates. It is evident from what has been 
said that he is a man who is ever ready to 
take his stand on the side of the greatest good 
to the £createst number. 




jAJOR MARK J. BUNNELL, a 
gallant officer of the New York 
Volunteer Infantry in the late 
war, now living in retirement at 
Dansville, was born in the adjacent town of 
Lima, December 25, 1837. Major Bunnell's 
paternal grandfather, Xehiel, was a native of 
Cheshire, Conn., where he was a mechanic. 
From Cheshire he went to Whitehall, and 
from thence to Poultney, Vt., where he re- 
sided until just before the War of 1812 broke 
over the country. At this time he removed 
to Lima, where he passed the remaining years 
of his life, dying there in his eighty-fifth vyear. 
He served in the War of the Revolution, en- 
listing in 1780, and re-enlisting in 1781, 
under Captain Hotchkiss at Waterbury, Conn. 
Dennis Bunnell, son of Jehiel, was born in 
Whitehall, N.Y. He accompanied his father 
to Lima, and remained with him until he be- 
came of age. Having acquired a common 
education in the district school, he equipped 
himself for the battle of life by learning a 
trade. This trade was wagon-making, which 
he followed until 1850, after which he came 
to Dansville, and entered the grocery busi- 
ness. In a few vears his health failed so en- 



tirely that he was obliged to retire from active 
pursuits. He was born in 1806, and died in 
1885, having almost, by "reason of strength," 
reached his "fourscore years." Mr. Dennis 
Bunnell lived for five years in Livonia after 
leaving Lima. His wife, Mary Baker, be- 
longed to a fine old family, which boasted four 
Methodist ministers among its number. Mrs. 
Bunnell reared four of the five children to 
which she gave birth — Dem. B., who lives 
in Dansville, N.Y. ; Mary, who married F. A. 
Willard, a professor in a school in Brooklyn; 
a son, Asahel O., whose sketch appears else- 
where in this volume; and Major Mark J., of 
whom this memoir is written. A daughter, 
Sarah C, died in 1846, aged eleven years. 
The mother's last years were spent in Dans- 
ville, where she died in 1881, aged sixty-nine 
years. Both parents were members of the 
Methodist church. 

Major Bunnell lived in Lima and Livonia 
until his thirteenth year. He was instructed 
in the district school, and assisted his father 
in the grocery store, after which he found 
employment as a farm hand in the neighbor- 
hood. As he grew older, he entered the hard- 
ware establishment of Brown & Grant, where, 
besides working in the store, he learned the 
trade of coppersmith and tinner. In 1S61, 
on April 17, five days after Fort Sumter had 
been fired upon, he enlisted as a private in 
Company B, Thirteenth New York Volunteer 
Infantry; but, immediately after the company 
was attached to the regiment, he was made 
First Sergeant. This was just before the 
memorable battle of Bull Run. After Bull 
Run he was promoted to be Second Lieuten- 
ant, which post he held until January 8, 1862. 
During- the Peninsular campaign, he was 
promoted to a Captaincy. 

At the second battle of Bull Run, on Au- 
gust 30, 1862, he was wounded, and after 
lying on the field ten days was picked up by a 
burial party, and was sent to a hospital, where 
he remained until February i, 1863, when he 
came home on sick leave. The wound which 
he had received was well-nigh a mortal one, a 
minie ball having passed through both lungs 
from his left to his right side; and it was 
some time before he recovered from its terri- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



139 



ble effects. When able to re-enter the ser- 
vice, he was appointed Captain of the Veteran 
Reserve by the President, and ordered to 
Washington, where he was given charge of a 
company of men who did .patrol duty in the 
city. He was afterward a member of the 
general court martial, and was on duty in 
Washington, D.C., when he was finally mus- 
tered out by a general order on the 30th of 
June, 1866. He was discharged as Captain, 
and brevetted Major, after which he returned 
to Dansville; but his health was broken, and 
he was unable for some time to do any work. 
He was appointed Canal Collector, a position 
he held until the canal was abandoned. In 
1872 he held an appointment in the House of 
Representatives at Washington, and was after- 
ward made Superintendent of the folding- 
room of the House. In 1874 he was made 
Assistant Sergeant-at-arms in the United 
States Senate, in which position he remained 
until 1880, when he was elected Clerk of 
Livingston County. To this office he was 
re-elected, and served a second time. In 
1889 he was appointed Chief of the Military 
Division of the' Third Auditor's ofifice, the 
Treasury Department, in Washington, having 
thirty clerks in his office, which audited an- 
nually between thirty and forty millions of 
dollars. 

Major Bunnell returned to Dansville at the 
expiration of four years, and has since lived 
in retirement. In 1893 he was obliged to 
have one of his limbs amputated on account of 
the injuries it had sustained during his ser- 
vices in the army. 

Major Bunnell was married in 1863 to Miss 
Josephine Bottume, a daughter of Charles L. 
Bottume, a merchant. To Mrs. Bunnell three 
children were born, namely: Alice E., who 
was educated in Rochester, and married 
George L. Fielder, Manager of the Evening 
Post in New York; George M., who received 
his education at the River View Academy at 
Poughkeepsie; and Belle I. The family are 
regular attendants at the Presbyterian church. 

Major Bunnell is a member of Canaseraga 
Lodge, No. 123, Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows, and Phoenix Lodge, No. 115, A. F. 
& A. M. In both orders he has attained high 



office, being Past Grand Master in the one 
and Master Mason in the other. He is a 
member of S. N. Hedges Post, No. 216, 
Grand Army of the Republic, of Dansville, 
and its present Commander. He is also on 
the staff of the Department Commander of 
New York. Scorning to be a drone in the 
human hive, ever by "new occasions" taught 
"new duties," he has proved faithful to his 
trust, whether in military or in civil service. 






LLIAM BRISTOL, a well-known 
id leading citizen of Warsaw, 
Wyoming County, N.Y., is a hale 
and hearty man of more than threescore and 
ten, as vigorous in intellect as if in the prime 
of life. His birth occurred in Gainesville, 
May 7, 1 82 1. He comes of Revolutionary 
stock, his grandfather, Benjamin Bristol, hav- 
ing served in the war for American indepen- 
dence. Prior to that time he had married 
Abigail Warner, of Canaan, Columbia 
County; and of this union the following chil- 
dren were born: William, Richard, Charles, 
Josiah, Henry, George, Hannah, Chloe, and 
Rebecca. 

William Bristol, Sr., son of Benjamin, was 
born in the town of Canaan, August 19, 
1775, and there lived until twenty years old. 
In 1806 he removed to the part of Genesee 
County that is now Wyoming County, and 
helped to survey the present town of Gaines- 
ville. He located sixteen hundred acres of 
land, and cleared and improved a good home- 
stead from the wild domain on which he felled 
the first tree. On February 22, 1807, he was 
wedded to Martha Stevens, who was born in 
Worcester, Mass., September i, 1785, but 
who subsequently removed with her parents 
to Lima, N.Y. Six children came to glad- 
den their home, namely: Francis S., who 
died in 1845; Benjamin F., now living at the 
age of eighty-four; Mary, who married John 
M. Lawrence, and died in 1876; Lamira, who 
married George Harrington, and died in 1848; 
Laura, who married Corydon Doolittle, and 
died in 1851; and William Bristol, Jr., the 
subject of the present sketch, whose career 
has been closely outlined by the pen of a local 



140 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



journalist in words that follow, copied from 
the County History: — 

"With a common-school education he began 
life for himself at the old family home in 
Gainesville; and to his business as a farmer 
he added that of wool buying, which he fol- 
lowed for over twenty years. A man of quick 
feeling, of fine address, of business ability 
and integrity and great energy, Mr. Bristol 
early became a man of mark in his town and 
county. As a business man large interests 
have been at different times committed to 
him. He has hardly been what would be 
called a politician, though a man with his 
characteristics could not be left out of public 
affairs during the stormy period in which he 
has lived. He was born and bred a Demo- 
crat; but, becoming dissatisfied with the posi- 
tion his party assumed in regard to certain 
moral questions, particularly slavery, he aban- 
doned it, and became one of the founders of 
the Republican party, being a delegate to the 
historical 'Anti-Nebraska' Convention held at 
Saratoga in 1854 and one of the five represent- 
atives from this part of the State to the 
famous 'Barnburner' Convention at Syracuse 
in 1856, which indorsed Fremont. He was 
Supervisor of his town in 1855 and again four 
years during the war, was Under Sheriff of the 
county in 1842, was Presidential elector and 
secretary of the electoral colleges in 1864, 
and member of Assembly in 1867 and 1868. 
He contributed materially to establish and 
sustain Gainesville Female Seminary. As a 
member of the committee appointed by Gov- 
ernor Morgan to promote enlistments in the 
Thirtieth Senatorial District, Mr. Bristol did 
efficient service. His patriotic course, his 
careful zeal, and his expenditure of time and 
money in those years made him a central 
figure in the local history of the county dur- 
ing the war period. A considerable portion 
of his large income was devoted to this work; 
and by and through his efforts, sustained by 
the loyal sentiment of his townsmen, Gaines- 
ville filled every quota promptly, and came 
out of the war without a debt. A Director of 
the Rochester & State Line Railway Company 
(now Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburg) from 
its organization, no one had a larger share in 



the responsibility of its location and construc- 
tion than Mr. Bristol. He was one of the 
first directors of the Warsaw Salt Company, 
the pioneer company of the great salt industry 
in the town. He moved to Warsaw in 1867." 
Mr. Bristol has been twice married, his 
first wife having been Adelia M. Lockwood, 
whose mother, Clara (Hoag) Lockwood, be- 
longed to a family quite prominent in relig- 
ious circles, many of its members being 
ministers of the Methodist denomination. 
The maiden name of his second wife was 
Martha J. Jewett. She is a native of Ontario 
County, being a daughter of Major S. S. and 
Jemima Ross Jewett and a niece of Free- 
born G. Jewett, a well-known resident of 
Skaneateles, one of the first judges of the 
Court of Appeals under the elective judiciary. 
Mr. Bristol has reared six children — Laura 
B., Belle B., Caroline B., William, Millie 
J., and Henry R. Laura B. married Major 
John P. Robinson, who served throughout the 
late Civil War, and was brevetted Colonel. 
He was County Clerk until the time of his 
decease, in the spring of 1873. Mrs. Robin- 
son, who still resides in this town, is a cult- 
ured woman, and a writer of much ability, 
being a regular contributor to four papers. 
The second daughter, Belle B., the wife of 
M. A. Kurtz, a prominent business man of 
Nampa, Idaho, removed there in 1888. Caro- 
line B. is the wife of Nathan S. Beardslee, 
who lives in Warsaw, is President of the 
Empire Duiz Salt Company and President of 
the village. William, of Warsaw, has been 
in the employ of the Erie Railway Company 
for some years. Millie J. is pursuing the 
study of vocal music at Rochester. Henry 
R., a graduate of Rutgers College, read law 
with M. E. & E. M. Bartlett, of Warsaw, and 
was admitted to practice in all courts of record 
in the State. 



7T%YRUS ALLEN, M.D., a native of 
I Y^ South Bristol, Ontario County, N.Y., 
^^Hs was born on the second day of 

October, 1837. He has long re- 
sided in Avon, and has many friends in this 
beautiful town and its vicinity; but his 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



141 



friends are by no means confined to residents 
of this section, for as liead of the Avon Sani- 
tarium Dr. Allen is very widely and favorably 
known, he having been identified with this 
popular establishment for many years. 

His father, Miles Allen, was born in New 
Hampshire, whence he removed to South Bris- 
tol, where he resided until fifty-two years of 
age, when he died of typhoid fever. He mar- 
ried Mrs. Marcia (Hills) Wilder, of South 
Bristol, a native of Vermont, by whom he had 
five children, the subject of our sketch being 
the youngest. They were named as follows: 
Erastus H., Lucy F., Rosina M., Elias, and 
Cyrus. Erastus married Miss Mary Ingraham 
of Bristol, where he passed his entire life as a 
farmer, dying suddenly of apoplexy in Febru- 
ary, 1895, leaving two daughters — Mary and 
Edna. Rosina makes her home at the old 
homestead of Erastus, having never married. 
Lucy F. married Dr. Charles T. Stroud, and 
removed to Sandusky, Ohio; she died at the 
age of sixty-two, leaving two sons and one 
daughter. Elias married Miss Rosetta Shel- 
don, and removed to Rochester, where he 
died at the age of fifty-four. He had one son, 
Edward L., associate editor of the Rochester 
Morning Herald. 

Cyrus Allen pursued his elementary studies 
in the common schools of Bristol and in the 
Canandaigua Academy, going from there to 
the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. 
He entered upon his medical studies with Dr. 
Durfey Chase, of Palmyra, and received the 
degree of M.D. at both the Homoeopathic 
Medical College of New York and at the 
Berkshire (old school) Medical College of 
Massachusetts. 

Beginning the practice of medicine at 
Palmyra, Dr. Allen remained there about 
three years. Then he accepted the position 
of physician at the Clifton Springs Sanita- 
rium, where he remained for four years, at the 
end of which time he came to Avon, and 
established a sanitarium of his own, the in- 
auguration of this enterprise occurring about 
1872. This sanitarium was known as the 
Avon Cure; and it soon attracted the favor- 
able attention of the public, and rapidly built 
up a high reputation. The virtues of the 



mineral springs at Avon were very extensively 
known and universally acknowledged long 
before Dr. Allen made use of them; but, until 
he established a sanitarium, these springs 
could not be utilized excepting during the 
warmer months. 

By intelligently directed and liberal ex- 
penditure he so arranged it that baths were 
available as easily and comfortably in winter 
as in summer, and the results attained at the 
sanitarium soon gave it a national reputation. 
About eleven years later, in 1883, Dr. Allen 
removed to a spacious and finely equipped edi- 
fice, located in the centre of the village of 
Avon; and the present sanitarium is carried 
on by the firm of Allen & Carson, who are 
also proprietors of a prosperous banking house, 
which is connected with the sanitarium. 

Any eulogy of the Avon Sanitarium would 
be looked upon as entirely unnecessary, for 
the simple reason that it is well-known, and 
is universally considered to be the model of 
what such an institution should be. There is 
never any lack of guests, and those who are 
most familiar with the methods followed and 
with the results attained at this establishment 
are the most earnest in its praise. 

The subject of our sketch married Miss 
Harriet L. Reed, daughter of the late Alan- 
son Reed, of Bristol, Ontario County, N.Y. 
Three children were born of this union — Ir- 
ving Cyrus, Marcia Reed, and Jessie Reed. 
The son will undoubtedly be the successor to 
the father as the head of the Avon Sanita- 
rium. At all events he is engaged in the 
study of medicine. Marcia died at the age of 
eight years. 

Dr. Allen and his wife are both members of 
Zion Episcopal Church, the Doctor having 
held the position of Warden for the past score of 
years. He is connected with the Free Masons, 
being a member of the lodge located at Avon. 

Dr. Allen has always been a Republican; 
and, before he became of age, he had sufficient 
interest in politics to carry a lantern during 
the Fremont campaign. His first Presidential 
vote was cast in i860; and of course it was 
cast in favor of one whose name will be cher- 
ished as long as this republic endures as that 
of the martyred President, Abraham Lincoln. 



142 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 




ELLS E. KNIBLOE, a well-to-do 
and highly respected farmer of the 
town of Portage, Livingston County, 
N.Y., was born in Sharon, Litchfield County, 
Conn., September 2, 1827. He is descended 
from sturdy Scotch ancestry, whose sterling 
qualities served to engender within the nature 
of their posterity the fundamental principles 
of thrift and industry, which insure success 
in every calling. His great-grandfather, 
Ebenezer Knibloe, who was a minister of the 
gospel in Scotland, emigrated to America, 
and settled in Dutchess County, New York. 
William Knibloe, son of the Rev. Ebenezer, 
was an early settler in the State of Connecti- 
cut, where he owned a large farm, and spent his 
entire life in the laborious but independent pur- 
suits of agriculture. His wife's maiden name 
was Parnell Clark. William Knibloe, Jr., 
father of Wells E. Knibloe, the subject of this 
sketch, was educated at the district schools of 
his native State, and continued in his father's 
calling, that of a farmer. He came to Living- 
ston County, New York, about the year 1857, 
and was for a short time located at Mount Mor- 
ris, after which he purchased a farm at Por- 
tage, where he passed the remainder of his life. 
Wells E. Knibloe received his education at 
the district schools of Connecticut. He in- 
herited from his father the farm adjoining the 
one upon which he now resides, and he still 
carries it on with that degree of success which 
is only to be gained through the possession 
of varied knowledge and experience. In 1848 
he married Hila W. Hill, daughter of Eliph- 
alet and Lucy Hill, of Orange County. 
They have reared ten children, eight of whom 
are living, their names being as follows: Ed- 
ward F., Mary R., Zada P., Sarah E., Will- 
iam E., Frederick C, Mabel H., and Bert W. 
Charles N. and Lucy P. died, aged respec- 
tively eight years and fourteen years. Mr. 
and Mrs. Knibloe also have seven grandchil- 
dren. Mr. Knibloe now enjoys the fruits of 
his labors, and evidences of a substantial 
prosperity are plainly visible in and about his 
home. Although he cast his first Presidential 
vote for Franklin Pierce in 1852, he has 
always acted with the Republican party ever 
since its formation. 



\^/ebste: 

Wil sive ] 
V^ V^ most 



EBSTER B. van NUYS, an exten- 
landholder, and one of the 
most prosperous agriculturists of 
Livingston County, is the owner of a finely 
equipped farm in the town of West Sparta, 
where he was born in February, 1846. His 
grandfather, John I. Van Nuys, was of excel- 
lent Holland stock and a native of New 
Jersey, where he spent many years. He 
subsequently became a pioneer settler of Sen- 
eca County in this State, and there made his 
home till death. 

His son, Peter Van Nuys, father of Web- 
ster, was likewise a native of New Jersey, 
where when a young man he learned the 
blacksmith's trade. In 1822 he settled in 
Livingston County, establishing a black- 
smith's shop in the town of West Sparta, and 
here carried on a brisk business for four years. 
He then decided to take advantage of the low 
price of the unimproved land in this vicinity, 
and, buying the farm now owned by the sub- 
ject of this brief biography, began clearing 
and cultivating it. Energetic and industri- 
ous, he met with eminent success, and carried 
on mixed husbandry on the homestead which 
he had redeemed from the forest until 1871, 
when he retired from active labor. He re- 
moved then to the village of Dansville, re- 
maining there until his departure to the world 
beyond, being but sixty-two years of age when 
he closed his eyes to earthly scenes. He was 
deeply respected on account of his moral 
worth and integrity, and, taking a great inter- 
est in local affairs, served as Supervisor of 
West Sparta three terms and as a magistrate 
for many years. His estimable wife, whose 
maiden name was Harriet Carr, was a native 
of Ohio. She bore him seven children, as 
follows: Melissa, deceased, married Augustus 
Hamilton; Isaac; Amos B. ; Emily, de- 
ceased; Webster B. ; H. K., deceased; and 
one that died in infancy. Mrs. Harriet Van 
Nuys survived her husband many years, and 
died in Dansville, at the ripe old age of 
eighty-four years. She was imbued with a 
fervent spirit of piety, and with her beloved 
husband was a consistent member of the Pres- 
byterian church. 

Webster B. Van Nuys, the fourth child as 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



1 43 



named above, was educated in the district 
schools of the place of his nativity, and dur- 
ing his minority was well drilled in agricult- 
ural labors. After his father retired from 
active life, he took charge of the home farm, 
where he has since resided, and has managed 
it in a most practical and progressive manner, 
devoting his energies to its improvement. 
Besides the farm of five hundred acres which 
he occupies, Mr. Van Nuys is the owner of 
another valuable estate of two hundred and 
ten acres; and he has the personal supervision 
of both places, which he devotes to general 
farming purposes. The improvements which 
he has made are of the most substantial char- 
acter, reflecting great credit on his industry, 
sound sense, and good taste. He affiliates 
with the Republican party in his political 
views, and enjoys in a marked degree the con- 
fidence and esteem of his neighbors and 
friends. Mr. Van Nuys has never joined the 
ranks of the benedicts, but is still laboring 
under the delusion that a bachelor's life is 
one of happiness. 



vSy citizei 
•^ '^ Count 



[LLIAM RUSSELL, a prominent 
izen of Gainesville, Wyoming 
ity, N.Y., was born in this 
town, January 31, 1829, being a son of James 
Russell, who was born in the State of Ver- 
mont, September 24, 1791, and grandson of 
JamesJRa1a5e.ll, of the same State. The grand- 
father was one of the sturdy stock of farmers 
who did so much to make the Green Mountain 
.State renowned as the home of upright, hon- 
est, law-abiding citizens. In his later years 
he came West to this locality, his eldest son, 
James, having preceded him with wife and 
three children in a covered sleigh, with a span 
of horses and a yoke of cattle, making the 
long journey in the winter of 18 17. The 
grandfather had been the father of a large 
family of children, who had grown to manhood 
and womanhood; but his later years were 
passed with his son James, and he died in 
the new home at the age of eighty-three. 

James Russell, father of William, of this 
sketch, had grown up on his father's farm in 
Vermont, and followed the occupation of 



farmer, with the exception of one year in the 
War of 1812, in which, having enlisted, he 
was using his strength and energy in the ser- 
vice of his country. The journey to Gaines- 
ville, made two years after the close of the 
war, was safely accomplished in twenty days; 
and a hospitable settler, Mr. Smith, threw 
open the doors of his capacious log house on 
their arrival, and made the weary travellers 
welcome on their first night in the strange 
country. The place was destined in after 
years to be known as Delhi and to be incoi- 
porated in a farm owned by his son, the land 
lying about one and a half miles west of the 
town of Gainesville. James Russell began 
his career here at once by purchasing three 
hundred and sixty acres of land of the Hol- 
land Land Company and of a Mr. Hammond 
of that place, and, putting up a log house 
without chimney or many comforts, carried on 
the engrossing business of general farming 
till later years, when he gradually relin- 
quished its active care. His death occurred 
while on a visit to one of his daughters in the 
town of Java, at the age of seventy-six. 

The wife of James Russell was Miss Rachel 
Winslow, who was born in 1789, and was a 
direct descendant of the distinguished New 
England family of that name, whose earliest 
representatives in America came over in the 
"Mayflower," and were numbered among the 
most influential men in the Plymouth Colony. 
Mrs. Russell spent her later years in Gaines- 
ville, and went to her rest October 4, 1865, 
at the age of seventy-six years. She and her 
husband were members of the Methodist 
church. Their children were nine in num- 
ber, and six are still living — Chauncey; 
John (deceased); Rachel (deceased July 4, 
1818); Delilah, who married Martin Buck, of 
Java; Stephen, • who died; James; Clarissa, 
wife of Philander Brainerd; Harriet, wife of 
Alverda Cox; and William. Mr. Russell was 
a man highly esteemed in the town, in which 
he lived the life of a good citizen, setting an 
example of worth and integrity to his neigh- 
bors. He was a magistrate for many years. 

William, the youngest child, grew up on 
his father's farm in Gainesville, getting his 
education in the district school, and early 



144 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



learning the use of farming implements. 
After coming to years of independence he 
purchased for himself a part of his father's 
farm ; but later on he sold it, and bought an- 
other, which was originally settled by his 
father's brother. He has since engaged in 
other real estate transactions, and is now in 
possession of a part of the old homestead. 
He built a new farm-house, which he occupied 
for a time with his family; but in 1889 he 
erected a more commodious and modern dwell- 
ing in the village of Gainesville, one and one- 
half miles from the farm, which has in 
connection with it a little enclosure of about 
eight acres. On the opposite side of the 
roadway he has also purchased a house and 
barn ; and the two homesteads, with their sur- 
roundings of green fields and fruit and shade 
trees, make an attractive picture of substantial 
comfort and enviable prosperity. 

William Russell was married September 
30, 1856, to Miss Betsey S. Knapp, of 
Gainesville. Her father, William S. Knapp, 
of Vermont, with his parents moved to War- 
saw, where in later years he carried on the 
business of dressing cloth. His father, Dan- 
iel Knapp, one of the veterans of the War of 
181 2, died in Gainesville. Mrs. Russell's 
father, William S. Knapp, sold out his busi- 
ness at Warsaw, and bought the woollen fac- 
tory at Gainesville, which he finally sold, and 
settled on a farm. His health failing, he 
then bought a house and lot in the village, 
where he lived with his second wife, formerly 
Mary A. Brainerd, until his death, which oc- 
curred in the year 1889, at the age of eighty- 
two. Mrs. Knapp, the mother of Mrs. 
Russell, was before her marriage Miss Amy 
Pike. She was a daughter of James Pike, and 
she became the mother of si.\ children. One 
daughter, Huldah J., married John Leffing- 
well, of Gainesville; Betsey married William 
Russell; Sarah is the wife of Myron Evans; 
and Amelia was united in marriage to George 
Reynolds, a son of Judge Reynolds. Mrs. 
Knapp's life was not a very long one, as 
she finished her course at the age of forty- 
seven. 

Mr. and Mrs. Russell have been the parents 
of seven children, five of whom grew to matu- 



rity, and four are still alive. William J. was 
called away at the age of four years. Latimer 
J. also died at the age of ten months. Will- 
iam D., the next son, formerly taught school, 
but at present attends to two farms of his own 
besides his father's. He married Miss Jennie 
Reaves; and they have three children — Ethel 
G., Fannie E., and Bessie. Clara Dell was 
married to Alvin P. Wolcott, October 24, 
1887, and died at the age of twenty-six years. 
Carrie Bell, who seems to have had linked 
with her own attractive personality the graces 
and beauty of her lost twin sister, devotes her 
time with unselfish affection to the care and 
comfort of her bereaved parents. Seymour 
James, the next child, married Miss Fannie 
H. McCarthy, and has one child — Lillian. 
A. Leona, who was formerly and for many 
years a school teacher, married Burt C. Bel- 
den, at the present time a farmer in Gaines- 
ville. 

Mr. Russell is a Republican in his political 
principles. He has filled the office of town 
Magistrate, but on account of poor health re- 
signed, and has been Highway Commissioner 
many years. In the Methodist church, of 
which his family are also members, he has 
held the ofifice of superintendent for twenty 
years, being class leader for thirty years, and 
taking a very active part at all times in the 
affairs of the society, being also the first 
superintendent of the Sunday-school who has 
continued to conduct its sessions in the win- 
ter time. Mrs. Russell was also a Sunday- 
school teacher, and is a personal force in the 
w-orking organizations of the parish, where 
her aid and encouragement are a constant ben- 
efit. Mr. and Mrs. Russell may well claim 
their early ancestry, feeling themselves by 
their Christian influence as doing honor to 
those God-fearing men who sought in life's 
great issues of sorrow and joy the blessing of 
heaven. 



(g>rUGUSTUS MARKHAM, a well-known 

£|A Excise Commissioner of Lima, Liv- 

/j|^\ ingston County, was born in Avon 

^""^ in the same county, July 6, 182 1, 

the year that Missouri was admitted into the 




AUGUSTUS MARKHAM. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



>47 



I'liion. His grandfather, Joseph Markham, 
was a Revolutionary soldier and a life-long 
resident of New Hampshire. His father, 
Joseph Markham second, was twenty years old 
when he came with Colonel William Mark- 
ham on foot to Avon. They took up land; 
and Mr. Markham built first a log house, but 
later frame buildings. The land was all un- 
cleared, and the travellers were obliged to fol- 
low Indian trails to their destination. His 
wife was Hepsibeth Peabody ; and they reared 
eleven children — Diana, Milantha, Willard, 
Spencer, Mindwell, Joseph, Betsy, Lorinda, 
Guy, Augustus, and Mehitable. The father 
and mother of this flourishing family lived to 
be ninety-four and seventy-two years old re- 
spectively. 

The subject of this sketch received his edu- 
cation in the district school at Avon, and 
worked at the old homestead until the fall of 
1S58, when he came to Lima, and bought a 
farm of a hundred and twenty acres. Such 
has been the owner's prosperity that this farm 
now covers four hundred acres, the family 
residence being a substantial cobblestone 
house. Mr. Markham married Olive Louise 
Parmalee, daughter of Baldwin and Catherine 
Parmalee, of Avon ; and she has been the 
happy mother of nine fine children — Jennie; 
I'rances; Milantha; Charles, deceased, aged 
twenty-two; Clara H., who died in infancy; 
Minnie; Lottie; Joseph; and Guy. Jennie 
Markham married John Dennis, telegraph edi- 
tor of the Democrat and Chronicle of Roches- 
ter, and resides in that city. Frances married 
Leonard Farnsworth, and died, leaving two 
children.. Milantha married Edwin Watkins, 
of Lima village. Minnie married Schuyler 
Gillett, of Lima. Lottie married James 
(Juinn, of Rochester. Guy married Nellie 
Fleming; and he and his brother Joseph, who 
is unmarried, live on the farm. Mr. Mark- 
ham has been elected Excise Commissioner 
for three terms, and also served as Supervisor 
in 1 89 1. He is a member of the Lima Ma- 
sonic Lodge, and belongs to the Methodist 
church at Honeoye Falls. A Democrat in 
politics, he cast his first Presidential vote in 
1844 for James K. Polk, of Tennessee. 

On another page may be seen a portrait 



of this gentleman, whose administration of 
his department of the civil service may be 
considered an indorsement of the declaration 
of John C. Calhoun: "The very essence of a 
free government consists in considering offices 
as public trusts, bestowed for the good of the 
country and not for the benefit of an individ- 
ual or a party." 




lOAH COOLEY, a pioneer settler of 
the town of Leicester, Livingston 
County, N.Y., was born in the 
town of Hawley, Franklin County, 
March 24, 178 1, and died at his home 
in Leicester on July 21, 1850. His father, 
Noah Cooley, Sr., was born in Palmer, 
Hampden County, Mass., on August 21, 
1 741. He married Esther Hyde, who was 
born in the neighboring town of Monson on 
May 31, 1748. Mr. Cooley bought a farm in 
Hawley, and after marriage came there on 
horseback, his wife riding on a pillion behind 
him, a part of the intermediate country being 
as yet untraversed by wagon roads. Mr. Coo- 
ley died on March 19, 181 8, his wife Esther 
on August 7, 1838. They had four children 
— Noah, named for his father; Esther; 
Asher; and Calvin. 

The second Noah Cooley was brought up 
under the shadow of the Berkshire Hills, in 
the strenuous moral atmosphere of the old Bay 
State, where he grew to a stalwart manhood, 
and in due time became a husband and father. 
In 1816 he, in company with his wife and six 
children, came to New York State, the family 
making the journey through the woods in a 
wagon drawn by a single horse; and, bringing 
their household goods in an ox wagon, they 
settled on a tract of thickly wooded land in 
Leicester, where Mr. Cooley built a log house 
for shelter, all the lumber of which, compris- 
ing "shakes" for the roof and plank for the 
floor and door, was split or hewn by himself. 
There were no railroads for many years; and, 
as there was no easy means of intercourse be- 
tween the various cities, the people depended 
largely for meat on the game which then 
abounded in the forest, and dressed in the 
homespun flax and woollen made by the house- 



148 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



wife. Noah Cooley cleared a large farm, on 
which he raised wheat and flax, and kept 
sheep. He was prosperous as a farmer, and 
after a few years had erected good frame 
buildings and made for his family a pleasant 
home. He was a hard-working, self-respect- 
ing, and honest man, and was always held 
in the highest esteem by his fellow-citizens. 
He married Sabra Wells, also a native of 
Hawley, Mass., the date of whose birth was 
April 5, 1784, and who lived to be nearly 
eighty-three years old, dying on March 7, 
1867. 

Noah and Sabra (Wells) Cooley reared nine 
children: namely, Asher, Lovisa, Electa, 
Esther, David, Elisha, Sabra, Emma, and 
Noah. Miss Sabra Cooley was born in the 
new log house home the year after the arrival 
of her parents in Leicester, on March 14, 
1817. In her childhood she attended the dis- 
trict school, and later completed her education 
at Wyoming Academy, after which she en- 
tered upon the work of school teaching. A 
woman of character and influence, she is 
to-day one of the oldest native residents of 
the town, and well remembers the scenes and 
incidents of pioneer life. She and her 
brother Noah occupy the old homestead. 
Noah, the third of the name, married Lucy 
Abbey, who was born in Leicester, the daugh- 
ter of Dexter and Hannah Abbey. Mrs. Lucy 
Cooley died September 23, 1881, leaving 
three children — Perley E., Lillian, and 
Sabert. 



—*-••-•-*— 




vELEG W. HEWITT, an active and 
extensive farmer of the thriving 
town of Portage, Livingston County, 
N.Y., who has held several public 
offices, was born in Ontario County, February 
23, 1822, son of James B. Hewitt. His pa- 
ternal grandfather was Sterry Hewitt, born at 
Stonington, Conn., who was captain of a com- 
pany in the Revolutionary War, and served 
until hostilities terminated. He was a farmer 
and ship carpenter, and after his marriage 
removed to Rensselaer County, New York, 
where he died. His wife, Hannah Barnaby, 
also died in the above place. 



Their son, James B. Hewitt, was educated 
at the district schools of his native county, 
Rensselaer, and was both a farmer and a 
mechanic. He moved to Ontario County in 
1 8 19, transporting his effects by wagons, and 
was eighteen days upon the road. He ac- 
quired a tract of land containing one hundred 
and fifteen acres and furnished with a log 
house, in which he lived for eleven years. 
He then moved to Springwater, Livingston 
County, where he resided seven years, after 
which he came to Portage, and settled near 
Oakland upon a farm of fifty acres. Untiring 
in his improvements and in migrations, having 
erected a house and barn, he sold this prop- 
erty, and, removing to Conesus, lived there 
four years. Selling, he finally went to Ohio, 
where he died. During the War of 181 2, he 
was called out, but saw no active service. 
James B. Hewitt married Alice Waite, daugh- 
ter of Peleg and Mary Waite, and reared five 
children — Almanza, Peleg W., Mary, Emily, 
and Alice. By a second marriage with Polly 
Gray, he reared two children — Sanford and 
Elizabeth. 

Peleg W. Hewitt, named for his maternal 
grandfather, received his education at Spring- 
water, and at the age of twenty-four purchased 
his present farm of one hundred and fifteen 
acres. It was then largely covered with 
heavy pine timber; and, during the fifty years 
which have intervened since taking posses- 
sion, Mr. Hewitt has thoroughly cleared his 
farm, and constructed more than four miles of 
stump fence, doing the entire work himself 
without assistance. In 1864 he erected a 
commodious frame house; and he also has 
spacious, well-built, and finely equipped 
barns, which afford every convenience for the 
proper carrying on of all branches of agricult- 
ure. Mr. Hewitt and his son now own and 
operate jointly two hundred and twenty-seven 
acres of fertile land. 

In 1845 Mr. Hewitt married Nancy Thomp- 
son, daughter of Wilson Thompson, of Por- 
tage; and they have five children, namely: 
Wilson, now living in Nebraska; Cornelia; 
Alice; Edwin; and Mary. Alice resides at 
home, and attends to the household affairs. 
Edwin, who occupies a farm adjoining his 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



149 



father's, married Julia Townsend; and they 
have two children — Roy and Florence. Cor- 
nelia married Sanford Watson, and resides in 
Michigan, having one child — Nellie. Mary 
married Charles Snyder, and lives in Alle- 
gany County. In 1882 Mr. Hewitt had the 
sad misfortune of losing his estimable partner 
of so many years, the mother of these children 
being then taken away by the hand of death. 

The subject of this brief sketch has long 
enjoyed the confidence and respect of his 
fellow-townsmen, and has served faithfully 
and with marked ability as Highway Com- 
missioner, Overseer of the Poor, and Excise 
Commissioner. .He is a member and senior 
Deacon of the Portage Baptist church. He is 
recognized by all who know him as an up- 
right, conscientious, and fair-dealing man, 
and has lived a pure, simple, Christian life. 
He has always been a Democrat in politics, 
and cast his first Presidential vote in 1844 for 
James K. Polk. 



OHN CREVELING, of the town of 
Mount Morris, is an excellent repre- 
sentative of the self-made men of the 
county, and occupies a conspicuous 
position among its enterprising and progres- 
sive agriculturists. He was born in Warren 
County, New Jersey, September 15, 1825; 
and his father, John Creveling, Sr., was a na- 
tive of the same State, of which the paternal 
grandparents, who were of German ancestry, 
were life-long residents. 

John Creveling, Sr., was reared and mar- 
ried in New Jersey, and resided there until 
1833, when with his wife and seven children 
he came to Livingston County, New York. 
That was prior to the construction of railroads; 
and the removal was made with teams, they 
bringing with them their entire worldly pos- 
sessions. His means were very limited; and 
he did not buy land, but found employment at 
various kinds of work, chiefly wood-cutting 
and tilling the soil. Having accumulated 
some money, he finally purchased a farm near 
the centre of the town of Mount Morris, and 
made his home thereon until his death, at the 
age of threescore and ten years. His wife, 



Christie Ann Olp, was a native of Warren 
County, New Jersey, and a daughter of John 
and Mary Olp. She died at the early age of 
thirty-eight years, leaving seven children, all 
of whom grew to maturity. 

John Creveling, son of John and Christie 
A. (Olp) Creveling, was but nine years old 
when he was bereft of his mother. The father 
kept the family together for two years; and it 
then became scattered, little John going to 
live with Barney G. Hagerman, who gave him 
his board and clothing for his work on the 
farm, allowing him to attend school during 
the winter season. He stayed with Mr. 
Hagerman until hi's nineteenth year, when he 
started in life for himself, even with the 
world. He worked about for different people 
by the day or month during the first year, and 
then entered the employment of Gulielmus 
Wing, being hired for eight months at twelve 
dollars a month, and re-engaged for the re- 
mainder of the year at the same wages. At 
the end of the twelve months, having lost no 
time, and having drawn none of his salary, 
the di-ligent laborer received one hundred and 
forty-four dollars in cash. Mr. Wing then 
advanced his wages to fifteen dollars per 
month ; and at the expiration of six months he 
was the possessor of two hundred and thirty- 
four dollars. With this sum in his pocket, 
Mr. Creveling started for Wisconsin, journey- 
ing by private conveyance to Attica, thence 
by rail to Buffalo, across Lake Erie to De- 
troit, and by rail to Kalamazoo, at that time 
the western terminus of the iron pathway. 
From there he proceeded by stage to St. 
Joseph, Mich., then by water to Chicago, 
which he found but a small city. His jour- 
ney from there was by Lake Michigan to 
Southport, Wis., and thence to Fox Lake on 
foot. Wisconsin was then but sparsely set- 
tled; and Mr. Creveling, not being pleasantly 
impressed with the country, decided not to 
invest in land, but returned to Livingston 
County, and the following year worked Mr. 
Hagerman's farm on shares. He then re- 
turned to Mr. Wing, who hired him for one 
summer; and the subsequent two years Mr. 
Creveling worked for an older brother. He 
then bought a team, and supplying himself 



15° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



with farming implements worked a farm on 
shares for a year. His next position was that 
of lock-tender on the Genesee Canal at a sal- 
ary of fifty dollars per month, at which he 
was engaged through the season. Mr. Creve- 
ling then made his first purchase of land, 
which consisted of fifty acres in the town of 
Mount Morris, where he resided ten years. 
Selling that, he bought a farm of one hundred 
and forty-three acres at Union Corners, and 
later bought sixty more acres. After carry- 
ing on general farming there for twenty-eight 
years, he removed to the place he now owns 
and occupies. Here Mr. Creveling has a 
pleasant home, with a good set of buildings, 
which are situated on an elevation, and com- 
mand an extended view of the surrounding 
country. He is the possessor of nearly four 
hundred acres of excellent land, the greater 
part of which is under high cultivation. 

In 1850 Mr. Creveling was united in mar- 
riage with Elizabeth Rittenhouse, who was a 
native of Cayuga County. She passed to the 
higher life June 11, 1887, leaving four chil- 
dren — Edward R., Wilson M., John E., and 
Mary A. Edward R. Creveling married Cora 
Bergen, and lives in Mount Morris. Wilson 
married Cora E. Perrine, and is in business 
in Tuscarora. John E. married Hattie Hoag- 
land; and they reside in Tuscarora, where he 
is in mercantile business. May A. married 
Elmer Williams, a farmer in Mount Morris. 
Mrs. Creveling was a woman of great per- 
sonal worth, a sincere and devout member of 
the Baptist church. In politics Mr. Creve- 
ling has always affiliated with the Democratic 
party, and is an earnest supporter of its 
principles. 




•USTIN B. DUNN, a well-known farmer 
and ex-School Commissioner of the 
town of Ossian, Livingston County, 
was born at Byersville, a village in 
West Sparta, February 4, 1839. His father, 
Daniel P. Dunn, came to that town during 
the thirties, and taught school, but in 1841 
moved to Ossian. Here he purchased a house 
and lot, and continued teaching for several 
years, serving also as Justice of the Peace. 



He died at Welland, Canada, at the home of 
a daughter, aged eighty-one. His wife was 
Elvira De Lano, also a school teacher, who 
was born in West Sparta, of French descent. 
Her father, Joseph, was a farmer of that town, 
and lived on what was known as De Lano's 
Hill. After residing many years in West 
Sparta, he removtid to Ohio, and died there, 
aged sixty-six. Mr. and Mrs. Daniel P. 
Dunn reared two children — Jennie L., who 
married Lyman Southworth, of Canada, his 
home being fourteen miles from Buffalo, 
N.Y., and Austin B., the subject of this 
sketch. Mrs. Dunn died at Ossian at the 
age of fifty-six. 

Austin B. Dunn spent his earlier years 
attending the district schools of Ossian and 
assisting his father on the farm. Arriving at 
his majority, he was elected Town Clerk, 
which office he held for three years, and was 
then chosen Constable and Collector; and, 
after holding these offices for three years, he 
was made Justice of the Peace, and continued 
to discharge the duties of that office from 
1870 to 1887. In the years 1885 and 1886 
he was Supervisor, and was a Justice of Ses- 
sions for his county during 1886 and 1887. 
On January i, 1888, he assumed the duties of 
School Commissioner, and continued as such 
until 1 89 1, when he was re-elected, and 
served till January i, 1894. 

Mr. Dunn was mostly engaged in teaching- 
school winters from the time he was twenty 
years of age until he was elected School Com- 
missioner. He is a stanch Republican, and 
has always been an active leader in political 
affairs. In 1863 he married Mary J. Chitten- 
den, daughter of Harvey Chittenden, of 
Nunda, a pioneer and prominent citizen of 
that town. Mrs. Dunn is a member of the 
Methodist church. Mr. Dunn can be men- 
tioned as a very worthy citizen, an intelligent 
public servant, and a gentleman of the highest 
respectability. 



/ir-F 



FRANK WING, who resides about 
\ •) I four miles from the village of Bliss, 
— in the town of Eagle, was born upon 

the farm he now owns and conducts, May 26, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



iSJ 



1847. His father, Stephen L. Wing, was a 
native of New Hampshire, in which State his 
grandfather, Jonathan Wing, who was born 
upon the island of Martha's Vineyard, settled 
for a time. The latter in his younger days 
was a mariner; but, later deciding to forsake 
sea life and engage in agricultural pursuits, 
he located at first as above, and in 1820 came 
to Wyoming County, New York, where he 
settled in the town of Eagle, upon the farm 
which is now the property of his grandson, 
George F. Wing. 

At the time of Jonathan Wing's arrival in 
the locality, the country was in its virgin 
state, there being simply a bridle path leading 
from Pike to Eagle. Nevertheless he ac- 
cepted cheerfully the many vicissitudes of a 
pioneer's life, and with the energy which is 
characteristic of a sturdy New Englander pro- 
ceeded to clear and improve his land; and in 
due time he not only brought it to a fine state 
of cultivation, but also erected substantial 
frame buildings. He attained a prominent 
position among the early settlers, filling the 
office of Supervisor with marked ability, also 
being a Justice of the Peace for many years, 
and was known throughout the section as 
Squire Wing. The office of supervisor made 
it necessary for him to travel considerably on 
horseback, in fair weather and in foul, often 
through lonely bridle paths. Being a man of 
physical as well as mental strength, he with- 
stood the unavoidable exposures of a pioneer's 
life without incurring any serious injury to 
his health, and died upon the farm which he 
had so laboriously reclaimed from the wilder- 
ness, at the advanced age of eighty-two, being 
tenderly cared for during his declining years 
by his son, Stephen L. Wing. 

This son at his father's death became pos- 
sessor of the farm which he, too, had assisted 
in improving and of which for some time he 
had full charge. Ste])hen had received a good 
practical education in the district schools; 
and, like his venerable parent, he entertained 
a lively interest in public affairs, attaining to 
considerable political prominence, and serving 
faithfully as Poor Master and Assessor. At 
the breaking out of the Rebellion he raised a 
company of volunteers, which became attached 



to the One Hundred and P"ourth New York 
Regiment under Colonel Rohrbach ; and he 
served as its Captain through many severe 
battles, being disabled at Atlanta, and super- 
seded in the command by his son, Nelson J. 
Wing. This company, which was composed 
of rarely intelligent men, some eight or ten of 
whom received commissions, was selected by 
its organizer with great care from the most 
influential and highly cultured families in 
this locaUty; and it served with such distinc- 
tion as to receive the hearty commendations 
of the regimental and corps commanders. Cap- 
tain Wing, on being disabled, returned to his 
farm, where he died at the age of sixty-one 
years, after having faithfully completed his 
life's work both as a civilian and a soldier. 

Stephen L. Wing married Mary Hayes, a 
daughter of Daniston Hayes, of Pennsylvania. 
Her father was a master mechanic, who 
worked much of the time as a wheelwright. 
A chair made by him over seventy years ago 
is now in the possession of Mr. Wing. Mr. 
Hayes settled at Geneseo when that town was 
in its infancy, and there spent his last years, 
dying at the age of eighty-seven. His wife, 
whose maiden name was Margaret Daley, was 
a native of the Emerald Isle. They reared 
six children, of whom Mary, widow of Stephen 
L. Wing, is the only survivor. She was born 
in February, 1807, at Geneseo, in the same 
house where her parents died, situated about 
two miles east of the village. She and her 
husband came to the present home of Mr. 
G. F. Wing in 1829, immediately after their 
marriage, and here reared three of their seven 
children — Mary Jane, now Mrs. Ressell; 
Nelson J.; and George Frank Wing, the sub- 
ject of this brief sketch. Mrs. Mary Hayes 
Wing resides with the latter, and now at the 
age of eighty-eight years is remarkably bright 
and intelligent, possessing perfect control of 
her faculties, being in all respects a most 
phenomenally preserved old lady. She is a 
member of the Presbyterian church, as was 
her late husband for many years, the latter 
being an Elder. 

G. F. Wing was educated in the schools of 
his native town, and also attended a neighbor- 
ing seminary; after completing the course, he 



152 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



entered diligently into the labors of an 
agriculturist, remaining with and assisting 
his father until that gentleman's decease, 
when the property reverted to him. His farm 
consists of two hundred acres; and he devotes 
principally to the dairying interest, handling 
the products of sixteen graded Holstein cows. 
In 1866 he erected a large barn with all mod- 
ern improvements, which greatly enhances 
his facilities for successful farming. 

In 1870 he married Miss Emma Vesey, of 
Centreville, Allegany County, where her 
father, Louis Vesey, was a farmer, having 
been a pioneer in that town. Of the four 
children born to them, three are still living, 
their beloved daughter, Mary E. Wing, hav- 
ing been called from earth at the age of 
twenty-two years, August 5, 1894. .She was 
educated at Pike Seminary, and aside from a 
rare proficiency in her studies was otherwise 
highly accomplished, and possessed an exceed- 
ingly amiable disposition, thoroughly void of 
self-interest, which won for her the esteem 
and devotion of many friends. The other 
children of Mr. and Mrs. Wing are Nelson 
E., Roy F., and Warner H., who were all 
carefully educated in their youth at the semi- 
nary, and now assist their father in conduct- 
ins the farm. Mr. and Mrs. Wing are mem- 
bers of the Presbyterian church, and with 
their sons also attend the Sunday-school. 

Their residence is pleasantly situated on 
Wing Street, named in honor of the family, 
which has been very prominent in this section 
for many years, its present head being a man 
of rare intellectual strength, thoroughly cog- 
nizant of the fact that knowledge is a neces- 
sary factor for the proper and successful 
completion of life's work. With this in view 
Mr. Wing has been an untiring reader, laying 
up stores of information, and acquiring prac- 
tical wisdom, which has enabled him to be- 
come of valuable service to his community. 

P'ollowing in the footsteps of his predeces- 
sors, he takes much interest in town affairs, be- 
ing a Republican in politics. He was elected 
Supervisor in 1889 and in 1890, and has also 
been Justice of the Peace for sixteen years. 
He is a member of the Ancient Order of United 
Workmen, and enjoys much social distinction. 



OHN D. GRIMES was for many years 
actively identified with the agricultural 
interests of the town of Nunda, Liv- 
ingston County, having lived here from 
the time of his birth, October 24, 1829, until 
his death, on the 27th of October, 1893. He 
was a man of good mental endowments, pos- 
sessing those sterling traits of character that 
won for him the respect and esteem of all 
with whom he associated in either business 
or social relations. Both his father, Richard 
P. Grimes, and his grandfather, Philip 
Grimes, were among the original settlers of 
the town of Nunda, which was thereafter their 
permanent abiding-place. 

Richard P. Grimes was born in Greene 
County, New York, and there resided until 
after attaining his majority. He became 
familiar with farming pursuits during his ear- 
lier years, and, when ready to settle in life, 
emigrated to this county, which was then very 
thinly populated, and, taking up one hundred 
acres of wild land on East Hill in Nunda, 
built the first frame barn erected in that local- 
ity, and was numbered among the very first 
settlers of the place. With energy and wise 
forethought he began clearing his land, and 
during the years that followed improved a fine 
farm from the wilderness. He married Betsey 
Donaldson, a native of Greene County, by 
whom he had one child, John D., subject of 
the present sketch. Mr. Richard P. Grimes 
and his wife were both people of strong relig- 
ious convictions and charter members of the 
Presbyterian church at Nunda. 

John D. Grimes attended the district 
schools; but, being an ambitious youth, fond 
of his books and anxious for more extended 
learning, he pursued his studies by himself, 
fitting himself for college. He was subse- 
quently employed as a teacher in the Nunda 
Academy, resigning his position at length on 
account of deafness. Mr. Grimes then re- 
sumed the agricultural work to which he was 
reared, and was extensively engaged in farm- 
ing until the time of his decease. In politics 
he was an earnest supporter of the principles 
of the Republican party, and at different times 
served his fellow-townsmen in various official 
capacities, having been Commissioner of 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



I S3 



Highways, Assessor, and census-taker. He 
was always numbered with the active and pro- 
gressive men of the county, and was an intel- 
ligent participant in all enterprises calculated 
to advance the interests of his town or county. 
Of the union of Mr. Grimes with Miss 
Sarah Hovey, daughter of Alfred Hovey, six 
children were born, as follows: Frank H.; 
Grace M., who died in her fourth year; Scott 
F. ; John D., Jr., who married Miss Margue- 
rite Walker, daughter of Henry Walker (de- 
ceased), of Nunda; Mills S. ; and Blanche. 
Frank, the eldest child, married Jennie Van 
Buskirk, the daughter of John Van Buskirk, 
of Nunda; and they have three children — 
Grace, Grant, and Glenn. .Since the death 
of Mr. Grimes, his widow and daughter have 
resided in the village of Nunda; and the sons, 
with the exception of Mills, who is studying 
at Obcrlin, Ohio, are separately carrying on 
the work of the farm. In politics the sons, 
having been rocked in a stanch old Republi- 
can cradle, still cling to the principles of the 
party in which they were born and bred. 
Mills, the youngest, is an active worker in 
the Presbyterian church, of which he is a 
member. 



'OHN OLP, well-known throughout 
Mount Morris and vicinity as a thrifty 
and prosperous farmer, and a citizen of 
good repute, was born in Mansfield, 
Warren County, N.J., August 2, 1823. His 
father, Daniel Olp, was a native of the same 
town, born when it was included within the 
limits of Hunterdon County. The father of 
Daniel, John Olp by name, was born in New 
Jersey, of Holland parentage, and was bred to 
agricultural pursuits. He was a farmer in 
comfortable circumstances, and during _ the 
later years of his life removed to Livingston 
County, New York, and invested a part of his 
wealth in timbered land. He continued here 
a resident until his death. 

Daniel Olp came with his family to this 
county in 1831, performing the tedious jour- 
ney with teams, and settled on land which his 
father had previously purchased in the town of 
Mount Morris. The log cabin into which 



he moved was a primitive structure, made of 
hewed lumber, and covered with "shakes" 
riven from the forest trees. Through the 
chinks in the roof, the twinkling stars could 
be seen on pleasant evenings; but, in the 
dreary winter weather that followed, the cold 
snow often sifted through the same apertures, 
covering the bed with a fleecy mantle. By 
dint of energy, perseverance, and economy, he 
changed his land from its original state of 
pristine wildness to a condition of excellent 
culture, and made that his abiding-place until 
his departure from earthly scenes. May 4, 
1864, aged seventy years. During his resi- 
dence here he had watched the transformation 
of the country from a dense wilderness to a 
wealthy and well-developed town, filled with 
an enterprising and intelligent people. His 
wife, whose maiden name was Elizabeth Bow- 
man, was born in New Jersey, being a daugh- 
ter of Neighbor Bowman. While her husband 
was clearing and improving his land, she at- 
tended faithfully to the duties of the house- 
hold, which included carding, spinning, 
weaving, and the making of the homespun 
garments in which the family were clothed. 
The boots and shoes were made by the travel- 
ling cobbler in his annual visit. This good 
woman outlived her husband, and died in the 
village of Mount Morris, May 26, 1880, aged 
eighty years. She reared three daughters and 
one son, the following being their record: 
Sophia, now deceased, married William Bay- 
lor; Jane, the wife of Benjamin Creveling, re- 
sides in Michigan; Elizabeth married Thomas 
Alvord, of Mount Morris. 

John, the only son, was in his eighth year 
when he came with his parents to tliis local- 
ity; and the incidents connected with the re- 
moval, as well as the stirring scenes of the 
early pioneer life, are vividly impressed on 
his mind. He remembers when his father 
used to team wheat to Rochester and when his 
mother spent her leisure time in spinning and 
weaving. He early began to take lessons in 
practical agriculture, and, when he arrived at 
maturity, began life on his own account by 
working his father's land on shares. He soon 
after bought eighty-three acres of land in the 
southern part of Mount Morris, but having 



'54 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



carried it on for four years sold it, and bought 
one hundred and seventeen acres in the town 
of Nunda. In 1857 Mr. Olp disposed of that 
property, and removed to Kent County, Mich- 
igan, where he bought land in the town of 
Paris, and also a small tract in Ensle^' town- 
ship, Newaygo County. After a residence of 
one year in Paris, Mr. Olp sold his farm, and 
returned to Livingston County. Buying a 
farm near the old homestead of his parents, 
he set out an orchard, erected a good set of 
buildings, and otherwise improved the prop- 
erty, living there until 1866, when he sold at 
an advance, and purchased the Murray Hill 
estate, where he has since resided. This is a 
well-improved farm, adjoining the village of 
Mount Morris, and under his judicious man- 
agement ranks as one of the most valuable and 
attractive in this locality. Mr. Olp is also 
the possessor of fifty acres of valley land, 
which yields him a good income. 

Mr. Olp has been twice married. His first 
wife, to whom he was united November 26, 
1845, was Eliza Rockafellow, a native of New 
Jersey, and the daughter of Henry Rockafel- 
low. She departed this life August 28, 1859, 
leaving two sons and two daughters; namely, 
Deborah S., Lambert L., Charles P., and Eva 
Jane. Deborah S. married William L. Jos- 
lyn ; and both are now deceased, her death 
having occurred May 6, 1873, at the age of 
twenty-seven years. Lambert L. died June 
12, 1890, aged forty-two years, leaving a 
widow, Sarah A. Beggs Olp, and one son, 
James Lambert. He had been previously 
married, his first wife being Mary A. Mc- 
Neilly. Eva Jane was the wife of Isaac Mc- 
Neilly, both now deceased. She died July 
10, 1888, aged thirty-six years, leaving no 
children. Charles Pearl married Theresa 
Upham ; and they have three children — Ed- 
ward C, Frederick G., and Bessie. In 1865 
Mr. Olp married Elizabeth McKelvey, who 
was born in Ireland, of Scotch ancestors, 
being a daughter of John McKelvey. She 
passed to the higher life June 7, 1894, leav- 
ing one child — Albert C. Olp. Another 
son, Frank J., a promising youth of seventeen 
years, had preceded her, having been drowned 
July II, 1889. Mrs. Olp was a true Chris- 



tian, a sincere member of the Presbyterian 
church. In politics Mr. Olp is a decided 
Democrat. He is a man of sound, practical 
judgment, and his opinions are respected by 
the community of which he has been a valued 
resident for upward of a quarter of a century. 




HERBERT FOSTER, the owner of 
the largest dairy farm in the vicinity 
of Warsaw, his native town, was 
born May 7, 1846, on the farm 
upon which he is now living. His paternal 
grandfather, Luther, was born in South 
Hampton, Long Island, on the loth of Sep- 
tember, 1770, and married Miss Ruth Hedges, 
who was born in East Hampton, Long Island, 
March 39, 1767. 

Luther Foster, Sr., was a tanner and cur- 
rier in youth. He came to Wyoming County 
in June, 1823, and located upon the farm 
which is now owned by his grandson, C. Her- 
bert. The journey was made by teams, as all 
journeys were made in that generation before 
the era of the "iron horse"; and Mr. Foster 
wisely selected a place which had already 
been partially cleared, and upon which a log 
house and some other buildings had been 
built. This tract included one hundred and 
sixty acres, which by further investment was 
increased to an area of two hundred and ten 
acres. He was as successful as he was indus- 
trious and a worthy example to the descend- 
ants who came after him. He was a faithful 
Democrat and a conscientious member of the 
Presbyterian church at Warsaw. He died at 
his home on the i6th of November, 1846. 
His wife survived him fourteen years, dying 
on the 7th of March, i860. Of the thirteen 
children born to them, and one of whom was 
named for his father, ten grew up, and two 
are still living — Solon Foster, a resident of 
Salt Lake City, Utah, and Mrs. Ruth Cleve- 
land, of Warsaw. 

Luther Foster, Jr., was born in Danby, 
Tompkins County, February i, 1808. He 
was a lad of fifteen when his father came to 
Warsaw ; and, having attended the schools of 
his native count)', he began at once to learn 
by practical experience the labors of farm life, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



iSS 



and was esteemed one of the most progressive 
farmers in Warsaw. Buying out the interests 
of the other heirs, he became the sole owner 
of the homestead, which by his judicious man- 
agement became one of the finest estates in 
the locality, where he was content to spend 
the entire period of his useful life. He held 
among other offices that of Road Commis- 
sioner, was appointed Loan Commissioner 
under Governor Seymour, and was Captain of 
the State militia. His allegiance to the 
Democracy never wavered through all vicissi- 
tudes of that party; and both he and his wife 
were in religious faith and communion Pres- 
byterians, of which church he was a Ruling 
Elder for many years. He died in the month 
of February, 1874. Mrs. Calista Foster sur- 
vived him until February 7, 1895. 

Mr. Foster was twice married. His first 
wife, Miss Lemira Fyon, who was born Feb- 
ruary 6, 181 1, and died March 22, 1835, ^^''^s 
the mother of two children — Casson A., who 
died at the age of forty-seven, and Mrs. Roxie 
A. Van Slyke, a resident of Kalamazoo, 
Mich. His second wife, Calista Smith, a 
native of Marcellus, Onondaga County, born 
on December 16, 18 16, became the mother of 
nine children: Lemira, who died at seventeen 
years of age; Samuel Foster, now in Pigeon, 
Mich.; Josiah Hedges, who died aged twenty- 
five; Sidney, in Pigeon, Mich.; C. Herbert, 
of this memoir; Eliza Jane, living at home; 
Mary Dayton, at home also; Mrs. Fanny P. 
Everingham, a resident of Warsaw; Hettie 
S., at home. 

C. Herbert P'oster, fifth child of Luther 
and Calista (Smith) Foster, was sent in his 
boyhood to the Warsaw Union School and 
Academy, where he was a diligent and intel- 
ligent student, and prepared himself thor- 
oughly for the duties of a teacher, which 
vocation he followed for nearly twenty years, 
endearing himself to patrons and pupils in the 
locality where for so long a period he was a 
factor in the instruction and training of 
youth. He was for six years School Commis- 
sioner, a position for which he was especially 
fitted by his practical knowledge of educa- 
tional matters. The later years of his life 
have been devoted to dairy farming, and he 



has been successful in this enterprise. He 
owns twenty-five head of cows, which furnish 
milk and butter of wide reputation; and he 
has also a large flock of sheep. His farm 
covers two hundred and ninety acres of land, 
and is one of the largest and most fertile in 
this part of the town. Its principal crop is 
hay, which is usually abundant and of fine 
quality. In 1874 Mr. C. Herbert Foster was 
married to Miss Ella Case, a daughter of 
Joseph F. and Emily A. (Tuttle) Case, the 
father and mother being natives of Wyoming 
County. Mr. Case, who was a farmer by oc- 
cupation and a Democrat in political connec- 
tions, died at fifty-five years of age, in 1874. 
His widow, who still survives him, lives in 
Johnsonsburg. Of their four children — Ella 
(now Mrs. Foster), Mrs. Jennie C. Sharp, of 
Johnsonsburg, William 1{. Case, of Warsaw, 
and Dora — the first three are living. Dora, 
the youngest, died at seventeen years of age. 
Mr. and Mrs. Foster have no children. They 
are both in the communion of the Presbyte- 
rian church, of which he is the Ruling iilder 
in Warsaw. 



-OSEPH YOCHUM, a dealer in flour, 
feed, and general produce, is inti- 
mately associated with the mercantile 
interests of Dansville, N.Y., being 
ranked among the foremost business men of 
the place. A native of Livingston County, 
he was born in the town where he now lives, 
May 26, 1850, and is of German origin, his 
father, Joseph Yochum, Sr., having been born 
and reared in Bavaria, Germany. His pater- 
nal grandfather, Conrad Yochum, lived and 
died in Bavaria, where he followed the voca- 
tion of miller for a great many years. 

The father learned the baker's trade wlien 
a young man; and, having worked at it in his 
native country for a while, in 1847 he sailed 
for America. From New York City he came 
to Livingston County, and after his location 
in Dansville learned the cooper's trade. He 
shortly established a large business in that 
line, manufacturing firkins, butter tubs, and 
pork barrels, for which he found a ready sale 
in this and the surrounding towns. Mr. 



t56 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Yochum was enterprising as well as industri- 
ous, and in the years that followed made a 
good living for his family, rearing his chil- 
dren to habits of thrift, and giving them good 
educational advantages. He lived to the age 
of fifty years, and his widow is still an es- 
teemed resident of Dansville. Her maiden 
name was Elizabeth Miller. She was born in 
Prussia, being a daughter of Joseph Miller, 
who was a weaver in his native country, and 
was also a soldier for several years in the 
Prussian army, serving at one time in 
the Napoleonic wars. He emigrated to the 
United States with his family, and settling in 
Steuben County, New York, became a pioneer 
settler of Perkinsville, where he cleared and 
improved quite a tract of land, remaining 
there until his death, in 1889, at the vener- 
able age of ninety-four years. Eight children 
were born into the household of Joseph 
Yochum, Sr., and his wife Elizabeth, namely: 
Joseph, Jr. ; Jacob, deceased ; Conrad, de- 
ceased ; John M., who is in business in Dans- 
ville; George, deceased; Kate, deceased; 
Elizabeth, deceased; and Barbara, deceased. 
Joseph Yochum, son of the elder Joseph, 
was reared in Dansville, and educated in the 
German parochial school. After completing 
his studies, he learned the cooper's trade of 
his father, with whom he was associated in 
business for a while. He subsequently worked 
as a carriage-maker with Hass, Stout & 
Brown, of Dansville, remaining with them six 
years, and then following the business on his 
own account for a year. Mr. Yochum finally 
abandoned both of his trades in favor of a 
mercantile career, which he initiated by open- 
in<r a small store for- general merchandise. 
To the sale of goods he afterward added the 
business of "liming" and shipping eggs; 
and, finding this a profitable enterprise, he 
subsequently increased it by carrying on a 
general commission business in all kinds of 
farm produce, and handling large quantities 
of garden and grass seeds. His business has 
been steadily growing; and his large store is 
now stocked with a complete line of choice 
groceries, which, with his other commodities, 
he sells at a small profit to numerous cus- 
tomers. This extensive trade Mr. Yochum 



has built up without assistance, exercising 
sound judgment and excellent business tact in 
all of his transactions, and winning the re- 
spect and friendship of the community by his 
courtesy and fair dealings. He is the owner 
of a substantial residence property in the 
village. 

Mr. Yochum was united in wedlock in 1878 
to Hannah Klein, a daughter of Louis Klein. 
Her father was a native of Germany, where he 
received a good education, and was for some 
years engaged as a travelling salesman. He 
came to this country with his wife, and set- 
tling in Dansville here conducted a restaurant 
business, remaining a resident of the town 
until his death in 1881, aged sixty-five years. 
He and his wife reared three children, Mrs. 
Yochum being the eldest. One child died 
young; and one daughter, Charlotta, married 
George F. Cordes, of New York City. Mrs. 
Klein, the mother, died at the home of her 
daughter, Mrs. Cordes, in New York City on 
February 16, 1895. Mr. and Mrs. Yochum 
have two children — Lizzie Emelia and Louis 
George, both of whom are attending the 
union school. Mr. Yochum supports the 
Democratic ticket, and is a valued member of 
that party, capable of filling the various local 
offices, and is now serving his third year as 
Collector. He has also been village Trustee 
several terms, has been an inspector of elec- 
tions, and in 1892 was elected Justice of the 
Peace for a term of four years. He is con- 
tributing his full share toward the enter- 
prises having for their object the general 
welfare of the connnunity. 



/!> 



EORGE \V. ATWELL, a prominent 
\ '») I musician and farmer in Lima, Liv- 
^^^^ ingston County, N.Y., was born in 
this town, January 28, 1822, during the 
famous Monroe Presidential administration. 
His grandfather, Oliver Atwell, was born in 
Massachusetts on the first day of March, 1755, 
while the French and Indian War was disturb- 
ing the New England colonies, and a full cen- 
tury, it might be added, after the illustrious 
Cromwell, whom his name recalls, assumed 
the title of Lord Protector of England. 




GEORGE W. ATWELL. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



159 



Whether descended from one of the Iron- 
sides who fought at Marston Moor or not, and 
history is silent on this point, Oliver Atwell 
evidently grew to manhood in the old Bay 
State, and, there in due time taking to himself 
a wife, made his home in the Connecticut val- 
ley. His sun, George W. Atwell, Sr., was 
born in Hadley, Mass., on November 26, 
I7<S9, the year in which George Washington 
was inaugurated as President. The son, too, 
like his father, was reared to maturity on 
New F2ngland soil, but, unlike him, on settling 
in life sought a new home in the West, com- 
ing, not very long after the close of the War 
of 18 12, to Livingston County, taking up his 
abode in Lima. 

The senior George W. Atwell here became 
one of the principal merchants, and continued 
in business several years. In 1827, however, 
he gave up mercantile pursuits, bought a farm 
of two hundred and sixty-seven acres, and 
built thereon a fine house, in which he spent 
the rest of his peaceful days. 

On July 22, 18 1 8, he married Martha How- 
ard, who was born December 15, 1788, and 
who became the mother of two children — 
Silas C. (deceased) and George W., Jr. 
Their father died May 13, 1852, at the age of 
sixty-three. The mother died November 28, 
1863. George W. Atwell, the subject of 
this present biographical sketch, son of the 
first-named George, was educated at Lima 
Seminary and Canandaigua Academy. He 
had unusual talent for music, which he assid- 
uously cultivated: and for many years he was 
a conspicuous member of the Atwell Lima 
Brass Band, one of the finest musical organi- 
zations in Western New York. His fame as 
a bugle player was recognized throughout the 
State. He still occupies the dwelling built at 
Lima by his father. On December 30, 1847, 
Mr. Atwell married Mary Ann Gillin, daugh- 
ter of James Gillin, of New Jersey. She bore 
him two sons, George W. and Silas J. At- 
well, and died in 1876. George W. Atwell, 
the third of this name, is a lawyer of Lima 
village. He married Jane Martin, daughter 
of Amasa Martin; but they have no heirs. 
The other son, Silas J. Atwell, is still unmar- 
ried, and lives at home. Mr. Atwell married 



for his second wife on January 17, 1878, Mary 
H. Doolittle. He is a respected member of 
the Baptist church in Lima. His wife, how- 
ever, is a Presbyterian. Mr. Atwell has 
served the town of Lima as Assessor twelve 
years, and in politics has been a Republican 
since the formation of the party; but his first 
Presidential vote was cast for Henry Clay, the 
Whig candidate in 1S44. 

The reader's attention will be attracted by 
the accompanying portrait of Mr. Atwell, 
which his friends would have no difficulty in 
identifying, even without his name. 

Of the art of which he is so fond it has 
been well said: "Music touches every key of 
memory and stirs all the hidden springs of 
sorrow and of joy. We love it for what it 
makes us forget and for what it makes us re- 
member." 




ILLIAM W. MOODY, a prosperous 
dealer in lumber and coal in the 
village of Warsaw, N.Y., was born 
in Le Roy, Genesee County, in 1850. His 
father, William Moody, was born in Ireland 
about the year 181 2, and came to America 
with a wife and two children in 1849. He 
was a carpenter by trade; and, coming to a 
strange country without capital or friends, he 
must have found life something of a struggle. 
They spent the remainder of their lives in 
Le Roy, whither they had come soon after land- 
ing in New York, and reared a family of six 
children — Henry; Richard; William W., of 
whom this sketch is written; George; Mary; 
and Martha. All of this family are still liv- 
ing with the exception of Richard, who was a 
soldier in the One Hundredth New York Reg- 
iment during the Civil War, and was capt- 
ured, and died in prison. Mrs. Moody died 
in 1889 in Le Roy, aged seventy years. Both 
she and her husband were in the commimion 
of the Episcopal church. 

William W. Moody was a student in the 
district school during his boyhood, and at 
seventeen years of age secured a position as 
salesman and book-keeper in the store of 
N. M. Rogers, with whom he remained until 
1870, when he was sent here to conduct the 



i6o 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



branch business of his employer, which had 
been established in Warsaw. In 1872 Mr. 
Moody and William Sheldon succeeded to the 
business, which they jointly conducted until 
1876, when Mr. Moody assumed the entire con- 
trol. He enlarged it by the addition of a 
trade in coal, and afterward, when the salt 
business became remunerative, added a lumber 
traffic. 

The last two branches of business monopo- 
lize most of his time at present, and he is 
usually engaged at his coal sheds at the rail- 
road or in the office in the village. 

On the 14th of June, 1877, he was married 
to Elizabeth M. Garretsee, a daughter of 
Henry and Elizabeth (Arr) Garretsee, and a 
native of Warsaw. They have two children 
— Jennie, a little maiden of thirteen years, 
and William Garretsee, both notably loright 
children. One infant daughter, Bessie, whose 
death has given them a stronger claim upon 
heaven than was ever felt before, lies buried 
in the village churchyard. 

Mr. and Mrs. Moody are united by the 
bands of a common religious faith, both being 
members of the Congregational church. Mr. 
Moody, who has served as Town Clerk and 
village Clerk, and is now village Trustee, 
has certainly been successful in his business 
affairs. Few men are competent to establish 
themselves financially without the aid of a 
small capital as a basis of action; but this is 
what his energy and perseverance have accom- 
plished, and commendation is his just due. 




\CA;/ILI,1AM CANNING, farmer and 
mason, one of the loyal and enter- 
prising residents of the town of 
Gainesville, Wyoming County, N.Y., was 
born on the historic soil of Scotland, October 
31, 1832. He was the son of William Can- 
ning, Sr., also a Scotchman, and grandson of 
James Canning, whose life was also passed 
among Scottish lakes and hills, and who, 
being an industrious machinist, was able to 
maintain his large family of children till they 
came to maturity. His son William, the 
third child in the order of age, was brought 
up to the trade of millwright, and was a well- 



known master mechanic, an excellent work- 
man. He died at the advanced age of 
eighty-four. His wife, Agnes, mother of 
William of this narrative, was born and 
brought up in Scotland. She was a daughter 
of William Halliday; and she became the 
mother of nine children, four of whom are 
still living — John; Elizabeth, married to 
Mr. McNeil, a ship's carpenter; William; 
and James. Both parents were devoted Pres- 
byterians. Mrs. Canning died in Scotland at 
the age of seventy. 

William Canning, the chief character of 
this sketch, was twenty-four years old when 
he left his family and the acquaintances of his 
early years, and with his young wife set sail 
for America. The journey by water being 
safely passed, he went out to the western part 
of New York State, and there he settled in 
the little town of Great Valley, in Cattaraugus 
County; and for a time, till he could make 
acquaintance with the new environment, he 
gave his attention to farm work. Later on he 
went to Olean, a town in the same county, 
and began work at the trade of mason, which 
he had learned in Scotland ; and there he re- 
mained until the time of the Civil War, when 
he enlisted as private in Company G, One 
Hundred and Fifty-fourth New York Volun- 
teers. He served three years, and during his 
period of service he was promoted to be Sec- 
ond Sergeant. He was under the leadership 
at different times of nearly all the prominent 
generals — McClellan, Burnside, Hooker, 
Meade, and, after the battle of Gettysburg, 
General Sherman. He passed through all the 
important battles and skirmishes ; and at Pine 
Knob, Mo., he took the part of First Lieuten- 
ant, and led two companies into the field. 
Although exposed to great dangers, he was 
never seriously injured. He received his dis- 
charge at the close of the war, being recog- 
nized officially as Second Sergeant, but now 
holds the commission of Second Lieutenant. 
The country having been restored to peace, 
Mr. Canning sought his old home at Olean, 
where he remained for a time, and then lived 
four years in Allegany County. He moved 
next on to a farm known as the Smith farm, 
located in Gainesville on the line between 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



i6i 



this town and Pike. In 1886, as a change 
seemed desirable, he moved into the village, 
where he had built a small house. To this 
dwelling he has made various additions from 
time to time, till now he has a fine large 
house in a pleasant locality, convenient for 
the prosecution of the mason's work which he 
has again resumed. 

On the 24th of July, 1855, William Can- 
ning was united in marriage to Miss Jane 
Blackstock. Her father was James Blackstock, 
of Scotland, who was at one time a store- 
keeper, and later turned his attention to farm- 
ing. Both he and his wife were members of 
the Presbyterian church, and spent their lives 
in their native country, her father living to 
the age of seventy-two years and her mother to 
be seventy-six years of age. Mr. Canning's 
wife was their youngest child. Two others of 
their five children remain, and are residing in 
Scotland at the present time; namely, Will- 
iam Blackstock and Mary, wife of John Beatty. 
Mr. and Mrs. Canning have had five children 
to give them joy in their household. A brief 
mention of them is as follows: Mary E. is 
married to Venner W. Dowell, a farmer in 
the town of Hume, whose two children are 
named Edith and Miles W. ; William E., a 
farmer, is established in Colorado, and is 
married to Nora Lucas, daughter of a well- 
known farmer of Silver Springs, and they are 
the parents of three children — Lucas, 
Claude, and Gladys; Maggie has been an 
invalid for fourteen years; Agnes B. is the 
wife of Charles Higgings, a farmer of Denver, 
Col. (they have lost their only child, Neta); 
and Edith G. Canning has filled the important 
post of teacher for several terms. 

Mr. Canning is a member of the Gainesville 
Post of the Grand Army of the Republic, in 
which he has held the office of Commander 
two years, besides other minor offices con- 
nected with the organization. He is con- 
nected with Castile Post, No. 488, and is 
likewise a member of the Ancient Order 
of United Workmen, where he has been 
Master Workman, and has taken from the 
start a very prominent position. In politics 
Mr. Canning is a Republican, and has made 
clear, by loyalty to his adopted country in the 



past, that he is not afraid to show his colors 
when called on to maintain the principles of 
his party. Mr. Canning and his wife attend 
the Congregational church in Gainesville. 



ISAAC BURRELL KNAPP, an enter- 
prising farmer in Ossian, Livingston 
County, N.Y., was born on a farm ad- 
joining the one where he now resides on 
January 6, 1861, a few weeks before the out- 
break of the Civil War.' His grandfather, 
Joel I. Knapp, and his father, Harvey W. 
Knapp, were born in New England, but came 
to Ossian among the first settlers in 18 14, 
while the last war with England was in prog- 
ress. At that time Ossian was only a forest. 
They purchased a tract of land, and built a 
log house, which is still standing, though 
later its owner erected larger frame buildings. 
He had a family of nine or ten children, and 
continued to live in Ossian until his death. 

Harvey W. Knapp was reared a farmer, and 
followed agricultural pursuits until he was 
twenty-one, when he began working by the 
month for his wife's father, Mr. Burrell. 
After a time he bought a farm, clearing a 
large part of it, and was also in the lumber 
trade. He died March 8, 1895, nearly two 
years after he had passed his eightieth birth- 
day, March 13, 1893. His wife, mother of 
our subject, was Elizabeth Burrell, one of the 
eight children of Isaac Burrell, an early set- 
tler, a farmer and lumberman, who also ran a 
saw-mill. Mr. and Mrs. Harvey W. Knapp 
reared three children — Mary Pllizabeth Knapp, 
Margaret J. Knapp, and Isaac B. Knapp, the 
subject of the present sketch. Their mother 
is living, having passed the sixty-ninth anni- 
versary of her birth, August 13, 1894. Both 
of her parents attended the Presbyterian 
church. 

Isaac B. Knapp spent his early years in at- 
tending the district school ; and, remaining 
on the old homestead as he approached man- 
hood, he worked with his father in carrying 
on both that and an adjoining farm. He was 
married February i, 1 881, to Inez M. Hess, 
daughter of Alfred Hess, a worthy represent- 
ative of an old family. Inez was born in 



l62 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Wayland, and was t)nc ot five children; but 
her parents were born in Steuben County. 
Her grandfather was a merchant and promi- 
nent man in Perkinsville and later a resident 
of Dansville, where he died. Isaac B. and 
Inez Knapp have also a family of five — Har- 
vey, Eva, Nora, Margaret, and D wight. 

Mr. Knapp has served four years as Justice 
of the Peace. He has also held the office of 
inspector of elections, and in the spring of 
1894 was elected on the Republican ticket as 
Supervisor for two years. Like his father, he 
is a stanch supi^orter of the Republican party. 
He is characterized as an active, enterprising 
business man, as well as a man of marked 
social adaptation. The family attend the 
Presbyterian church. 




ENJAMIN F. FARGO, a retired 
business man of Warsaw, N.Y., now 
engaged as a collector, was born one 
mile and a half north of the village, 
on June 10, 1817. His paternal grandfather, 
Nehemiah Fargo, was born in Connecticut, 
January 10, 1764, and came to Wyoming 
County in 1804, having lived in Sandisfield 
and Great Barrington, Mass., and at Green 
River and in Genesee, N.Y. His wife, Mary 
Chapman, was the mother of five sons and 
three daughters, of whom a little boy of four 
was drowned and a little girl died at three 
years of age. The others all grew to matur- 
ity, and became heads of families, Silas, the 
eldest, living to be ninety-four. Mrs. Fargo, 
who was born on Christmas Day, 1764, died 
December 12, 1839. Mr. Fargo died on Oc- 
tober 13, 1828. 

His son David, the father of Benjamin F., 
was a native of Montville, Conn., in which 
town he was born October 31, 1786. He was 
married twice. His first wife, Miss Bethia 
Day, to whom he was married on September 
9, 1810, lived only four years thereafter. 
She was a daughter of Elkanah Day, who 
came to Warsaw from Attleboro, Vt., in 
1806, and bore her husband two children, a 
son who died at three years of age and a 
daughter, Polly, who became the wife of Mr. 
Chauncey Kimball, and died at Baraboo, 



Wis., in 1890. The second wife, Mrs. David 
Fargo, was Phoebe Mason. Mr. Fargo was a 
farmer at what was then known as the Four 
Corners, in the town of Warsaw. Here most 
of his life was spent, and here were born his 
ten children, of whom six sons and two 
daughters reached maturity. They were : 
David Mason Fargo, who died in Kansas in 
1890, leaving a family; Benjamin 1'., whose 
name heads this memoir; Darius C, a resi- 
dent of Santa Cruz, Cal., who is noted for his 
natural mechanical talent; Myron L., a 
farmer of Attica; Francis F., who died in 
Buffalo in 1890, aged sixty-eight; Adeline, 
the widow of Alonzo Choate, of Connecticut; 
Harrison, who served three years in the late 
Civil War, and died in Olean, N.Y., at fifty- 
six years of age; and Harriet, the widow of 
Charles L. Seaver, residing in Connecticut. 
Harrison Fargo had two children by his sec- 
ond wife. Miss Laura Whalan. One daugh- 
ter, Florence, is a book-keeper in Glover's 
dry-goods store; the other, Florine, in Wells- 
ville, N.Y., has remarkable musical talent. 
Mrs. Phoebe Fargo died January 21, 1850, 
aged fifty-eight. Her husband survived her 
five years, dying May 16, 1855, at sixty-nine 
years of age. Mr. Fargo was noted for his 
strong religious faith, his pious and conscien- 
tious life, and his remarkable knowledge of 
the Scriptures. He was many years an offi- 
cial in the Baptist church of his town. He 
was not lacking in practical capacity, and left 
an estate of fifteen thousand dollars to be 
divided among his heirs. 

Benjamin V. Fargo left the district school 
at eighteen, and studied for two terms at the 
Wyoming Academy, after which he learned 
the trade of wool-carding and cloth-dressing 
under his brother-in-law, Mr. Chauncey Kim- 
ball. In 1839 he went to Springville, lu'ie 
County, where he was employed in the cloth 
factory owned by E. W. Cook, in which firm 
he became a partner two years later. He 
came to Warsaw from Springville in 1849, 
and engaged in mercantile business with his 
brother, Francis F. Fargo, under the firm 
name of F. F. Fargo & Co., which in 1851 
was changed to B. F. Fargo & Co., Francis 
F. Fargo leaving the business, and his father, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



163 



David, and his uncle, Allen Fargo, entering 
the firm. When the father died, in 1855, 
Benjamin F. Fargo became sole owner of the 
business, and added thereto trade in country 
produce, which he bought in the neighborhood 
and shipped to New York City. In 1870 he 
built the brick block at No. 21 Main Street, 
which has been occupied by the printing- 
offices of the Democratic Organ of Warsaw. 
After using part of this building for a year, 
Mr. Fargo leased it for a term of five years to 
James E. Bishop at five hundred dollars per 
)ear, retaining the upper floor for offices. In 
1S76 he again used this building as a grocery 
store, which he conducted for ten years, 
finally giving it up to the management of his 
son, Charles H., who had been his salesman 
and book-keeper. Mr. Fargo now devotes him- 
self to collecting, and besides holding the office 
of School Collector is very successful in urging 
claims for the merchants of the vicinity. 

He was married in Springville, September 
II, 1841, to Miss Maria L. Bloomfield, the 
only daughter of her parents, Jervis and 
Salena (Hatch) Bloomfield. Her father was 
a magistrate of Springville, and belongs to an 
old and long-established family there. One 
of her brothers, Hiram, a farmer, died at 
sixty-eight years of age. The other two are 
David C, of Westfiekl, and Homer, who lives 
in California. Mr. Fargo has lost one daugh- 
ter, May S., who died at fifteen years of age, 
in May, 1877. His other children are: 
Charles H., who is married, and has a little 
daughter of six years, called Mabel, and lives 
in Warsaw, and Helen M. Fargo, also a resi- 
dent of Warsaw. Mrs. Maria L. Fargo died 
in 1 87 5, at the age of fifty years j and Mr. 
Fargo was again married on November 11, 
1879, to Mrs. Calista Blowers, daughter of 
John and Betsy (Webster) Truesdell. Mrs. 
Fargo has lost two children of her former mar- 
riage — a son, Galusha W. Blowers, a volun- 
teer in the Commissary Department of the 
Nineteenth New York Cavalry, under Captain 
Stimson, who served but a few months, and 
came home to die of consumption, August 2, 
1862, at the early age of twenty-two years; 
and Pauline Blowers, who died November 27, 
1865, aged twenty -four. 



Mr. and Mrs. Fargo were formerly members 
of the Baptist church, but have since joined 
the Congregationalist, in which church the 
former is now a Deacon. Mr. Fargo is a 
stanch Republican, and has filled many offices 
in Warsaw, among which inspector of elec- 
tions, town Collector, and Constable' may be 
noted. For twelve years he was Secretary 
and Treasurer of the Water and Gas Works, 
in which he owned stock. Mr. Benjamin F. 
P'argo has been one of the successful citizens 
of a town remarkable for having been the 
birthplace of some of New York's best types 
of Northern character. 



JB 



R. GEORGE W. SMITH, some of 
whose wonderful cures as a magnetic 
^'t) 3 healer have been published in the 
columns of the Boston Coiinrscdtioti- 
aiist and authenticated by Dr. Foster of that 
city, was born on May 16, 18 15. Dr. Smith's 
father, Colonel George W. Smith, was born 
in Dorset, Vt., March 3, 1779, while his 
parents were en route from Scituate, R.I., to 
Clarendon, Rutland County, Vt. Joseph 
Smith, the progenitor of this family, came 
from Northumberland, England, to North 
Carolina. His descendants moved to Rhode 
Island; and of these John Smith, of .Scituate, 
was the great-grandfather of George W. 
Smith, whose ancestral lineage and personal 
history is recorded in the i^resent sketch. 

John Smith married a Miss Hopkins, a near 
relative of Stephen Hopkins, signer of the 
Declaration of Independence, and connected 
with some of the most prominent families of 
Rhode Island. 

Their six sons — Richard, 'Joseph, Jona- 
than, Oziel, Thomas, and Hope Smith — all 
served in the Revolutionary army, either as 
commissioned officers or common soldiers. 
The fourth son, Oziel, was the grandfather of 
the original of this memoir. He married 
Margaret Walton, who died at the age of 
thirty-six years in Clarendon, Vt., on June 
10, 1793. Some of Margaret's relatives held 
office under the royal government at the time 
of the breaking out of the Revolution, and 
adhered to its cause. Most of them were, 



164 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



however, Quakers, who sided with the 
colonies. 

Colonel George W. Smith's early opportu- 
nities for education were limited, owing to 
the scant resources of a sparsely settled coun- 
try. While working at the carpenter's and 
joiner's trade, he used to study in the even- 
ing by the light of a fire, which he replen- 
ished with one hand from a pile of shavings 
while he held the book in the other. In this 
way he fitted himself to teach in the common 
schools. He afterward studied surveying, 
which in connection with farming he made 
the principal business of his life in later 
years. In the winter of 1798 he came from 
Vermont to Lima, then Charlestown, N.Y., 
in the employment of John Roberts, driving 
a team of two yoke of oxen and a horse laden 
with agricultural implements. The journey 
was completed in twenty-two days, and he 
arrived at his destination in February. He 
remained in Lima until spring, then moved to 
Livonia, and from thence to Pittstown, where 
he worked with John Wolcott at the carpen- 
ter's trade. In 181 3 he worked on the court- 
house at Batavia, and in the autumn erected a 
saw-mill for the Holland Land Company at 
Oak Orchards Falls, now Medina, N.Y. 

He married Miss Sally Woodruff in Janu- 
ary, 1807. She was a daughter of Nathan 
Woodruff, who came from Litchfield, Conn. ; 
and it is handed down in the family history 
that she made the journey on horseback, 
carrying a weaver's reed in her lap to use in 
the new country. Mrs. Smith was a woman 
of beauty of mind as well as of person. She 
was of an unusually strong and robust consti- 
tution until she was bitten by a rattlesnake, 
when she was a girl of nineteen. The poison 
rankled in her system ever after, filling her 
remaining years with suffering, which only 
ended with her death. She died on the Colo- 
nel Smith homestead in Livonia, February 
17' 1835, aged fifty-one years. 

After holding the office of Ensign and Cap- 
tain of a regiment commanded by Lieutenant 
Colonel William Wadsworth, George W. 
Smith, the elder, was commissioned First 
Major of the regiment under Lieutenant Colo- 
nel Joseph W. Lawrence in 181 1. In 18 16 



he was promoted and commissioned Lieuten- 
ant Colonel of the Ninety-fourth Regiment of 
Infantry by Governor Tompkins, and in 181 7 
was commissioned a Colonel of the same regi- 
ment by Governor Clinton. At the attack of 
Queenstown he unfurled the American colors, 
which he held while the forces passed safely 
over under the constant fire of the British ar- 
tillery. Colonel Smith held the office of 
Justice of the Peace for eight years, was the 
first representative of Livonia, which name he 
selected for that town, and sat in the legislat- 
ure of 1822, where he wore a suit of clothes 
made from wool grown from his own sheeps' 
backs and spun by his wife. In 1800 he cast 
his first vote for Thomas Jefferson, and voted 
at every succeeding Presidential election until 
that of 1873, about five weeks before his 
death. He died in Rochester, whither he had 
moved from Livonia, on December 9, 1873, 
aged ninety-four years nine months and six 
days. His seven sons were: Lewis Edwin, 
born November 25, 1812; George Wolcott, 
born May 16, 1815; Daniels Oziel, born Feb- 
ruary 20, 1 8 19, and four others who died 
young. 

Lewis E. attended the Cambridge Univer- 
sity Law School under Judge Story and Simon 
Greenleaf, and practised his profession in 
Livonia, where he held some offices, includ- 
ing that of Supervisor, representative of the 
County of Livingston in the legislature in 
1868 and 1869, and moved with his family to 
Rochester in 1871, where he now lives. 

Daniels Oziel became totally blind at thir- 
teen years of age, and was sent to the School 
for the Blind in New York, where he devoted 
his time to the study of music. He died in 
1854, at thirty-five years of age. 

George Wolcott Smith, after studying in 
the district schools of Livonia and the Canan- 
daigua and Geneseo Academies, was graduated 
from Hamilton College. He then took a 
course of medicine in a medical college in 
New York City, in which place he began to 
practise his profession. His singular power 
as a magnetic healer has caused much interest 
among all classes, rendering his name famous 
far and near. People afflicted by blindness, 
deafness, and lameness flocked to him for 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



i6s 



treatment; and some of his cures indeed seem 
miraculous. Surely of all gifts the gift of 
alleviating the sufferings of humanity must 
bring more real happiness to its possessor 
than any other. For fourteen years he con- 
tinued the exercise of his magnetic gift, and 
his patients were among the most prominent 
in the metropolis. In 1882 he came to Li- 
vonia, where he has remained. 

Dr. George W. Smith married Miss Buck, 
a daughter of Seymour Buck. Mrs. Smith's 
father was a grand-nephew of Roger Sherman 
of historic fame. They have no children. 
Dr. Smith was one of the founders of the Re- 
publican party in 1854, and he has always 
been faithful to its tenets. 



OHN D. WHEELER, a well-known 
assessor in the town of Leicester, Liv- 
ingston County, N.Y., was born in 
Shaftsbury, Vt., March ig, 1827, 
when John Ouincy Adams was President. 
Shadrach jyh eeler, his father, was a farmer, 
and continued to live in Vermont until 1833, 
the year of Clay's Compromise Act, when, 
with wife and seven children, he came to Liv- 
ingston County, making the entire journey 
with teams. He bought a hundred and twenty 
acres of land in the town of Leicester, a hun- 
dred acres of it being already cleared, and 
containing a set of log buildings, such as were 
in vogue at that time. Mr. Wheeler devoted 
his time to farming interests, and died at the 
age of seventy-six. His wife, a native of 
Bennington, Vt., was a daughter of Samuel 
Millington, a pioneer of that place. She 
reared a family of eight children, and died at 
the advanced age of eighty-two. Mr. Mil- 
lington was born in Rhode Island. He mar- 
ried Sarah Reynolds, who became the mother 
of twelve children. The paternal grandpar- 
ents of our subject were fine-grained New 
England people, who always resided there. 
The grandfather was a soldier of the Revo- 
lution. 

To return now to John D. Wheeler, who 
was but six years of age when he came to 
Leicester with his parents, but remembers 
many incidents of the journey and of his early 



life. He was reared to agricultural pursuits, 
and was engaged in farming in this town until 
the Civil War was in progress, when in 1861 
he started for California via Panama. He 
followed mining for two years, and then re- 
turned to the same farm which he still owns 
and occupies. It is a fine, well-improved 
farm of two hundred acres, located near the 
village of Moscow. 

Mr. Wheeler was married at the age of 
thirty in 1857 to Martha, daughter of James 
Budrow. She was a native of Leicester; but 
her father was born in Schenectady, N.Y., 
the home of her paternal grandparents. His 
father was of French descent on the paternal 
side, the original spelling of the name being 
Budreau, while his mother was a German. 
James Budrow was a fine wood carver, but did 
not follow this pursuit. He came to Leices- 
ter a young man, married here, bought a tract 
of land, and erected the log house in which 
Mrs. Wheeler was born. He and his wife, 
Louisa Dryer, reared thirteen children. He 
devoted his time to clearing land and tilling 
the soil, continuing to reside on the same 
farm until his death, at sixty-one years of 
age, his widow surviving him to the age of 
eighty-three. 

Mrs. Wheeler's mother was born in the 
town of Randolph, Vt., being a daughter of 
Jesse Dryer, a native of the same place. 
His earliest known ancestor was William 
Dryer, who went from Germany to England. 
John Dryer, son of William, at the age of 
twenty was pressed on board a British war- 
ship, and brought to America. He deserted 
on arriving here, and settled in Boston, 
Mass., where he continued to follow his trade 
as a weaver. He became prosperous, and 
lived to the age of one hundred years, death 
resulting then from an injury received by 
being thrown from a horse. His son, also 
named John, married Mary Reed; and they 
were the parents of Jesse Dryer, who removed 
from Vermont to New York State in 1814, 
accompanied by his wife and eight children, 
making the journey with teams. He settled 
in Victor, Ontario County, where he remained 
two years, when he removed to Leicester. 
Thence he went to Genesee County, and from 



1 66 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



there to Springfield, 111., where he died at the 
age of ninety-six years. His wife, whose 
name was Famelia Neff, was a descendant of 
the Connecticut family of Wolcotts. She 
spent the last of her life in Leicester. Mr. 
Wheeler is a Republican. He has three chil- 
dren — Grace, Martha, and John. Grace mar- 
ried John Millan, and has three children — 
Stanley, Bessie, and Eleanor. Martha mar- 
ried Otto Redans. 

"Indolence is stagnation. Employment is 
life." .So wrote the Latin author, Seneca; 
and the aphorism is well exemplified in the 
busy careers set forth in this volume. 




ENJAMIN COY was born in Ver- 
mont on August 31, 1806. His 
father, Reuben Coy, was a man of 
more than usual strength of charac- 
ter and determination of purpose. He was a 
carpenter and joiner by trade, and came to 
Livonia in 18 11 on foot. Oq his return for 
his family he stopped at Cazenovia, where he 
worked at his trade for his brother-in-law, 
while the latter went to Vermont and brought 
the family there. They then came with him 
in a lumber wagon to Livonia. Here in the 
northern part of the town he lived for a time 
in the house of Robert Adams, and secured 
whatever work he could. In 1822 he went to 
Ogden, where he bought a farm, which he 
cultivated for five years. His final change of 
residence was to the town of Ann Arbor, 
Mich., where he together with his sons set- 
tled upon a farm, and where he died. 

His wife was Miss Sarah Chambers; and to 
them five sons and four daughters were born 
in the following order: Ladocia, Delilah, 
Almira, Benjamin, Royal B., Horace, Loren, 
Chandler, and Emily. 

Mr. Benjamin Coy, the sole surviving mem- 
ber of the family, and the original of this 
biographical sketch, was educated in Livonia, 
in which place he remained when his father 
went West. For seven years and a half he 
applied himself diligently to acquiring the 
trades of tanner, currier, and shoemaker under 
Mr. George Pratt, with whom he afterward 
engaged in business for three years, and 



whose daughter Charlotte became his wife in 
1829. He sold out to his father-in-law, and 
bought a farm, which he has continued to 
manage ever since. Mrs. Charlotte Pratt Coy 
died October i, 1832, leaving a daughter, 
Charlotte M., who still lives with her father; 
and in the course of time Mr. Coy was mar- 
ried again to Miss Caroline Reed, a daughter 
of Wheeler and Olive (Risden) Reed. Four 
sons and one daughter were born of this union 
— Samuel B., who died during the January of 
1894; Edwin R.: Justus F. ; Reuben W. ; 
and Caroline, wlio died when eighteen days 
old. 

Samuel left six children in Michigan, as 
follows: Edwin L., Mary E., Louis B., Flora 
D., Myron J., and Theodore S. His wife, 
the mother of these children, was formerly 
Miss Mary J. Gibbs, of Livonia. Edwin 
married Miss Frances E. Fowler, and lives on 
the homestead, of which he has entire control. 
Their children are: Adella F., Caroline E., 
Benjamin L., Charlotte H., Blanche M., 
Reuben W., Emily R. Justus F. married 
Miss Delia Clark, of Massachusetts, and is 
now living in Independence, la. ; he iias no 
child. Reuben, whose wife's maiden name 
was Helen Thayer, has four children — 
Charles H., Grace, Ernest ()., and Helen; 
he lives in Alden, Mich. 

Mr. Coy has held several oflSces in his town 
and county, among others that of inspector of 
elections and School Trustee. Both he and 
his wife are members of the First Presbyte- 
rian church, of which he has 
for a period of thirty years, 
dential vote was cast for J. 0. 
has been a firm supporter of the principles of 
Republicanism since the party known as Re- 
publican first promulgated its principles. 



been a Deacon 
His first Presi- 
Adams, and he 



-f^TENRY L. SHARP, farmer, a highly 

l-~l respected citizen of Mount Morris, 

\\s I Livingston County, N.Y., where 

^*"^ he has been a resident for many 

years, was born in Springport, Cayuga 

County, August 6, 1825. His grandfather, 

Andrew Sharp, who was a native of Holland, 

came to America with a brother, Henry, when 




CHESTER A. COLE. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



i6g 



a young man, and took up his abode in Kin- 
derhook, Columbia County, N.Y. He mar- 
ried a Miss Bojardus, and for some time they 
made their home in that county; but at length 
they removed to Cayuga County. After many 
years of useful toil they were gathered to 
their rest, Grandfather Sharp being ninety-two 
years of age at the time of his death. 

His son Ephraim, the father of the subject 
of this sketch, was born in Kinderhook, and 
there growing to manhood learned the tailor's 
trade. He resided in Springport, Cayuga 
County, for a number of years, and thence in 
1826 removed to Livingston County, arriving 
on the Ridge about the 1st of May, the jour- 
ney being made in teams. He purchased 
ninety-nine acres of land, sixty of which were 
cleared, the rest being covered with timber, 
and here lived in a log cabin for a few years, 
after which he built a frame house. In those 
days no roads or railroads shortened the dis- 
tances between towns; and Mount Morris was 
then a small village, surrounded by woods, 
where deer and other game roamed at will. 
The wheat was carried to Rochester to be 
ground; and all the cooking was done at the 
great fireplace, a necessary feature of the old 
log cabin. Ephraim Sharp served bravely in 
the War of 1S12. He worked at his trade 
during the fall and winter, but devoted his 
time to farming the rest of the year, and died 
at the advanced age of ninety-three years. 
His wife, Anna Johnson, of Columbia, daugh- 
ter of Abram Johnson, died at the age of 
seventy-eight years. They reared the follow- 
ing children: Andrew J., Mary ]., Helen, 
Almira, Elvira, Henry L., Ephraim, and D. 
Sharp. 

Henry L., one of the younger sons of 
Ephraim and Anna (Johnson) Sharp, was but 
an infant when his parents removed to Mount 
Morris, and having continued to reside here 
since that time remembers no other home. 
Having no inclination for a sedentary employ- 
ment, he was reared to farm life, and has 
followed that healthful, useful, and honorable 
occupation with untiring energy and with 
gratifying success from his youth. In 1855 
he married Miss Mary Emmons, who was born 
in Nunda, daughter of John and Zilpha (Met- 



ier) Emmons, of New Jersey. Mr. and Mrs. 
Sharp have two children — Eva A., wife of 
David McHerron, and Charles N. In politics 
Mr. Sharp is a supporter of the Democratic 
party. 




HESTER A. COLE, who died at his 
home in Warsaw, N.Y., December 
3, 1894, having almost reached 
seventy-seven years of age, was 
born in Gorham, Ontario County. His 
father, Southwert Cole, one of the early set- 
tlers of Ontario County, married Miss Mary 
Adams, who belonged to the well-known fam- 
ily of which President Adams was a member. 
Of their thirteen children six sons and six 
daughters grew to maturity. Three of the 
former and two of the latter are still living, 
though in widely separate regions of the coun- 
try. Mr. Southwert Cole died in Gainesville 
in 1850, at sixty-eight years of age. His 
widow survived him fifteen years, living to 
the age of seventy-six years. 

Chester A. Cole married Miss Lucia 
Amelia Fargo, a daughter of Allen and Polly 
(Merchant) Fargo. She was born in Warsaw 
in the old house on the corner of Main and 
Livingston Streets, the oldest portion of 
which was built by her father. Mr. Fargo 
was a native of Connecticut, born in 1802, 
and was an infant of two years of age when 
his parents came to Warsaw. His parents, 
Nehemiah and Mary (Chapman) Fargo, were 
among the first emigrants, taking up a tract of 
land which extended for a mile along the val- 
ley, and upon which a large proportion of the 
present village stands. Nehemiah Fargo set 
out the first orchard that was ever planted in 
the wilderness of Wyoming County, and 
the abundant crop of delicious plums and 
apples that are to-day enjoyed by his de- 
scendants bears testimony to his thrift and 
foresight. He died in 1829, at the age of 
sixty-four years. His widow outlived him 
ten years, dying in 1839. They reared six 
children, all of whom are now dead. Six 
generations of the family lie at rest in the 
village cemetery. 

Lucia was the only daughter of her parents 



170 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



who grew up. Two sisters died in early child- 
hood. An older brother, Marvin, died in 
1878, at fifty-two years of age; and Wheeler, 
another brother, died in 1863, aged thirty. 
Lucia A. Fargo completed her education 
under the care of Miss Sill of the village 
seminary, and under her mother's tutelage at 
home afterward became versed in those 
equally essential arts of housewifery, which 
are so necessary to the woman who intends to 
take upon herself the responsibility some day 
of a home and family. She was married at 
eighteen, and her wedded life extended over a 
period of forty-seven years of tender devotion 
and congenial companionship. Chester A. 
Cole, who won her maiden heart and hand, 
was when a young man a stove merchant at 
Cuylerville on the Genesee Valley Canal. 
Some years after marriage they moved on to 
their farm near Warsaw, where they remained 
for twelve years. At a later period they occu- 
pied a farm which he owned just outside the 
village, living there a score of years, or until 
they moved into Warsaw. In 1889 they took 
possession of their commodious and attractive 
new home, at No. 12 Grove Street. Here 
since the death of her husband Mrs. Cole has 
continued to reside with her unmarried son, 
John. The other surviving children of this 
family are: Mary, now Mrs. L. De Wist 
Johnson, living near her mother; Charles 
Sumner, who married Miss Ida Murrey, and 
has one son, Frank Murrey Cole, a promising 
lad of eleven ; Emma J., who married Charles 
Owen, and lives in the neighborhood. Be- 
sides these was an infant daughter, whose 
little life gladdened the home of her parents 
only for the brief space of si.xteen months. 
Mrs. Cole is much respected for womanly 
virtues, and is universally beloved for her 
kind heart and gentle manner. 

Mr. Cole, who was a man of careful and 
methodical habit, and equable temperament, 
was a firm Republican in politics. Though 
usually engaged in business requiring his per- 
sonal attention, he yet found some time to 
serve the public in the capacity of Under 
Sheriff. On a preceding page may be seen a 
portrait of this industrious, loyal, and order- 
loving citizen, whose departure is so recent 



that his friends hardly realize as yet that he 
is gone hence to return no more. 



Wl 



ILLIAM NORMAN VAN ORS- 
DALE, a worthy citizen of Mount 
Morris, was born in this town, and 
has here lived throughout his entire life. He 
is a son of Henry Van Orsdale, a native of 
Cayuga County. The parents of the latter 
came from Pennsylvania to York State on foot. 
They had but one horse ; and across its back 
they put a bedtick, and put the children in 
each end of the tick "to balance." They 
settled in Cayuga County. 

Henry Van Orsdale came to Mount Morris 
when a young man, and was among the early 
settlers of the town. Purchasing a tract of 
land about four miles south of the village, he 
erected a log house, and with his wife com- 
menced housekeeping. There were no rail- 
roads or canals in the State at that time; and 
he was obliged to take his wheat by team 
to Moscow Landing, where it sold for thirty 
cents per bushel. For many years he used 
only oxen on the farm, which year by year he 
improved, erecting substantial buildings. He 
was a hard worker, never spending a moment 
in idleness, and, after working all day at clear- 
ing the land or putting in crops, would spend 
the rest of his time in his cooper-shop. He 
also made all the shoes for his family. Here 
he resided until his death, which occurred sud- 
denly, while he was sitting in his chair at 
breakfast on the morning of Good Friday, 
1886. He had attained the venerable age of 
eighty-three years, and was the oldest settler 
in the town. When he came to Livingston 
County, he possessed but three hundred dollars 
in money, but at his death owned two hundred 
and three acres of land in a body, his home, 
and eighty acres in the State of Ohio, and did 
not owe a dollar. He married Ann Selover, a 
native of Cayuga County; and during their 
early wedded life, in addition to her household 
duties, she spun all the flax and wool for both 
the clothes of the family and the bedding.. 
They became the parents of eight children — 
Peter, Rebecca, John, Betsey A., Mary J., 
George, Charles, and William Norman. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



171 



William Norman Van Orsdale received his 
early education in the district school, and later 
attended Alfred Centre Academy. At the age 
of twenty-one he taught school for one term, 
and then engaged in business in Mount Mor- 
ris, continuing for six years. In 1S78 he 
married Miss Sarah A. Van Orsdale, of Co- 
lumbia City, Ind. , a daughter of Curlus Van 
Orsdale; and of this union there are five chil- 
dren — Emma D. , Harry H., Walter N. , 
Mable E. , and Ruth. Soon after his marriage 
Mr. Van Orsdale settled on the farm that he 
now occupies, about four miles from Mount 
Morris; and here he is engaged in general 
farming. 

Mr. Van Orsdale was for many years a 
Democrat, but now supports the People's 
Party. He is universally respected in social 
and political life. 



(c^fOSEPH D. LEWIS, a widely known 
wool dealer and auctioneer of Genesee, 
N.Y., was born at York, Livingston 
County, April 13, 1833. His father, 
Samuel Lewis, who was a native of Salem, 
N.J., came to Livingston County about the 
year 1817, and was here trained to agricult- 
ural pursuits. Having been a pioneer in the 
early days of the settlement of the town of 
York, he lived for a time in a log house, 
which was eventually replaced by one of 
brick. While quite young, however, he went 
to Philadelphia, where he learned the mason's 
trade, after which he settled in Geneseo, and 
established himself as a contractor and 
builder. 

Samuel Lewis followed this occupation in 
Geneseo for many years, erecting all of the 
brick buildings for the Wadsworths and other 
prominent founders of industrial enterprises 
in the town and vicinity, becoming closely 
identified with public affairs, and being active 
in forwarding all important measures of inter- 
est to the general community. He was a 
Whig in politics, later a Republican, and 
e.xercised considerable political influence. 
He was Justice of the Peace for sixteen years. 
He was a leading member of the Episcopal 
church, in which he served as Vestryman, 



Warden, and Treasurer. The old church may 
be said to have been the work of his hands, 
he having the contract for putting up the 
building; and, when it outgrew its seating 
capacity, and another was necessary with 
which to accommodate the rapidly increasing 
attendance, Samuel Lewis, though perhaps 
too advanced in years to complete the struct- 
ure, laid the first twelve bricks in its founda- 
tion. He died in 1877, at the age of eighty- 
two years. 

The maiden name of Mr. Joseph D. Lewis's 
mother, wife of Samuel Lewis, was Anna 
Maria Knisell. She was a native of Ger- 
many, and came to America with her parents, 
who settled in Philadelphia. Her father be- 
came prominently engaged in the milling 
business, but suffered severe losses, having 
in all five mills swept away by floods. The 
parents died in Philadelphia. Mrs. Lewis 
herself died at York at the age of seventy 
years, having reared ten out of fourteen chil- 
dren. She was a member of the Episcopal 
church fifty years. The following is a list of 
the brothers and sisters of Joseph, all of whom 
are now deceased : Martha, Rachel, Marie, 
Lizzie, Sarah, Belle, Hobart, Samuel, and 
George. Four died young. 

Joseph D. Lewis, the subject of this sketch, 
passed his boyhood in York, and was educated 
at York and the high school of Geneseo. He 
remained with his parents until twenty-two 
years of age, when he went to Cohoes, where 
he became agent and overseer of the woollen 
mills in that place. He bought the raw 
material, handled the products of the mills, 
and had entire charge of the industry for five 
years. He then settled in Geneseo, where he 
has since been engaged as a wool dealer and 
auctioneer. He has also been a dealer in real 
estate, buying and selling as opportunity 
offered. He owned the farm where the salt 
shaft is now located, which is one of the larg- 
est salt mines in the L^nited States, and is 
known as the Retsof mine. 

In 1864 Mr^ Lewis was united in marriage 
to Miss Margaret Donnan, daughter of John 
Donnan, she being one of five children. Her 
father was a prominent man and a Republican. 
Mr. Lewis is a Republican in politics, and 



ly; 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



has been Trustee of the village for some years 
and Assessor for three years. Both himself 
and wife are members of the Presbyterian 
church. Mr, Lewis has given much time to 
the collection of relics of antiquity and other 
curiosities, in which he is deeply interested, 
and as a result has gathered a large number of 
rare and valuable objects of varied character 
and description. He has weapons represent- 
ing the different stages of civilization, 
powder-horns of quaint workmanship, dating 
from the sixteenth century down to the pres- 
ent, all kinds of head-dresses and ornaments, 
also a large and varied numismatic collection, 
embracing coins of almost every age and 
country. These he has carefully arranged 
and classified, the whole making a most 
unique and valuable private museum, well 
worth the trouble of travelling a considerable 
distance to examine. 




ternal 

came 

when 



Amos Smith, 
Utica, N.Y., 
only one log 



RS. JULIANN BUXTON, the 
widow of Mr. Timothy H. Buxton, 
late of Warsaw, N.Y., was born 
in Hampton, Oneida County, 
N.Y. Her father was a carriage manufacturer 
by the name of Joseph Clark, who married 
Sarah Smith, of Utica. Mrs. Buxton's ma- 
grandfather, Captain 
from Massachusetts to 
that locality contained 
house, and when the nearest grist-mill was at 
Troy. Her father, Joseph Clark, built the 
first brick building in Utica, which was a 
paint store. 

Mrs. Buxton's mother died in 1824, at 
thirty-two years of age, leaving three daugh- 
ters — Cornelia, who died at eight years of 
age; Juliann, of this memoir; and Betsey, 
who died at sixteen, a lovable girl, full of 
charm, and a favorite 
school-fellows. Two 
death Mr. Clark came 
to Batavia, and opened a carriage factory. 
Here he was again married, his second wife 
being Polly Miller, of Trenton, Oneida 
County. Four children were the issue of this 
marriage, of whom the youngest, David G., 
died in infancy. The three daughters are: 



promise of womanly 
among teachers and 
years after his wife's 



Sarah C, Mrs. C. B. W'illey, a widow, who 
lives in Newark valley. New York; Martha, 
who resides in Batavia, and is the widow 
of Mr. Franklin Buxton, youngest brother of 
Mr. Timothy Buxton ; and Mary, widow of 
David R. Williams, of Chicago. 

Juliann Clark was educated at the Pratts- 
burg Academy in Batavia. She was married 
to Mr. Timothy H. Buxton on July 15, 1839. 
Her husband was born in Orangeville, July 9, 
181 5, and was the son of Deacon William 
Buxton, a native of Belchertown, Mass., born 
in 1783. He came to New York with his 
wife and three children in 181 1, driving all 
the way to Orangeville and from that point to 
Attica in his own conveyance. Mr. Timothy 
H. Buxton's mother was Lydia Smith before 
marriage and the grand-daughter of Philip 
Smith, a Revolutionary soldier. William 
Buxton came to Warsaw in 1824, where he 
engaged in the manufacturing of ploughs, in 
which line of work he was already experienced 
and competent. He held various tovvn offices, 
and was active in the local public affairs. 
He died at the age of seventy-two, leaving 
seven children, of whom the only surviving one 
is Harriet, the first-born, now the widow of 
David Burr. She lives in Conneautville, Pa. 

Mrs. Lydia Buxton outlived her husband 
nineteen years, dying in August, 1865, hav- 
ing almost reached the age of eighty years. 
Their son, Timothy H. Buxton, was a man of 
strong character and iron nerve. Holding the 
office of County Sheriff during the fifties, 
when the Erie Railroad was being built, he 
came in contact with a violent element among 
the unruly workmen, with whom he had some 
exciting encounters, in which he displayed in- 
trepid daring and courage. He was a very 
strong temperance man; and on one occasion, 
when in a difficulty with some insubordinate 
drunken fellows, a number of liquor barrels 
were broken open, and their contents spilled. 
He was Supervisor and Assessor and for forty 
years an active member of the Presbyterian 
church, in which he was an Elder. 

Mrs. Juliann Buxton has lost two infant 
children, and has five sons and daughters, who 
comfort her old age. They are: Mary Cor- 
nelia, wife of Judge Byron Healy; Lucy 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



173 



Mariah, wife of Dr. James McLeod, of Scran- 
ton, Pa., a Presbyterian divine; Frances, wife 
of Frank Wilson, a druggist in Warsaw; Jo- 
seph Clark Buxton, also of Warsaw; and 
Edward Timothy Buxton, a resident of West 
Superior, Wis., where he is President of the 
Bank of Commerce. This son married Miss 
Mary E. Chase, of Chicago, a daughter of 
Samuel B. Chase. Mr. Timothy H. Buxton 
died in Warsaw, November 3, 1883, aged 
sixty-eight, and his memory is held in tender 
grief and loving recollection by her who in 
her bereavement may quote Dean Stanley's 
beautiful lines: — 

•• Till death us join ! 

A voice yet more divine, 
That to the broken heart breathes hope sublime. 

Thro' lonely hours 

And shattered powers. 
We still are one, despite of change and time. 

•• Death with his healing hand 
Shall once more rend the band 

Whicli needs but that one link which none may sever. 
Till thro' the only good. 
Heard, felt, and understood. 

Our life in (jod shall make us one forever ! " 



Yp7\OBERT J. CULLINGS, a well-known 
I ^Y^ manufacturer and farmer of the town 
J_t)\ of York, was born in that town 

^"^ November 22, 1833. His father, 
James Cullings, was a native of Duanesburg, 
Schenectady County. His grandfather, John 
Cullings, was born in Scotland, and came to 
this country in 1775, when about ten years of 
age. It was a long and tedious journey of six 
weeks; but the family were courageous and 
ins])ired by the hope of a free and happy home 
in the broad lands of America, and so were 
willing to bear any burdens to attain that end. 
They settled in a place called New Scotland, 
in Albany County; and there the boy John 
grew up. As soon as he had reached manhood 
he desired to start for himself in the world; 
and, without waiting for some one to make 
the way easy for him, he set out on his own 
responsibility, and made a journey twenty 
miles into the interior of Schenectady County, 
and took a tract of what was termed wild land. 
This was part of a section which was granted 



to favorites of King James of England, and 
was rented on a perpetual lease. A farm of 
two hundred acres in that section is owned to 
this day by heirs of the Cullings family, on 
which they pay but a nominal rent of fourteen 
dollars a year. 

John Cullings spent the remainder of his 
life in this his. adopted home. His son, 
James Cullings, father of Robert J. Cullings, 
in turn left his father's home, and at the age 
of twenty-five, with his young wife, he came to 
Livingston County, where in 1822 he settled 
in the southern part of the town of York. He 
bought eighty acres of new land, and at first 
erected a log house; but later, when he had 
cleared the land, and secured proper surround- 
ings for a better habitation, he built a commo- 
dious frame house, which is still standing, 
and is owned by one of his sons. James 
Cullings added to his land from time to time, 
and at his death owned two hundred and twelve 
acres, all cleared and in fine condition. His 
wife was Margret Simpson. They had six 
children — Ebenezer, Sarah A., Eliza Jane, 
Robert J., John, and William. All of these 
children have lived to grow up, and are now 
married and living with their families in and 
about York. 

Robert J. Cullings received his education 
at the district schools when very young and 
later at the Temple Hill Academy of Geneseo. 
He then studied civil engineering, but after 
practising for a while was obliged to give up 
the profession on account of ocular weakness. 
Mr. Cullings taught school for six years, 
after which time he concluded to employ him- 
self in the healthful occupation of farming. 
He has also been engaged in mechanical work, 
being the first person in the locality to manu- 
facture tile. In 1883 Mr. Cullings bought 
the Deacon McNabb place, where he has since 
resided. Mr. Cullings was married in 1865 
to Miss Jane D. Darrow, of Princetown, 
Schenectady County. Their children have 
been five in number — George H.; James H.; 
William B., who died December 21, 1894; 
Emily J.; and Elizabeth D. George H. mar- 
ried Flora McCorkindale. They are both 
teachers in the public schools of Wayne 
County, where they reside. 



174 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Mr. Cullings is a man who has seen some- 
thing of the world, having travelled extensively 
in the West and having spent two years in the 
States of Kentucky and Tennessee. He is an 
independent voter. The family are members 
of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of York. 



(S>rLFRED WADSWORTH, a baker and 
/JA confectioner in Warsaw, N.Y., was 
/j|^\ born in Yorkshire, England, in 

^•"-^ 1S44. His father, John Wads- 
worth, was born in 1819, and came to Amer- 
ica in 1858 with a wife and seven children, 
four sons and three daughters. The sons 
are: Alfred, of whom this is written; John, a 
contractor and builder in Brockport, N.Y. ; 
Robert, a physician in Rochester; Frank, who 
lost his right arm during the Civil War, and 
has since been in the custom-house in San 
Francisco, Cal. Their sister Annie is the 
wife of Albert Hatch, and is a practising phy- 
sician in Sauk Centre, Minn. John Wads- 
worth died in Brockport in 1S92, aged 
seventy-three years, having lived to see his 
children holding useful and honorable posi- 
tions. His grief-stricken widow survived 
him only two months, dying in the seventy- 
fourth year of her age. 

Alfred Wadsworth attended school in Eng- 
land until he was thirteen, at which time his 
parents came to America. He went into a 
machine-shop in Portland, and followed that 
line of work until the firm was thrown out of 
business shortly after the firing on Fort Sum- 
ter by the confusion attendant upon the dis- 
tractions of the Civil War. Going to Houl- 
ton. Me., he engaged in the milling business, 
which he followed for seven years. In 1868 
he left Maine, and went into a bakery in 
Brockport, N.Y., which he afterward gave up 
to take charge of a mill at Avon Springs. In 
[870 he came to Warsaw, Wyoming County, 
where he bought a small bakery, and estab- 
lished a flour, feed, and grocery store. He is 
still engaged in this business at Nos. 15 and 
16 Main Street. In 1893 Mr. Wadsworth 
again took up the milling business in addition 
to his other affairs, and also aided in the form- 
ing of a flour-barrel and hoop manufactory. 



The 29th of September, 1868, was the date 
of the happiest event of his life, his marriage 
to Miss Florence Miller, of Brockport, a 
daughter of Aaron and Abigail (Miner) Mil- 
ler. Her parents came from Connecticut, and 
were among the early settlers of Brockport. 
Her maternal grandfather, Hiram Miner, 
came to New York in pioneer style, driving 
an ox team through the woods. He died in 
the town of Brockport, having attained the 
extreme age of ninety-three years. This old 
gentleman was a fine specimen of manly 
strength and with a corresponding vigor of 
moral and mental nature. 

Mr. and Mrs. Wadsworth have five children 
living — Frank Herbert, a recent graduate 
from Princeton College, and now a law stu- 
dent; Arthur Holland, also a graduate of 
Princeton, of the class of 1894, graduating at 
twenty-two years of age, and becoming a 
teacher of the classics and literature at 
Rutgers Institute, New York; Emery IVIiner, 
a clerk in his father's establishment, and 
reading medicine; Morton Miller, a lad of 
eighteen, attending school, and also engaged 
as a clerk for his father; and Walter Alfred, 
a boy of nine years. Mr. Wadsworth is a 
Royal Arch Mason, and is in political faith 
an ardent Republican. The members of his 
family are in the communion of the Presby- 
terian church. 



rmo 



EORGE L. RIBAUD, an Assistant 
% •) I Superintendent of the Duncan Salt 
Works, and a highly respected mem- 
ber of the community in Gainesville, was 
born in Syracuse, N.Y., February 7, 1855. 
Although a native of America he had 
French ancestors, his father, Louis Ribaud, 
and his grandfather, Charles, who was a 
school teacher, being both natives of that 
interesting country, the latter a life-long 
resident. 

Louis Ribaud, who was one of seven chil- 
dren, at twenty years of age found himself 
treading the soil of a free land, under a free 
flag, with doubtless a heart swelling at the 
thought. After reaching New York, he set 
out at once on another long journey to reach 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



17S 



California, and, when he had come to that 
favored spot, went to work searching for the 
yellow dust and nuggets in the sand of its 
rivers ; but the gold fever spent itself before 
consuming his best manhood, and at the end 
of two years he returned to the East, exchang- 
ing his claim, his tools, and general outfit for 
the implements belonging to his old trade of 
cooper, in which he soon established himself 
in the city of Syracuse. He worked at this 
employment until 1878; and then, having 
found an opening in the Morey Barnes pork- 
packing establishment of Syracuse, he went 
there as fireman and engineer, where he re- 
mained fifteen years. At that time he became 
disabled from an accident to his foot, and on 
recovery was placed in charge of the spacious 
cellars of the establishment, in which position 
he has remained to the present time. His 
wife, whose name is Catherine, was born in 
France, being one of several children of Jo- 
seph Bushy, a worker in the salt fields of 
France, who afterward came to Syracuse in 
this State, and there remained till his death, 
which occurred in 1868. Mr. and Mrs. Louis 
Ribaud are the parents of seven children, the 
eldest, George L., of this narrative; Charles 
L. ; Marie I., who married R. J. Maynard, of 
Syracuse; Albert J.; Frank L. ; Rosella F. ; 
and Lucy M. All this family are members of 
the French Catholic church. 

George L. Ribaud, inheriting the enterpris- 
ing qualities of his father, followed the trade 
of cooper after getting his early education at 
the graded schools in Syracuse, beginning to 
work when old enough to handle the tools 
with judgment. When twenty years of age, 
he left the narrow sphere of the shop for a 
broader view of the world than he before had 
experienced, by taking the position of fireman 
on the Syracuse Northern Branch of the 
Rome, Watertown & Ogdensburg Railroad, 
keeping on with this business for eight years, 
at the end of which time he entered the Amer- 
ican Dairy Salt Company's works as engineer, 
holding the position till February i, 1886. 
He then changed his occupation, going to a 
new locality, where he undertook the work of 
setting up the boilers and vacuum pans in 
the Duncan Salt Company's works at Gaines- 



ville. (See description in sketch of Mr. 
Duncan.) Later Mr. Ribaud had charge of 
the machinery in other departments of their 
works, setting up new machines and main- 
taining a general oversight. Mr. Ribaud 
was empowered by the company to purchase 
the first engine they had ; and now he has 
charge of the whole mechanical department, 
which is said to be the largest in the 
world. 

Mr. Ribaud was married in 1881 to Miss 
Harriet Maynard, daughter of Francis May- 
nard, of Fonda, Montgomery County, N.Y., 
where her father was a miller by trade. 
Later he moved to Syracuse, and continued 
in the same business till his death in 1883. 
Her mother is still living. Mr. and Mrs. 
George Ribaud are the parents of three chil- 
dren — Marie Isabella; Eva Amelia; Louis 
William. Mr. Ribaud stands very high 
among the members of the corporation at the 
Duncan Salt Works, not only for his intelli- 
gence and skill in handling machinery, but 
for his other estimable qualities of refinement 
and cheerful courtesy; while among his fel- 
low-workmen, neighbors, and acquaintances 
generally he is highly appreciated for uniform 
kindness and genial comradeship. In poli- 
tics Mr. Ribaud is nominally a Democrat, 
though never bound to the party's candidate, 
but feeling free to vote for the "best man," 
however he may be. Both Mr. and Mrs. 
Ribaud are members of the Catholic Benefit 
Society, and both belong to the Catholic 
church in Gainesville. 




ILLIAM H. De forest, a well- 
known resident of Leicester, Liv- 
ingston County, N.Y., was born in 
Leicester on May 30, 1840. His great- 
grandfather, who was a native of France, 
came to America, and fought in the Revolu- 
tionary War, when France so warmly espoused 
the cause of Colonial independence. After 
the war he married Laura Sterling, and set- 
tled in Windham County, Connecticut. 
Their son, Ira De Forest, having grown to 
manhood in Connecticut, came to Owego, 
Tioga County, N.Y., at which place he mar- 



176 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ried, and engaged in lumbering and hotel- 
keeping. He died in 181 5 at Baltimore, 
while there on business. 

William De Forest, son of Ira, and the 
youngest of three children, was born in 
Owego. He was left fatherless when only 
three years old, and was sent to live with his 
great-uncle. Major Sterling, who resided near 
Wilkesbarre, Pa. At the age of eleven years 
he came to Moscow to live with his uncle, 
Hezekiah Ripley, one of the earliest settlers 
of Livingston County, and publisher of the 
first newspaper in the county, the Livingston 
Gazette. Here William De Forest grew to 
manhood, learning the trades of tanner, cur- 
rier, and shoemaker, which he followed until 
1S39, when on account of failing health 
he engaged in farming, buying in 1859 the 
farm on which he died at the age of seventy- 
five. 

He married Jane A. Reynolds, born in 
Avon, Livingston County, August 26, 1818, 
the daughter of Jason Reynolds, a native of 
Horse Neck, Vt. Her grandfather was Shu- 
bael Reynolds, a native of Massachusetts, who 
fought in the Revolution, and soon after its 
close removed to Vermont, and devoted him- 
self to opening up that new country. Shubael 
Reynolds was both a farmer and carpenter. 
After a few years he left Vermont, and went 
to Schenectady, N.Y., and thence came to 
Livingston County, where he bought a farm, 
upon which he remained for some years. 
Then his roving disposition again asserted it- 
self, and he went to Ohio, where he died in 
Lorain County, in his eighty-ninth year. He 
was a Deacon in the Baptist church for many 
years. His wife was Mercy Lounsbury, of 
Massachusetts. Their son, Jason Reynolds, 
the father of Mrs. Jane A. De Forest, fought 
in the War of 18 12 under two different cap- 
tains, the last being Captain Asahel Smith, 
of Onondaga County. Jason Reynolds mar- 
ried in Saratoga County before the war began, 
but came to Avon soon after it was over, as a 
pioneer farmer and a manufacturer of pearlash. 
Later he removed to York, and worked a part 
of his father's farm. Thence he went to 
Cattaraugus County, and purchased a tract of 
land, where a log house had already sprung 



out of the earth in a small clearing. He 
finished the home and improved the land; but 
at the end of six years he became restless, 
sold out, and returned to Leicester, where he 
bought a tract of timber land, whereon he 
built the usual log house. Then he cleared 
away the lumber, and planted an orchard. 
Owing to exposure and overexertion in the 
famous flood of 1835, he caught a cold, from 
which he never recovered, dying at the age of 
fiftv-one, in 1836. His wife was Esther Mc- 
Millan, of Galway, Saratoga County, daughter 
of Joseph and Avis Bowen McMillan. Mr. 
McMillan was from Aberdeen, Scotland; and 
his wife. Avis, belonged in Providence, R.I. 
Mrs. Jason Reynolds outlived her husband, 
and died at the house of a daughter in Milan, 
Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. William De Forest 
reared five children — William H.; Ellen; 
Jennie, Mrs. Albert Bendrovv, who has one 
daughter, Jessie B. (Mrs. E. J. Howe); 
Charles; and Mary, Mrs. Charles Welton, 
who has three children. The mother, Mrs. 
Jane A. De Forest, is still living. 

William H. De Forest was educated in the 
public schools of his native town, and stayed 
with his parents, William and Jane A. (Rey- 
nolds) De Forest, till he was twenty-one. 
Then on November 2, 1861, he enlisted in 
Company G, One Hundred and Fourth Regi- 
ment of New York Volunteers, and served 
three years in the Army of the Potomac, fight- 
ing in the second battle of Bull Run, at An- 
tietam, at Gettysburg, and at Petersburg. At 
Gettysburg he was captured and taken to Belle 
Island, where he was kept three months, suf- 
fering all sorts of privations and hardships. 
He rejoined his regiment on June 6, 1864, 
and was mustered out on November 2, 1864. 
After a year on the home farm he went to 
Saginaw, Mich., where he was in a hardware 
store eight years, and then went to Cleveland, 
Ohio, where he stayed two years. In 1S76 
he came back to Leicester, and still re- 
mains here on the old farm. He belongs to 
Tilton Post, No. 660, of the Grand Army. 
He also belongs to the Masonic body and 
the Knights Templars. In 1893 he was 
chosen Supervisor, and in 1894 re-elected to 
that office. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



■77 




"ENRY N. JEROME, a contented and 
well-to-do agriculturalist, residing 
on his eighty-two-acre farm in the 
town of Livonia, is a man whose 
word carries weight with his fellow-towns- 
men. He was born in Richmond, Ontario 
County, N.Y., November 2, 1830, son of 
John and Sarah (Aiken) Jerome. 

The father was born in Pompey, Cayuga 
County, and went to Richmond on attaining 
his majority, buying there a small farm, 
which he cultivated with assiduity until 1836, 
when he removed to Geneseo, and invested 
there in a farm of eighty acres, upon which 
he remained four years. He then sold the 
property, and came to Livonia, purchasing 
the farm now owned by his son, Henry N. 
Jerome. Here he died at the age of si.xty- 
five, after a life of active toil, leaving behind 
him a worthy record of daily duties well per- 
formed. His wife, formerly Sarah Aiken, 
was a daughter of David Aiken, of Saratoga 
County, and was a woman of true domestic 
virtues and a worthy helpmeet to her hus- 
band. Nine children grew up around their 
hearth, whose names we record, as follows: 
Myron D. ; Hannah M. : John A. ; Susan A. ; 
William S. ; Mary J.; Henry N., the subject 
of this biographical outline; and Sarah Adelia 
and Clara Amelia, twins. The hand of the 
silent reaper has been busy among these 
brothers and sisters; for all have been gar-- 
nered into sheaves for the eternal harvest 
except Hannah M. and Henry N., whose 
name prefaces this sketch. 

The latter was brought up in Geneseo, and 
there acquired sufficient book knowledge to 
enable him worthily to perform his duties as 
a good citizen and intelligent member of the 
community. After the death of his father he 
took the farm, bought out the other heirs, and 
paid off in course of time the debt by which 
it was encumbered. He now has a good farm, 
well cultivated, which he is constantly trying 
to improve, its thriving condition attesting the 
watchful care and perpetual industry of its 
owner. That Mr. Jerome is regarded by his 
neighbors and fellow-townsmen as a capable 
and trustworthy man may be learned from the 
fact that he has served the town of Livonia as 



Assessor for the last ten years. He has al- 
ways given his allegiance to the Republican 
party since its organization; but, voting for the 
first time for President at the age of twenty- 
two, his vote helped to elect Franklin Pierce 
to the place of honor at the head of the nation. 
Mr. Jerome has been twice married, his 
first wife being Mary E. Locke, daughter of 
John Locke, of Livonia Station. She died, 
leaving one son, John F., and a daughter, 
Lillian li., now deceased. John F. married 
Alice Hayward, daughter of Hiram Hayward; 
and they have one son, Byron N. Mr. Jerome 
chose for his second wife Miss Annie Harder, 
daughter of William and Catherine (Jones) 
Harder, of Saratoga and Livingston Counties 
respectively. Of this marriage were born one 
son, William G., and a daughter, Nellie. 
William G. Jerome married Miss Mary 
Weaver, and engaged in the practice of law 
in Rochester, N.Y. He was a promising 
young man of twenty-seven years when he was 
called from earth on January 4, 1895. Nellie 
A. Jerome died at the tender age of four years 
and three months. Both Mr. and Mrs. Je- 
rome are members of the Presbyterian church 
of Livonia, and are people who have a wide 
circle of acquaintance, and whose work and 
example are of value in the community. 



•OHN H. WEMPLE, a farmer residing 
in the town of I>eicester, in Living- 
ston County, N.Y., was born in Johns- 
town, Fulton County, March 11, 1S33. 
His father, Barney Wemple, was born in the 
same town, April 8, 1800. 

The Wemple family were pioneers in the 
Mohawk valley, where they resided during 
the period of the Revolutionary War, suffer- 
ing the hardships and privations incident to 
that period. Their remote ancestors lived in 
Holland, whence some of them came to this 
country early in the Colonial period. Barney 
Wemple, Sr., the paternal grandfather of the 
subject of this sketch, was a life-long resident 
of New York State. His son Barney learned 
the trade of tailor when a young man; and, 
as was then the custom, he went from house 
to house, making in each the clothing for the 



lyS 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



family. He married Hannah Whitmore, who 
was born in Johnstown, and was the daughter 
of Peter and Margaret Whitmore, natives of 
Pennsylvania. During the Revolutionary 
War Peter Whitmore was captured by the 
Indians and taken to Canada; but he suc- 
ceeded in making his escape, and, later set- 
tling in New York State, he spent his last 
years in Fulton County. After his marriage 
Barney Wemple, Jr., purchased a farm in 
Johnstown, where, when not engaged in tai- 
loring, he carried on quite an extensive farm- 
ing business. In 1849 he went to Leicester, 
and bought a farm of seventy-five acres, sit- 
uated in the Genesee valley. Here he re- 
sided until his death, devoting his entire time 
to his place, carrying on general husbandry. 
Mr. Wemple died when seventy-nine years of 
age, and his wife at the age of fifty-four. 

John H. Wemple was reared to agricultural 
pursuits, attending schools such as were af- 
forded in his youthful days, and when not 
thus engaged assisting his father on the farm. 
He was sixteen years old when he removed 
with the family to Leicester; and he con- 
tinued to make his home under the parental 
roof until his marriage, when he was forty 
years of age. He then took up his abode on 
the farm he now owns and occupies, which 
is well improved, containing thirty-six acres, 
situated in the Genesee valley, about four 
miles from Geneseo and an equal distance 
from Mount Morris. 

In 1874 he married Sarah Marsh, who was 
born in the town of Leicester, and was the 
daughter of Malachi and Mary (Lane) Marsh. 
Mrs. Wemple passed from earth May 2, 1889, 
leaving three children — Alton J., Alice, and 
Sarah. Mr. Wemple is a Democrat, and is 
interested in all the undertakings of that 
party. He is broad-minded and liberal in his 
conceptions of religious doctrine and duty, 
and lives an upright and honorable life. 



■AMES H. GROUSE, a large land-owner 
and farmer in Lima, Livingston 
County, N.Y., was born here February 
9, 1834. George Crouse, his grand- 
father, was a native of Fort Plain, Montgom- 



ery County. Farmers in the pioneer times 
worked under great difficulties, being obliged 
to carry their grain to mills as far away as 
Albany, a distance of about sixty miles. 
George Crouse came to Avon, Livingston 
County, at an early day; and he bought and 
cleared a hundred and twenty acres of land, 
building a log house, which remained stand- 
ing until a few years ago. Later in life he 
bought land in Michigan, and died there at 
the age of seventy-four. Grandfather Crouse 
left a family of nine children, most of whom 
lived to a good old age. 

His son, George G. Crouse, father of 
James, was born in Avon, and educated in its 
district schools. He worked on the home 
farm until he was twenty-one, and in fact con- 
tinued farming all his life, working by the 
month and on shares until he bought a farm 
for himself in Lima, to which he subsequently 
added so much that at his death it covered a 
hundred and eighty-three acres. At the age 
of twenty-seven Mr. Crouse married Mary N. 
Hovey, daughter of James and Esther Hovey, 
of Lima, who also came there at an early day. 
Mr. Crouse died in the seventy-ninth year 
of his age, leaving three children — Sarah 
Jane, Eliza Ann, and James H. Crouse. 
Sarah J. Crouse married Oliver B. Flansburg, 
is now a widow, and lives with her daughter, 
Lucy Flansburg, the wife of Edwin Lee. 
Eliza A. Crouse married Wilkinson Carey, of 
Lima, and has two children — -Mary Eliza, 
now Mrs. Ira Newman, and Georgiana Carey. 

James H. Crouse was educated at the dis- 
trict school and in the seminary in Lima, and 
then began farming in Avon at the old home- 
stead of his grandfather Crouse, where he 
remained ten years. This place he afterward 
sold, buying the Lima place of his father and 
living there ten years also. His affection for 
the old homestead at Avon, it may here be 
said, led him to buy it back again some years 
later. Selling the Lima estate back to his 
father, Mr. Crouse went to Michigan, whence 
he returned, at the expiration of three years, 
to the parental roof at Lima, where he lived 
until his father died, in 1884. The farm was 
under his charge until the next year, when he 
bought a fine residence in the village of Lima, 




JAMES H. GROUSE. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



i8i 



where he now lives. He also owns a fine cot- 
tage at Hemlock Lake. The first wife of 
James H. Crouse was Frances A. Carey, of 
Lima, who became the mother of two chil- 
dren — Mary and Frances N. Crouse. Mary 
Crouse married Clarence V. Tenney, of Mich- 
igan ; and they reside on one of the Lima 
farms. Frances N. Crouse married Melvin R. 
Hamilton, of Avon. Mr. James H. Crouse's 
second wife was Lucia Chapman, of Lima. The 
three children of this marriage are: George G., 
who died at the age of five years and nine 
months; James S. ; and Henry P. Crouse. 
The parents are members of the Baptist church. 

That Mr. Crouse is a live business man is 
shown by the large amount of property which 
he now owns — a hundred and eighty-three 
acres on the homestead, a hundred and forty 
acres in the Warner farm, a hundred and 
forty-four and a half acres in the Rogers farm, 
a hundred and forty-five acres in the Metcalf 
farm, all situated in Lima. In Avon he has 
a hundred and thirty-four and a half acres in 
the Torrance farm, two hundred and fifty-six 
acres in the Fred Pearson farm, two hundred 
acres in the Hamlin farm, a hundred and 
sixty-six acres in the Hendrick farm, ninety- 
five acres in the Marshall farm, the Harris 
farm of one hundred and twenty-seven acres, 
besides his village residence and a cottage at 
Lake Hemlock. Besides a total of nearly two 
thousand acres in New York State, he has 
property in Michigan. He has always been a 
Democrat, and cast his first Presidential vote 
for James Buchanan in 1856. He has served 
the town of Lima as Assessor. 

The annexed portrait of Mr. Crouse shows 
a man who has not found his account in stand- 
ing still, waiting for occasion to tell him 
what to do. And, "after all," one would not 
be surprised to hear him testify, "the joy of 
success does not equal that which attends 
iiatient working;." 



T^HARLES PL TOAN, one of the larg- 
I \y est farmers and a highly respected 
^^^^^ citizen of Perry, was born Septem- 
ber 4, 1857. He is the son of 
Austin W. and Elizabeth (Compton) Toan 



and grandson of Thomas and Betsey (Harvey) 
Toan. His grandfather was born in New 
Jersey, January 16, 1793, and married Betsey 
Harvey in 1820, she having been also born in 
New Jersey, July 9, 1797. They came to 
Scipio, Cayuga County, in a covered wagon, 
and about 1826 moved to the town of Perry, 
Wyoming County, where Thomas Toan pur- 
chased one hundred and forty acres of land, 
forty acres of which came to him as a grant 
for services as a soldier in the War of 1812. 
He cleared and improved his farm, the same 
now owned by Thomas Norton, erected sub- 
stantial buildings, and resided there until his 
death, which occurred in 1862, his wife dying 
in 1 87 1. Both were members of the Metho- 
dist church. The following were their chil- 
dren: Austin W., born March 29, 1822; 
Lydia, born September 29, 1825; Marilla, 
who was born April 7, 1829, and married W. 
Palmer (see sketch elsewhere in this work); 
Matilda, who was born April 7, 1829, and 
married C. H. Sailor; and one child who died 
young. 

Austin W. Toan was about three years of 
age when his father moved to Perry. He was 
educated in the district schools, and resided 
at home until the age of thirty-three years. 
In 1854 he married Elizabeth Compton, born 
at Ithaca, N.Y., September 3, 1829, daughter 
of Reuben and Sarah (Stout) Compton, na- 
tives of New Jersey. Her father was a hatter 
and a hotel-keeper in New Jersey, but in the 
latter part of his life was a farmer in Perry. 
He died at an advanced age, having reared 
five children — Sarah, Mary, Charles, Eliza- 
beth, and Emeline. Mr. Austin W. Toan 
bought a farm of fifty-five acres, improved the 
land, and remodelled the buildings. By good 
management of his affairs he became well- 
to-do in the world. He died at sixty-nine 
years of age, leaving a widow and one son, 
the subject of the present sketch. 

Charles H. Toan was educated at the Perry 
Academy, and at the age of eighteen began 
his career as a farmer. In 1885 he was 
united in marriage to Stella Wylie, of Perry, 
born in Milltown, Pa., December 26, 1864. 
Her parents, James and Mary (Thompson) 
Wylie, were born near Paisley, Scotland. 



l82 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



After emigrating to America her father 
worked in the woollen mills at Waterloo and 
Milltown. He is now a commercial traveller, 
and resides on Lake Street in Perry. The 
following are his children: Agnes, wife of 
Charles Andrus, who has one child, and re- 
sides in Saginaw, Mich.; James Wylie, who 
married Agnes Batchelor, a resident of the 
same place; Stella, Mrs. Toan ; Mary Wylie, 
who resides at home; Lizzie Wylie, a teacher 
at Saginaw: and Jessie Wylie, also residing 
at home. 

Mr. Toan after his marriage purchased one 
hundred and twenty acres of land, one mile 
from the village, and besides repairing and 
altering the house erected a large and well- 
appointed barn. He lived upon this farm 
until 1893, when he and his family, including 
his mother, moved into his newly constructed, 
three-story, modern-built house, which is sit- 
uated on Main Street in Perry, one of the 
finest residences in town. He owns the place 
that was his father's, and carries on his two 
farms himself, employing experienced farm 
hands, and wintering as many as nine hundred 
sheep. He raises some fine horses, of which 
he makes a special feature. 

Mr. Toan is a Democrat in politics, and 
was Supervisor in 1890 and 1891. He is a 
member of Consolation Lodge, No. 404, 
A. F. & A. M., at Perry, and also of the In- 
dependent Order of Odd Fellows. He is one 
of the most successful men of the town. Mr. 
and Mrs. Toan have four children — Lewis 
Austin, born October 3, 1886: Carl James, 
born July 5, 1888; Thomas Leon, born June 
17, 1890; and Mary Elizabeth, born Novem- 
ber 13, 1892. 




;OLONEL HENRY L. ARNOLD, of 

Geneseo, is favorably known through- 
out Livingston County as well fitted 
by birth, native ability, and educa- 
tion for the prominent position he has always 
occupied among the foremost men of the 
county. He is a native of the Empire State, 
and first drew the breath of life June 4, 1828, 
in the town of Conesus, Livingston County. 
His grandfather, Gamaliel Arnold, who was of 



English birth, emigrated to America when a 
young man, and assisted the colonists in their 
struggle for independence. He spent some 
time in Massachusetts, but afterward removed 
to the Green Mountain State, where he de- 
parted this life. 

Andrew Arnold, the ColoneTs father, was 
born in Massachusetts, and while a resident 
of that State enlisted in the War of 18 12, in 
which he served as Captain of the Thirty-first 
U.S. Infantry. He subsequently removed to 
Livingston County, New York, and, settling 
in the town of Conesus, established a general 
store, an ashery, a saw-mill, and a shoe-shop, 
and was for many 3'ears thereafter an impor- 
tant factor in the mercantile and the manu- 
facturing interests of the vicinity. The latter 
part of his life he spent with his children, 
dying in Geneseo at the ripe old age of 
ninety-four years. His wife, Anne Hender- 
son, was one of a large family born to James 
Henderson, who removed from his Pennsyl- 
vania home to this county, and settled at the 
head of Conesus Lake. Of the five children 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Arnold, three 
grew to adult life, as follows: Henry L., the 
subject of this brief narrative; Emily, the 
wife of Allan P. Millar, of Chicago; and 
Adeline, who died in 1848, aged sixteen 
years. The mother died while a resident of 
Conesus, when but forty-one years of age. 

Colonel Arnold was educated in the schools 
of the county, completing his studies in the 
Geneseo Academy and Lima Seminary. He 
subsequently taught school for a time, and 
continued working on the farm with his 
father until 1862, when he organized a com- 
pany of soldiers from the towns of Conesus, 
Sparta, and Springwater, and went to the 
front during the late Rebellion as Captain of 
Company I, One Hundred and Thirty-sixth 
New York Volunteer Infantry. With his 
regiment he was engaged in the battle of 
Chancellorsville in May, 1863, and in that 
of Gettysburg the following July, when he 
was promoted to the rank of Major. The reg- 
iment was afterward assigned to General 
Hooker's command, and after the battles of 
Wauhatchie, Lookout Mountain, and Mis- 
sionary Ridge, was made a part of the Twen- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



183 



tieth Corps, going from Chattanooga to At- 
lanta, thence with Sherman on his famous 
march to the sea, serving in all of the im- 
portant engagements of that remarkable cam- 
paign. During the time Major Arnold was 
again promoted, being made Lieutenant Colo- 
nel, and commanded his regiment in Sher- 
man's campaign through the Carolinas. At 
the battle of Bentonville, N.C., he was 
wounded in the groin and in the hand, and 
at the close of the campaign was brevetted 
Colonel for "meritorious services during the 
campaign in Georgia and the Carolinas." He 
was discharged with his regiment at Roches- 
ter in June, 1865. 

Resuming his duties as a private citizen in 
Geneseo, Colonel Arnold was elected Sheriff 
in 1870, and served with satisfaction three 
years. He had previously served his fellow- 
townsmen in official life, having been Super- 
visor in Conesus during 1857 and 1858. For 
seven years he was State agent for discharged 
convicts, being one of the most efficient of 
State officers. The three years from 1891 
until the 17th of June, 1894, the Colonel 
was United States Consul to Clifton, Canada, 
serving with credit to himself and honor to 
the government which appointed him to the 
position. 

In 1853 Colonel Arnold was united in mar- 
riage to Helen M. Bissell, who is one of the 
four children born to the late Dr. Daniel H. 
Bissell. Dr. Bissell was one of the best- 
known practising physicians of the county, 
and was at one time Resident Physician 
at the Quarantine in New York City. 
Colonel and Mrs. Arnold have five children 
now living: George B. is manager of a large 
paper establishment in Chicago. Alice G. is 
the wife of John C. Cone, a farmer residing 
in Geneseo. Henry L. is with his elder 
brother in Chicago, in charge of a department 
in the same establishment. Lucy G. is a 
graduate of the normal school. Allan M., the 
youngest son, is book-keeper in a mercantile 
house in Chicago. The eldest daughter, Mrs. 
Cone, who was graduated from the normal 
school, is at present travelling in Europe in 
charge of a party of tourists. In politics Colo- 
nel Arnold is a zealous advocate of the prin- 



ciples of the Republican party, and socially 
is a member of the American Order of 
United Workmen and the Grand Army of the 
Republic. 




IRAM CRAPSEY is a foremost citi- 
zen of Leicester, Livingston County, 
N.Y., and is one of the few who 
can personally recall the facts re- 
garding the settlement of the town. He was 
born in Dutchess County on December 16, 
1 8 16, the year of Monroe's election to the 
Presidency. His grandfather, Bastien Crap- 
sey, was a life-long resident of Dutchess 
County. Bastien Crapsey's son James was 
born and reared in the same county, and there 
remained till 1822, when, accompanied by his 
wife and three children, he came to Western 
New York, the removal being made with ox 
teams. Their first settlement was at Warsaw 
Hill, then within the lines of Genesee 
County; but they soon after came to what is 
now Leicester, and bought a large tract of 
land where a small clearing had been made 
but no buildings erected. A log cabin was 
soon commenced, and therein the family 
quickly took up their abode, though as yet it 
lacked door, windows, and roof. After a few 
years Mr. Crapsey traded this place for an- 
other in the same town, whereon he resided 
till his death, in 1852. The maiden name of 
his wife was Elizabeth Marquoit. She died 
in 1824; and her husband was then married 
the second time to Elizabeth Selight, who 
outlived him many years. When the Crap- 
seys came to Western New York, Hiram was 
only a child of six, and well remembers the 
hardships of pioneer life, when Indians were 
roaming through the forest and their children 
were his playmates. Of course there was no 
railroad, and no convenient market. Wheat 
had to be taken to Rochester for sale, and the 
round trip cost three days of valuable time. 
Hiram remained in the home till he was thirty 
years old, and then settled on the farm he has 
ever since carried on. It has been improved 
greatly in every department, and is finely 
situated, within a mile of the Genesee River. 
In 1848, at the age of thirty-two, he was 



i84 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



married to Fanny Summy, who was born in 
the township of Earl. Lancaster County, Pa., 
January 21, 1822. 

Her father, David Summy, was born in the 
same county, and so was his father, John 
Summy. The great-grandfather, Hans Jacob 
Summy, was born in Europe; and one genera- 
tion farther back we come to Hans Peter 
Summy, of Swiss origin, who emigrated from 
Rotterdam, Holland, to America in 1733, and 
became a resident of the Keystone State, 
spending the latter part of his life in Earl 
township. He was a Mennonite in his relig- 
ious principles, and this partly accounts for 
his immigration. His son, Hans Jacob 
Summy, married Barbara (Heistand) Bear, 
the widow of John Bear; and they both spent 
their best years in Earl. Their son, John 
Summy, grandfather of Mrs. Crapsey, was 
twice married, the second wife, her grand- 
mother, being Anna Newcomer. John Summy 
was a farmer, and spent his life in Earl; and 
he also was a Mennonite in religion. His 
son, David Summy, the father of Mrs. Crap- 
sey, was born and grew up in the same 
town and religion. In 1824, with a wife 
and eight children, he removed with teams 
to Cayuga County, New York, buying 
land in Scipio, whereon, besides farming, 
the Summys kept a tavern. After a dec- 
ade they removed to Leicester, where they 
purchased land on the border line of 
Wyoming County. Mr. Summy's last years 
were spent in the household of his daugh- 
ter, Mrs. Crapsey; and he died at the ad- 
vanced age of ninety-six. His wife was 
Elizabeth Singer. She also was born in 
Earl, but died on the homestead, at the age of 
seventy-one. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hiram Crapsey have three 
children — Elizabeth, born in 1849; Charlie, 
born in 1853; and Leslie, born in 1858. 
Elizabeth is the wife of Newton Rudgers, and 
has two children; but the son, Leslie, carries 
on the home farm with his father. Well has 
it been said by that inimitable novelist, 
George MacDonald : — 

"Age is not all decay. It is the ripening, 
the swelling, of the fresh life within, that 
withers and bursts the husk." 



ARWOOD A. DUDLEY, proprietor 
=^ and editor of the IViSteni New 




Yorkc}\ a weekly paper published in 
Warsaw, was born in the town of 
Greenwich, Washington County, N.Y., on 
March 5, 1825. His grandfather, Joseph 
Dudley, was a cooper, following the trade in 
Londonderry, N.H., Greenwich and Perry, 
N.Y. He was one who was contented in the 
station of life in which he had been born, and 
discharged the duties thereof faithfully and 
conscientiously toward God and his fellow- 
man. Of his five children all grew up and 
reared families with the exception of one son, 
Harwood, for whom the original of this sketch 
was named. 

The father of the latter was Edward Dud- 
ley, who was born in 1800 in Londonderry, 
and died thirty-seven years later in Perry. 
His wife was Miss Martha Force, of Green- 
wich, at which place the marriage was solem- 
nized. She was the daughter of David Force, 
who was of French extraction. Two children 
were born of this marriage — Harwood A. and 
Mary Jane, who married Mr. Lloyd A. Hay- 
ward, and died in this village in 1886, aged 
fifty-nine, leaving two children — Edward and 
Mary Kate. The latter is the wife of Profes- 
sor Bartlett, a member of the Albany Normal 
School faculty. Mrs. Edward Dudley formed 
a second marriage in 1840 with James B. 
Farmer, of Perry, whom she survived eighteen 
years. She died at her son's residence in 
Warsaw in 1888, aged eighty-six years. At 
twelve years of age Harwood A. Dudley went 
into the printing-office of the American Citi- 
zen, a paper published in Perry by Mr. David 
Mitchell, with whom he remained four years, 
receiving the foundation of that practical edu- 
cation that fitted him for his future editorial 
work. 

The Citizen was a strong antislavery sheet 
and a vehement advocate of the abolition 
party up to 1841, when it was purchased by a 
political syndicate, and became an organ for 
the Whig party and a strong supporter of 
William Henry Harrison. In June of the 
same year the paper was moved to Warsaw, 
the new county seat of Wyoming County. 
Mr. Dudley, then a lad of sixteen, followed 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



i8S 



the new fortunes of the publication for a year, 
and then went into a job printing-house in 
New York. One year later he went to Green- 
field, Mass., where he remained for a twelve- 
month, and then in 1848 returned to Warsaw, 
where he has been engaged ever since in news- 
paper work. For some years he was foreman 
of the Wyoming County Mirror^ a paper 
which, after an existence of eight years, was 
merged in 1864 into the Wf stern New Yorker, 
in the ownership of which William Henry 
Merrill and Harwood A. Dudley became joint 
and equal partners. A dozen years later Mr. 
Dudley bought Mr. Merrill's interest, and has 
since been the sole proprietor and editor of 
the paper, which he has edited ably and satis- 
factorily. This four-page folio has been de- 
voted to the dissemination of Republican 
principles since the organization of that jjolit- 
ical party. Besides its present owner and 
editor several men of note served an appren- 
ticeship on this paper in their boyhood, among 
whom Merrill E. Gates, President of Amherst 
College, and William H. Merrill, the present 
editorial manager of the New York World -Axe 
conspicuous. 

Mr. Dudley was married April 25, 1850, 
to Miss Sarah Jane Hogarth, of Geneva, a 
daughter of John S. Hogarth, of that place, 
and Mary Shethar Hogarth, whose father, Cap- 
tain John Shethar, acquired a military reputa- 
tion during the Revolutionary War. Mr. and 
Mrs. Dudley's marriage was blessed by the 
advent of seven children, two sons and five 
daughters — William, died while a student at 
Temple Hill School of Geneseo, where he 
gave promise of unusual cleverness; Mary, 
who graduated from the Warsaw Union 
School, and who taught for some years, is 
assistant editor on her father's paper; Martha, 
who attended school in Warsaw; and Eliza- 
beth, who married Mr. Charles E. Ketchum, 
of the same town. Two children died in 
infancy. The handsome residence on Park 
Street, in which the family now reside, was 
built in 1864. During the Civil War Mr. 
Dudley was a volunteer in Company K, 
Seventeenth New York Infantry, and was at 
the first battle of Bull Run and at the engage- 
ment at Fort Ellsworth, near Alexandria. 



After serving one year as First Lieutenant, he 
returned and served as Provost Marshal until 
the end of the war. 

Mr. Dudley has had besides his own busi- 
ness affairs various municipal and other public 
duties to fulfil. He has been Clerk of the 
Board of Supervisors fourteen years, Loan 
Commissioner three years. County Treasurer 
six years, and Deputy Provost Marshal three 
years. He is an Elder of the Presbyterian 
church in Warsaw. He was one of the char- 
ter members of the New York Press Associa- 
tion, formed in Elmira in 1856, where a close 
friendship was formed between Charles G. 
Fairman and himself. The prosperity which 
crowns and the energy which achieves success 
merit the "braves" of the spectators who 
watch the life-play of the public man from the 
pit and gallery of the world's theatre; nor do 
well-deserved plaudits ever seem in bad taste. 
From this standpoint no hesitation is felt in 
awarding to the subject of this memoir the 
palm he has won from early boyhood. 



SThec 



HEODORE F. OLMSTED, Cashier of 
jj the Genesee Valley National Bank of 
Geneseo, a prominent and influential 
citizen of the village, was born at Lakeville, 
Livingston County, September 16, 1836. 
His father, Lucius F. Olmsted, who was born 
March 10, 1796, was a native of Vermont, as 
was also his grandfather, Asher, being a life- 
long resident of that State. 

Lucius F. Olmsted was educated in the dis- 
trict schools of his native town, and reared to 
agricultural pursuits. While still a young 
man, he came to New York State, first set- 
tling at Cayuga Bridge, where he contracted 
for a portion of the Seneca Canal, two miles 
of which he constructed. In 1835 he erected 
the saw and flour mills at Lakeville, still 
known as the Olmsted Mills, which he oper- 
ated until 1854. In 1858 he removed to 
Geneseo, where he lived in retirement until 
his decease, which occurred October 15, 
1868, at the age of seventy-two. He was a 
man of much energy and of large business ex- 
perience, and was an enterprising and valued 
citizen. The maiden name of his wife was 



i86 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Emeline Willard. She was born at Cayuga 
Bridge, November i, 1805, daughter of Lor- 
ing Willard, of that town. They were married 
at the above-named place during the period in 
which Mr. Olmsted was engaged in construct- 
ing the canal, the ceremony being celebrated 
April 9, 1822. They became the parents of 
nine children. The eldest, Loring W., born 
March 12, 1823, died January 4, 1868, aged 
forty-five; Frances A., Lucius Asher, and N. 
Frances E. are deceased; Franklin W. Olm- 
sted died about 1869, aged thirty-eight; Will- 
iam H., born 1828, died in 1884, aged fifty- 
six. The following sons and one daughter 
are still living: Mary L., wife of Asahel W. 
Daniels, of Geneseo, N.Y. ; Theodore F., the 
subject of this sketch; and Charles Edward 
D., of St. Paul, Minn. The mother died 
April 4, 1887, aged eighty-two years. 

Theodore F. Olmsted received the first 
rudiments of his education in the district 
schools. He then entered the Canandaigua 
Academy, where he studied for two years. 
's clerkship at Geneseo 
former institution, and 
On August 16, 1853, he 
entered the employ of Bishop & Olmsted at 
Geneseo, and stayed with them until F"ebruary 
24, 1858, when he accepted a position in the 
Genesee Valley National Bank as book-keeper 
and teller. After more than twenty years of 
faithful service, on June 25, 1881, he received 
the appointment of Assistant Cashier, and on 
December 17, 1884, was made Cashier, which 
position he still holds, and has the entire con- 
fidence of the officials. June g, 1877, he was 
elected a Director of the bank; and at the 
present time he is a leading power in all mat- 
ters relating to the institution. Mr. Olmsted 
is one of the foremost in all local public 
affairs. He is Secretary and Treasurer of the 
Temple Hill Cemetery, and Secretary and 
Treasurer of the Geneseo Gas and Electric 
Light Company, and Treasurer of the Geneseo 
Driving Park Association. He is a member 
of the Board of Water Commissioners, also 
Secretary and Treasurer of the board and Bus- 
iness Manager, to which he was elected in 
1887, and is a director of the Geneseo glove 
and mitten factory. He is a member of the 



Then after one year 
he returned to the 
finished the course. 



Board of Health, and has been elected a Trus- 
tee of the village for several terms. ' He is a 
stanch supporter of the Republican party, and, 
having been elected to the office of County 
Treasurer, found time to serve in that capacity 
from 1870 to 1875. 

On May 13, 1861, Mr. Olmsted married 
Miss Laura E. Bissell, daughter of the late 
Daniel H. Bissell, who was for forty years a 
practitioner of high repute in Geneseo. Dr. 
Bissell was for six years connected with the 
floating hospital in New York City, and had 
held many public offices in the village, where 
he was Assessor, Supervisor, and United 
States Assessor of Internal Revenues. He 
passed his declining years at the home of his 
daughter. Mr. and Mrs. Olmsted have had but 
one child, who died in infancy. They are 
prominent members of the Presbyterian 
church, Mr. Olmsted being a Trustee, and his 
wife an earnest worker in the Sunday-school 
and missionary matters. Mr. Olmsted is a 
man of progressive ideas, a skilful and judi- 
cious financier, a liberal contributor to all de- 
serving charities, and an enthusiastic worker 
for the general welfare of the community. 
His sturdy adherence to honesty and faith- 
ful attention to his duties have brought 
him to his present high position, which is 
in truth a just reward for an exemplary busi- 
ness career. 




ILLIAM COGSWELL, the manager 
of an extensive lumber yard at the 
foot of Canal Street, Dansville, 
N.V., is held in high repute throughout this 
portion of Livingston County as a man of fair 
business dealings and upright personal charac- 
ter. He was born in Dansville, October 3, 
1850, and is the offspring of an old Connecti- 
cut family, his father and paternal grand- 
father, both of whom were baptized Daniel 
Cogswell, being natives of that State. The 
senior Daniel remained there until of middle 
age, when he removed to Schuyler County, 
New York, where he bought and improved a 
small farm, on which he passed the remainder 
of his life. He was twice married, the father 
of William being a child of his second union. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



187 



Daniel Cogswell, Jr., was reared to man- 
hood in Schuyler County, received a good 
common-school education, and was thoroughly 
initiated into the mysteries of agriculture on 
the parental homestead. Some time during 
the forties he came to this county, and lo- 
cated in Dansville, where for many years he 
kept a grocery store. In 1855 he began 
dealing in lumber, selling to the wholesale 
trade in Rochester. Four years later, having 
already secured a good start, he established 
the business now carried on by his son Will- 
iam, continuing it until the time of his de- 
cease, in February, 1876, at the age of fifty- 
seven years. While in Schuyler County he 
wooed and won the affections of Miss Hettie 
Owen; and their happy union was gladdened 
by the birth of three children — Mary E., 
Elura, and the subject of this sketch. Mary 
is now the wife of J. J. Gilder, of Dansville; 
and Elura married Henry C. Fenstermacher. 
The mother is still living; and the son makes 
his home with her, devoting himself to her 
comfort and happiness. Daniel Cogswell, 
Jr., was quite prominent in this section of the 
county, actively interested in its political and 
religious welfare, and was for many years an 
ordained minister of the Advent church, 
preaching in Dansville and the surrounding 
towns. He held many high public offices, 
serving several years as Justice of the Peace, 
besides which he was village Trustee, Asses- 
sor, and Highway Commissioner, receiving 
the nomination of both political parties, 
although he was a stanch Democrat. 

Since the death of his father William Cogs- 
well has carried on the lumber business, 
greatly increasing its extent, and has also suc- 
ceeded in a large measure to the position 
formerly occupied by his father in the man- 
agement of local and county matters, having 
served continuously the past twelve years as 
the village Assessor and town Assessor, and 
for many years was a member of the Protec- 
tive Fire Company of this town, but is now 
exempt from active duty, although an hon- 
orary member of the company. In politics he 
has followed the teachings of his youthful 
days, and is an ardent supporter of the Dem- 
ocratic ticket. Socially, Mr. Cogswell is a 



member of the Maccabees, being at present 
Commander of the local society. 



J">< AVID ANDRUS, one of the leading 
=^ business men of Perry, Wyoming 
9/ County, N.Y., was born at Shafts- 
bury, Bennington County, Vt., Oc- 
tober 10, 1825, son of David,_Sr., and Mary 
(Park) Andrus. His grandfather, Isaac An- 
drus, a native of Connecticut, and an early 
settler in the Green Mountain State, pur- 
chased a tract of land, on which he built a 
tavern, where he resided until he died, at the 
age of eighty. He had five sons, all of whom 
moved West very early except David, the 
youngest, who purchased his father's farm 
and tavern, and carried it on for forty years, 
making in that time several trips to Cayuga 
and Wyoming Counties, New York, moving- 
families. While on one of these, in 18 10, he 
bought one hundred and sixty acres of land, 
situated where the village of Wyoming now 
stands, and where his uncle Isaac had already 
located and had a log tavern. 

In 1833 David Andrus, Sr., removed his 
family to Wyoming County, where he had 
some years before purchased a tract of im- 
proved land in the town of Castile, situated 
west of Silver Lake. There he remained 
until his wife died, and then removed to 
Perry, residing with his son David until his 
decease. He was born March 29, 1779, and 
died February 8, 1861. His wife was born 
January 9, 1787, and died March 2, 1839. 
They were members of the Baptist church. Of 
their children two died young; and the 
others were as follows: Abi, born February, 
1803; Orretta, born February 13, 1805; F"ree- 
love, born June 15, 1807; John P., born May 
22, 1809; Martin, born F"ebruary 22, 1811; 
Nelson, born January 30, 1813; William M., 
born May 11, 181 5; Columbus, born Septem- 
ber 8, 1822; and David, born October 10, 
1825. 

David was the youngest child of the family. 
He was educated in district schools, and at 
the age of twelve commenced work for one of 
his older brothers at one dollar per month 
and three months' schooling per year. His 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



wages being raised, he continued thus em- 
ployed for seven years, and then went to 
Virginia, where he speculated in lumber, and 
remained three years. In 1849 he went to 
California by the water route, and there en- 
gaged in mining, making sixteen hundred dol- 
lars in four months, clear of all expenses. 
On account of the failure of the water supply 
he went to the north fork of the American 
River, and worked on the bars, but was at last 
taken ill, his companions being already dis- 
abled; and, giving away his interest, he 
started for the mountains, driving a team of 
mules, loaded with provisions, which he sold 
to the miners with some success. He con- 
tinued at this business until his wagon 
accidentally overturned upon the side of a 
mountain, causing him to lose about four hun- 
dred dollars. He then started to return East; 
but, while in San Francisco, he decided to 
remain there, and, selling mules and outfit, 
he bought a cargo of hogs, and for two years 
successfully conducted a butchering business. 
Returning to Castile, N.Y., he purchased two 
hundred and sixty acres of land, situated on 
the west side of Silver Lake. This farm was 
improved by Mr. .Seymour, and includes a 
large orchard grown from seeds planted by 
Mrs. Seymour. Mr. Andrus resided for 
some years on his farm, and then removed to 
the village of Perry, where he purchased forty- 
two and one-half acres, and raised hops for 
three years, after which he purchased the mill 
property of Wycoff & Tuttel. He remod- 
elled the mill, and now does job sawing, 
manufacturing sashes and blinds and doors, 
and deals in all kinds of lumber. His pleas- 
ant residence is located on Centre Street. 

On January 19, 1854, Mr. Andrus married 
Harriet Palmer, of Castile, who was born May 
20, 1 83 1, daughter of Alton and Harriet 
(Beardsley) Palmer, a sketch of whom appears 
elswhere. 

Mrs. Harriet P. Andrus died on June 2, 
1865, leaving four children — William P., 
Charles A., Daniel S., and Ray. William 
P. Andrus, born April 12, 1856, married 
Mary White, resides in Perry, and has one 
child, D. Earl. Charles A. Andrus, born June 
4, 1858, married Agnes Wiley, has one son, 



Harry, lives in Saginaw, Mich., and is in the 
marble business. Daniel S. Andrus, born 
November 6, 1 861, is an extensive hardware 
dealer in Castile. He married Mattie Sweet- 
ing; and they have one child, Bessie. The 
father of Mrs. Andrus was Professor Henry 
Sweeting, who was born in Holland, and died 
in Livingston County, at the age of sixty 
years. Ray Andrus, born May 18, 1865, is 
an able and enterprising young business man 
of Perry, taking a great interest in political 
matters. 

In 1868 Mr. David Andrus married for the 
second time, the lady being Martha J. Palmer, 
who was born January 8, 1835. She is a 
member of Eastern Star at Perry, and admi- 
rably fills the place of mother to his children. 
Mr. Andrus is a Republican in politics, has 
been Assessor six years, and held other town 
offices. 



vania, 
York, 



OSEPH N. RIPPEY, a native of Sen- 
eca, Ontario County, N.Y., was born 
on January 31, 1828. His father, 
Hugh Rippey, was born in Pennsyl- 
from which State he came to New 
and settled in Seneca at an early date 
of the latter place's history. 

The farmer-bred young Pennsylvanian im- 
mediately purchased a piece of land in the 
vicinity of the village, and began the arduous 
task of clearing away the growth of timber. 
As soon as this was accomplished, he built a 
small frame house, in which he lived for the 
space of a dozen years. At the expiration of 
this period he sold that property, and bought 
a farm of one hundred and fifty acres near the 
town of La Grange. A new dwelling-house 
was shortly erected on the premises, and its 
owner remained here for another twelve years. 
His final place of residence was York, in 
Livingston County, to which place he came 
after disposing satisfactorily of the La Grange 
property. The York farm, of which he took 
possession in 1856, covered an area of one 
hundred and fifty acres, and lay in the south- 
east part of the town. Here he died in 1861, 
in the seventy-eighth year of his age. 

His wife, Priscilla Bell, was, like himself. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



189 



a native of Pennsylvania. From their mar- 
riage ten children were born — Mary A., 
John, William, Matilda, Joseph N., Hiram 
B., Hugh, Salina, Priscilla E., and James. 
Five of these are still living in the vicinity 
of their birthplace. Mrs. Hugh Rippey was 
seventy years old at the date of her death. 

Joseph N. Rippey was educated in the dis- 
trict school of York. When a young man, 
he bought a farm in Covington, Wyoming 
County, but sold it three years later, and re- 
turned to York, where he has since resided. 
Some fortunate speculations in land made in 
his youth brought him quite a sum of money, 
and proved his sagacity in practical and finan- 
cial matters. He was married to Miss Mary 
Donnan, to whom two children were born. 
By a sad and somewhat unusual fatality his 
entire family was taken from him by the fell 
hand of death, and he was left a childless 
widower. 

By a second marriage to Miss Hester L. 
Boyd, two other children were born to Mr. 
Rippey; namely, Harlan W., who is a grad- 
uate of the State normal school, and Joseph- 
ine E. Mr. and Mrs. Rippey are happily 
allied in Christian faith, both being members 
of the United Presbyterian church. Mr. Rip- 
pey was in early life a Democrat, but has 
lately voted with the Prohibitionists. His 
first Presidential vote was cast for Franklin 
Pierce in 1852. 




ILLIAM W. WISE, the subject of 
this sketch, was born in Groveland, 
Livingston County, N.Y., August 
2, 1 84 1. His parents were Andrew and 
Lydia (Sutfin) Wise, natives of New Jersey, 
who came to this county in 1830, and bought 
a farm in Groveland, on which they resided 
until the year 1865. They then purchased 
another farm in the town of Geneseo, and 
lived thereon for two years, when they re- 
moved to East Groveland, called also Hunt's 
Corners, where the father died the same year, 
1867, aged sixty-three years. He was a suc- 
cessful farmer, and acquired a fair compe- 
tence. Mrs. Lydia S. Wise continued to live 
in the same place until January, 1892, when 



she died at the ripe age of eighty-nine years, 
greatly respected by all who knew her. She 
was a devoted member of the Methodist 
church, and did herself credit in zealously 
doing her part to help make the world better. 

Eight of the ten children born to this 
couple grew to maturity; namely, Celina A. 
Buck, Abrani S., Sarah J. Gray, Mary L. 
Bridges, Jerome, Walter S., William W., and 
Weltha G. Ward. Two others died in in- 
fancy. All are still living except Abram S., 
who died in Michigan in 1891. Celina and 
Mary reside in Michigan; Jerome and Walter 
in Washington, D.C.; Sarah and Weltha in 
Groveland. There are at the present time 
twenty-five grandchildren and fifteen great- 
grandchildren of Andrew and Lydia Wise. 

William W. Wise purchased the homestead 
farm soon after the death of his father, and 
still owns it. He was married in 1869 to 
Frances Magee, daughter of Colonel John 
Magee and his wife, Mariet Patchen Magee. 
The former died in 1891 and the latter in 
1893. Each had an inheritance of good 
blood, and both were leading characters in 
every noble enterprise. They were successful 
in amassing property, owning at their death 
about eight hundred acres of land in Grove- 
land. From their union five children are liv- 
ing out of ten born — Dr. Charles M. ; Walter 
W., a lawyer in Syracuse; John C. ; Edward 
M. and Evangie Gray in Groveland. 

To William W. and Frances M. Wise five 
children were born, all, except one who died 
in infancy, still living. Blanche was born 
October 16, 1871 ; Edward R., September 4, 
1873; John M., August 10, 1876; and 
Charles W., January 25, 1879. 

All are attending the State normal school 
at Geneseo, Edward R. being in the class of 
189s and Blanche in the class of 1896. The 
mother, Mrs. Frances M. Wise, died May 26, 
1893, after a brief illness of pneumonia. She 
was greatly esteemed in her native town, a 
devoted member of the Presbyterian church 
for over twenty years, a woman of decided 
convictions, and exerted considerable influ- 
ence in her community. For a while she was 
at the head of the Ladies' Missionary Society, 
and she taught a Bible class for several years. 



igo 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Mr. Wise removed to Geneseo in 1893, to 
give his children the advantages of the nor- 
mal school here, conceded to be the best in 
the State. In politics he has always been 
identified with the Republican party, and has 
held some offices of trust, such as that of 
Highway Commissioner and Justice of the 
Peace. He is at present Deputy County 
Clerk. 






LLEN MERCHANT, late of Warsaw, 
Wyoming County, New York, was 
born in Washington County, April 
10, 1814. His father, Josiah Mer- 
chant, a native of Massachusetts, moved to 
Warsaw in the early years of the century, and 
bought sixty acres of partially improved land, 
upon which there was already a log house and 
barn. There was still wild game in this 
vicinity; and the busy housewife could evolve 
a dinner fit for royalty after a day's hunt, 
when the sportsman of even ordinary skill was 
sure to bag a wild turkey, grouse, partridges, 
or even a fat buck. 

Josiah Merchant married Miss Polly Camet, 
a native of the State in which he was born. 
They were both in the communion of the 
Presbyterian church, and both died at the 
home of their son Allen, at the respective 
ages of sixty-eight and seventy-eight. Ten 
children were born to them, three of whom 
grew up — ■ Orrin, who is a farmer in Wiscon- 
sin; Allen, the subject of this memoir; 
Eleazer, a farmer in South Warsaw. In poli- 
tics the father was a Whig. 

Allen Merchant was a little boy of eight 
years when he came with his father to War- 
saw; and he continued to live in the same 
town, giving his whole attention to practical 
farming, and, as the result, at the time of his 
death he owned one of the largest farms in 
Warsaw. In 1843 he was married to Miss 
Olive Barnard, who was a native of the vil- 
lage. She died in 1846; and Mr. Merchant 
married for his second wife Lucy Asenath 
Bryant, who was born in Weathersfield, Vt., 
on the 8th of December, 1820. She now sur- 
vives her husband, whose death occurred No- 
vember 30, 1894. 



Mrs. Lucy A. Merchant's maternal grand- 
father was a Revolutionary soldier. Her 
father, Martin Bryant, was a native of Massa- 
chusetts, who moved to Vermont, where he 
farmed. Her mother, Rhoda Bixby Bryant, 
was born in Vermont. Both parents were 
conscientious members of the Baptist church. 
Mr. Bryant, who was a stanch Whig, scarcely 
reached the meridian of life, dying at forty 
years of age. His wife attained the age of 
sixty-four years. Three of their five children 
are now living — Lucy (Mrs. Merchant); 
Lydia, who resides in Warsaw; and Calvin, a 
farmer in the same town. Mr. Merchant by 
his first marriage had one son, Wesley, who 
is a farmer. Three children were born of the 
second union — a daughter, Helen, now Mrs. 
George Burns, of Warsaw; Edwin J. Mer- 
chant, who lives at home, and is unmarried; 
and Olive A., who died aged ten years. 

It is needless to make further comment 
upon Mr. Merchant's life-work than to say he 
commenced without the aid of capital or influ- 
ence, and that his success was attained by 
dint of his own unaided efforts. After reach- 
ing his twenty-first year it is recorded of him 
that he did not disdain to work out for one 
season at twelve dollars a month; and his 
tract of land consisted of only fifty acres, 
which gradually expanded into a finely culti- 
vated farm of four hundred. 

Mr. Allen Merchant, like his wife, was lib- 
eral in religious views, not bound by any 
particular creed; and he was politically a 
Democrat. 

This brief sketch is happily supplemented 
by a portrait of the respected citizen whom it 
commemorates, 

■■ Who. having won 
The bound of man's appointed years, at last, 
Life's blessings all enjoyed, life's labors done. 
Serenely to his final rest has passed." 




fl, lERRIMAN J. WILNER, a well- 
known and highly esteemed farmer 



of Portage, Livingston County, 
N.Y., was born in this town, De- 
cember 12, 1827. He commenced his educa- 
tion at the district schools of his native 
village, and supplemented his primary studies 




ALLEN MERCHANT. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



193 



with a course of advanced instruction at Pro- 
fessor Buck's select school. He has always 
followed agricultural pursuits as a means of 
livelihood, and his entire life has been passed 
within the locality of his birth. 

Mr. Wilner married Sarah Sanford, who is 
the daughter of David and Esther (Staples) 
Sanford, of Redding, Conn., and a sister of 
Mr. Hiram Smith, of Portage. Two children 
have been born to them — Merton M. and Es- 
tella J. The latter is now the wife of W. P. 
Wilder, and resides at Warsaw, having one 
child, Ruth. Their son, Merton M. Wilner, 
a most capable and promising young man, is 
now associate editor of the Buffalo Daily 
Express. He married Miss Edith Whitehead, 
of Nunda; and they have two children — Dor- 
othy and Ortha. 

Mr. Wilner, although past his sixty-seventh 
year, still continues actively engaged in the 
cultivation of his extensive and well-managed 
farm, and enjoys not only a well-earned pros- 
perity, but the sincere respect and confidence 
of his fellow-townsmen. He has held many 
positions of public trust, among them that of 
Supervisor for two terms. Highway Commis- 
sioner for five years, and Assessor for three 
years. He is also a member of the Masonic 
fraternity. In politics Mr. Wilner has been 
a stanch supporter of Republican principles 
ever since the organization of that party. He 
cast his first Presidential vote for General 
Winfield Scott in 1852. Considering the 
fact that a farmer's' lot is not all sunshine, 
and that difficulties are constantly arising 
which must be coped with and surmounted in 
order to reach a position of ease, Mr. Wilner 
has every reason to look with pride at his 
prosperous circumstances, which are the result 
and just reward of a busy and satisfactory 
career. 



"TlVrVARTIN VAN BUREN ALVORD, 
t: I zJ a leading and influential member 
J J|L ( of the farming community of 
^"^ Mount Morris, is a grandson of 
the original proprietor of the farm which he 
now owns and occupies. As early as 1823 
Stephen Alvord, formerly of Vermont, wended 



his way into the wilderness, and built a log 
house near the spot where the present family 
dwelling now stands. The location is most 
beautiful and picturesque, overlooking the 
Coshaqua Creek valley, and the view from the 
residence embracing many miles of territory. 
An extended history of the Alvord family will 
be found in the sketch of George P. Alvord, 
on another page of this volume. 

Martin V. B. Alvord, to whom we refer, 
was born on the twenty-first day of April, 
1835, being a son of Phineas and Rachael 
(Lemcn) Alvord. He was reared to habits of 
industry and thrift, and as soon as physically 
able began to assist his father on the home 
farm. He remained with his parents until 
his marriage, and then settled on a farm in 
West Sparta, where he lived five years. 
After spending the next five years on the old 
homestead, Mr. Alvord removed to Kent 
County, Michigan, and purchased a farm in 
the town of Ada, twelve miles east of Grand 
Rapids. One year later he sold it at an ad- 
vance, and, changing his place of residence to 
Grand Rapids, remained there a year. Re- 
turning then to the scenes of his childhood, 
he became once more an occupant of the 
homestead, to the ownership of which he suc- 
ceeded after the death of his parents, and 
where he has since been actively and prosper- 
ously engaged in general farming, his time and 
energies being fully occupied in the prosecu- 
tion of his chosen calling. His father left an 
estate of five hundred and ninety-seven acres. 

On December 25, 1861, Mr. Alvord was 
united in marriage with Abbie J. Daniels, a 
native of the town of Nunda and a daughter of 
Warner Daniels, who was of New England 
birth, Vermont being the State of his nativity. 
He was a son of John Daniels, who was one of 
the earliest settlers of Cayuga County, where 
his last years were passed. Ezra Daniels, the 
great-grandfather of Mrs. Alvord,. was a resi- 
dent of the Mohawk valley at the breaking 
out of the Revolutionary War, and at one 
time, when returning from the mill with 
grist, was captured by the Indians, and kept a 
prisoner for some time. He finally made his 
escape, and afterward served as a soldier in 
the Revolutionary army. 



194 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



The father of Mrs. Alvord was quite young 
when he came with his parents to the Empire 
State. He was reared and married in Cayuga 
County, residing there until 1823, when, ac- 
companied by his young wife, he came with 
teams bringing his household effects to Liv- 
ingston County. At that time there was but 
one house where the village of Nunda now 
stands, the surrounding country being in its 
original wildness. Mr. Daniels there took 
up his abode for a while, and then removed to 
Hunt's Hollow, where he followed his trade 
of a fuller for about ten years, going from that 
place to Covington, Wyoming County, where 
he purchased a home. He was employed at 
various kinds of work during the years that 
followed, but finally came to live with his 
daughter, Mrs. Alvord, and died at her home 
September 24, 18S1. The maiden name of the 
wife of Warner Daniels was Mary Cox. She 
was born in Scipio, Cayuga County, and was 
a daughter of Jacob Cox, a pioneer of that 
town. Mrs. Daniels passed to the higher life 
October 7, 1882, leaving ten children — John, 
Lucy, Gordon, William, George, Clinton, 
Abbie J. (Mrs. Alvord), Seneca, Julia, and 
Hiram. 

Into the pleasant household of Mr. and 
Mrs. Alvord eight children have been born, 
namely: Mary; Phineas; George; Julia; 
James; and Burt; Frank C, the eldest child, 
who died September 19, 1873, aged ten years 
and nine months; and Lewis, the fourth 
child, who died February 4, 1873, aged five 
years and nine months. In religious affairs 
Mr. Alvord is identified with the Protestant 
Methodist church, of which he and his wife 
have been consistent members for many years. 
Entirely independent in politics, he is bound 
by no particular platform, and votes for men, 
not measures. 



JUFrAXK WILSON, a stationer, book- 
ie seller, and druggist in the town of 
Warsaw, Wyoming County, N.Y., was 
born in Geneseo, Livingston County, July 28, 
1846. His father, William J. Wilson, was a 
native of Pennsylvania, where he was born in 
1808. He died in Geneseo in 1891. He was 



in early life a farmer, but became a grocer in 
Geneseo. He was a stanch Democrat always, 
and held the office of Under Sheriff in the 
county of his adoption. Mr. William J. Wil- 
son married Miss Mary Garvin, of Vermont, 
whose father was a participant in the famous 
battle of Lake Champlain. They reared only 
two children — George B. and Frank, whose 
name is the text of the present sketch. 

The former, who was in his youth a pupil 
of the Geneseo Academy, went to Tennessee 
when he was but eighteen years old, as 
a teacher. He afterward was engaged as a 
dealer in general merchandise, and won many 
friends during his long commercial career in 
the South. A short time before his death he, 
with his wife and daughter, went to Dawson 
Springs, N.Y., hoping that the waters and 
climatic change, together with complete rest, 
would restore his health. It was a vain 
quest, for on the 30th of May, 1894, he died, 
aged fifty-six years. The resolutions drawn 
up by the bank officers and the general sincere 
regret that was manifested by those who had 
been his business associates, as well as the 
sorrow of a large circle of friends, attested the 
profound respect and esteem in which he was 
held. The other son, whose career is chroni- 
cled herein, began his business life when a 
lad of seventeen, as a drug clerk. In 1867 he 
came to Warsaw, where he has since re- 
mained, and entered the apothecary shop as a 
salesman. Two years later he was employed 
by James O. McClure in the same capacity, 
and in 1871 formed a partnership with Dr. 
Smith. This firm was dissolved eight years 
after by the death of its senior member, and 
Mr. Wilson has conducted the business from 
that time alone. 

On September 5, 1871, Mr. Frank Wilson 
was married to Miss Frances Julia Buxton, a 
daughter of Mr. Timothy H. Buxton. The 
wedded life of Mr. and Mrs. Wilson has not 
been altogether free from the "shadow and 
thorn" of life; for they have lost one child, 
Mary, a little girl of ten years, who, after 
three days of acute suffering with that fatal 
scourge, diphtheria, died October 30, 1885. 

Another daughter was sent to gladden the 
desolated hearts of the parents, and is now a 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



'95 



bright, merry little girl of eleven. Mr. Wil- 
son has held the offices of village President 
and Treasurer, and is a stockholder in the 
Electric Light Company and the Empire 
Dairy Salt Company. He is a Master Mason 
and politically a Democrat. Their pleasant 
home on North Main Street was built in 
1887, and Mr. and Mrs. Wilson are among 
the popular householders of the town of 
Warsaw. 



/§Yo 



EORGE W. JACKMAN, a retired 
\ •) I farmer, living in Geneseo, has borne 
an active part in developing the agri- 
cultural resources of Livingston County, and 
is held in much respect as a man of high 
moral principles and a useful citizen. He 
was born in Sibleyville, in the town of Men- 
don, Monroe County, February 19, 1826, and 
comes of excellent New England ancestry, 
being a grandson of Moses Jackman, who was 
born and reared in New Hampshire. He was 
a tiller of the soil, and spent a part of his life 
in Vermont, but removed to Boscawen, N.H., 
where he passed his last days. 

Moses Jackman, Jr., son of the elder Moses, 
when a young man migrated to this State, and 
worked for a while in Mendon at the carpen- 
ter's trade, but later, in 1828, removed to 
Livonia, in this county, on to a farm belong- 
ing to his wife, and resided there until his 
death in 1861, at the good old age of eighty- 
six years. He was twice married, and by 
his first wife, Rhoda Collins, had five chil- 
dren, all now deceased. His second wife was 
Betsey Beecher, a daughter of Hezekiah 
Beecher. Her father came to this county 
with his family from Litchfield, Conn., when 
she was seventeen years old, and took up a 
tract of timber land in Livonia, the tract 
being one mile square, if we except one hun- 
dred and fifty acres which had been previously 
taken; and the farm of Mr. Jackman is a por- 
tion of the original claim. Seven children 
were born to Moses, Jr., and Betsey (Beecher) 
Jackman; namely, Emerett Eliza, who mar- 
ried Joel A. Booth; Moses Lyman; Matilda 
A.; Rachel B., who married William Cal- 
vert; Hezekiah R. ; Charles A.; and George 



W. ; and of these four are still living. The 
mother spent her last years on the old home- 
stead, where she died in 1869, at the advanced 
age of eighty-six years. She was a sincere 
Christian woman and an esteemed member of 
the Presbyterian church, while her husband, 
who was equally devout and true in his relig- 
ious convictions, belonged to the Baptist 
church. 

George W. Jackman, the youngest of this 
family, was two years of age when his parents 
moved to Livonia; and he remained a resident 
of that town for nearly threescore years. In 
the district schools he obtained a practical 
education in the common branches of study, 
and on the home farm was well drilled in the 
various branches of agriculture. He assisted 
his father in the pioneer labor of clearing a 
farm from the forest, and after the death of 
his parents bought out the interest of the re- 
maining heirs in the homestead, where he en- 
gaged in general farming until his retirement 
from the activities of life. His farm, which 
he still owns, but which is under the super- 
vision of his eldest son, is one of the finest 
in this region, and as regards its equipments 
is one of the best in the county. In 1886 
Mr. Jackman moved to his pleasant home on 
Prospect Street, Geneseo, where he is living, 
surrounded by the comforts that make life 
enjoyable. 

The maiden name of the wife of Mr. Jack- 
man, to whom he was united in 1858, was 
Jane E. Cowles. She was born in Brighton, 
Monroe County, being a daughter of Benjamin 
Cowles. The home was brightened by the 
birth of seven children; and of these four are 
now living. George Washington Jackman, Jr., 
a graduate of the Rochester Business College, 
married Harriet E. Tyler, the daughter of 
Byron A. Tyler, and they have three children 
— Ruth, Walter Fisk, and Donald Tyler; 
Lizzie Marie, who was graduated from the 
Geneseo Normal School, has won distinction 
as a very successful teacher in Steuben and 
Allegany Counties; Rellie E., who graduated 
in art under Professor Wiles, of Perry, has 
superior native talent, and exhibits much skill 
in painting; L. Ward B., the youngest son, is 
a student in the normal school. In politics 



196 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Mr. Jackman is a strong supporter of the Pro- 
hibition ticket, and an earnest worker in every 
movement tending to advance the welfare of 
the town or county. Religiously, he belongs 
to the Livonia Presbyterian church. 




'AMUEL HORACE JACOBS, who 
operates a large and well-cultivated 
farm near Mount Morris, Living- 
ston County, was born in Barnstead, 
Belknap County, N.H., December 20, 1839. 
His grandfather, Samuel Jacobs, was, so far 
as is known, a native and life-long resident of 
the same town. He was a soldier in the War 
of 1812, his widow, whose maiden name was 
Sally Tuttle, and who was a native of New 
Hampshire, receiving a pension for his ser- 
vices. Daniel Jacobs, the father of the sub- 
ject of this .sketch, was also born in Barn- 
stead, N.H., and was brought up to farm life. 
From Barnstead he removed to Sanborn, N.Y., 
where he died in the seventy-fifth year of his 
life. He married Dorothy Tuttle, daughter 
of Joseph and Phebe Tuttle, of Barnstead, 
N.H. She died at the age of fifty-three 
years, and was the mother of the following 
children — Samuel H., Mary, Abigail, Iai- 
cinda, Albert, and Eugene. 

Samuel H. Jacobs was educated in his na- 
tive town, where he resided till September 
II, 1862, when he enlisted in Company H, 
Fifteenth New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry, 
and served about a year. From a wound re- 
ceived at Port Hudson he was confined to the 
hospital for some weeks, and on the expira- 
tion of his term of service joined the regular 
army, and was honorably discharged August 
13, 1863. Returning home he resumed farm- 
ing as soon as he was able, remaining in his 
native place till 1867, when he came to Mount 
Morris, Livingston County, N.Y. Here he 
farmed for ten years, and then removed to 
Leicester, where he spent another ten years at 
the same occupation, in 1887 renting the 
Wadsworth farm near Mount Morris, where he 
has since resided, operating three hundred 
acres of land. 

In 1871 he married Sally J. Nichols, 
daughter of Orrin and Lucy Nichols. They 



have a family of five children; namely, 
Charles, Bert, Elmer, Ella, and Ethel. Mrs. 
Jacobs is an active member and earnest worker 
in the Baptist church. Mr. Jacobs is a mem- 
ber of the J. E. Lee Post, No. 281, Grand 
Army of the Republic, and also of Belwood 
Lodge, No. 315, Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows. He is a man highly regarded by his 
fellow-townsmen for his sterling qualities of 
honesty, industry, and intelligence; and both 
he and his wife have no lack of warm friends 
and well-wishers. 



OHN SOWERBY, a farmer of Castile, 
Wyoming County, N.Y., noted for his 
superior ability and progressive ideas, 
was born in this picturesque location, 
January 19, 1834. He is a son of John and 
Jane (Brown) Sowerby; and his ancestral line 
goes back to the grandparents' time in the 
mother country, the native place of George 
and Elizabeth Sowerby being the city of Hull, 
Yorkshire, England. Though this grand- 
father was fixed by fate to live and die a sub- 
ject of the realm, yet he doubtless lived long 
enough to realize that America would furnish 
a republican government for whatever farmer 
might choose to emigrate to its virgin soil. 
The date of the death of George Sowerby is 
not easy to verify at this distance; but it is 
recorded that he left eight children, whose 
names are: John, George, Dorothea, Eliza- 
beth, Francis, Jacob, Thomas, and Martha. 

Mrs. Sowerby married for a second husband 
James Clark, a native of Yorkshire, who came 
to America five years before his wife, and 
died at Hudson, N.Y. She came with her 
five children in 1832. His son, Thomas 
Clark, who was a miller, found work at differ- 
ent places, and finally settled at Oswego, 
N.Y.; but later, there being a promising 
opening for him in Buffalo, he removed to 
that city, where he became an extensive grain 
dealer, and built some large elevators in con- 
nection with the grain interests. His death 
occurred while living in that city. 

John, the father of the subject of this nar- 
rative, and the eldest son of George Sowerby, 
was born at Hull, Yorkshire, England, Octo- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



•97 



ber 27, 1803. He had a fairly good education 
in his youth; and, after reaching an age in 
which he could act for himself, he came to 
America, and bought fifty acres of land in the 
town of Castile, Wyoming County, on the 
west side of Silver Lake. Awhile after, be- 
coming prosperous, he was able to add one 
hundred and six acres to the first fifty, mak- 
ing an inviting tract of cultivated land of one 
hundred and fifty-six acres in all. This at- 
tractive estate he cultivated from year to year 
till his death, which occurred at the age of 
eighty years, when he passed it on to his son. 

The wife of John Sowerby was Jane, daugh- 
ter of Thomas Brown, who was a native of 
England, settled in Wyoming County, and 
lived to be about eighty years old. His chil- 
dren were named John, Thomas, George, 
Sarah, and Jane. The children of John and 
Jane Sow-erby were ten in number, John, of 
whom this history is given, being the eldest. 
The others are: Elizabeth, Mary A., Sarah, 
Jane, Emma, Martha, Harriet, Clara, Ellen. 
Mrs. Sowerby, who had so many "olive 
branches" about her table, lived to rejoice in 
them all and to receive their grateful care in 
her later years, which reached the sum of 
seventy-seven. 

John Sowerby received an education in the 
district schools, and learned many a secret of 
good management from his father's example 
while growing up in his boyhood on the farm. 
On reaching manhood he bought fifty acres of 
land adjoining his father's domain, and later 
bought the homestead. Now he has all to- 
gether two hundred and fifty-six acres. In 
1887 he built a large and commodious dwell- 
ing-house with capacious barns, also a house 
for rental purposes, besides other small 
buildings. 

Mr. Sowerby was married in i860 to Har- 
riet P. Hutton, who was born in the town of 
Perry, near Warsaw, April 25, 1834, daughter 
of Jonathan and Harriet (Watrous) Hutton. 
Her father belonged to the early and intelli- 
gent race of farmers who flourished in that 
section. He lived to be eighty-five years old, 
and his wife reached the age of eighty-six. 
Their children's names were Frances, Elvira, 
Lucinda, P'rederick, Bradock, Mary, Jonathan, 



Harriet, William, and Emma. The parents 
were both members of the Congregational 
church. 

John Sowerby and his first wife, Harriet, 
were blessed with five children. Alice, born 
December 13, 1861, is now married to 
Thomas C. Sowerby, of Perry Centre. Their 
residence is in Perry; and their three chil- 
dren are Grace, Clara, and Alice. (See 
sketch elsewhere in this volume.) Waller, 
born August 17, 1866, is now married to 
Flora Bliss, and lives on a part of the old 
homestead, with one child, named Bessie. 
Clarence died at the age of twenty years. 
Mary, born August 7, 1871, is the wife of 
Newton Clark, a farmer on the reservation. 
Jessie, the youngest, was born July 21, 1876, 
and has hei' home at the farm'. The domes- 
tic hearth was shadowed a few years ago in 
the loss of Mrs. Harriet Sowerby, who died 
July 15, 1892. She had happily lived to see 
her children grown and most of them settled 
in life, the younger daughter thus far remain- 
ing at home. On February 25, 1895, Mr. 
Sowerby married Mrs. Emma Hutton Jones, 
a sister of his first wife. 

The farm of Mr. Sowerby has a most choice 
situation on the western side of Silver Lake, 
affording a beautiful view of its waters and of 
the surrounding country. Its well-tilled fields 
each year bring forth large crops of wheat, 
oats, barley, corn, besides succulent vegeta- 
bles and a choice variety of large fruits and 
berries. The country may well be proud of 
such development of its natural resources. 
That it should aid by protective legislation 
every effort farmers may make toward a 
higher standard of agricultural production is 
an article in the political creed of many 
highly intelligent and patriotic citizens, in- 
cluding, doubtless, Mr. Sowerby, who is a 
Republican in politics, though not at this 
time an ofifice - holder. 



M 



was 



ARIUS H. WELLS, a native of 
Genesee County, now Wyoming, 
New York, was born March 17, 
1825. His father, James Wells, 
born in Montgomery County, and came 



igS 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



to Genesee County in the year 1S12. His 
farm contained about tliree hundred acres of 
land, and occupied the site of the present vil- 
lage of Peoria. The estate was sold after 
some years; and he came to Livonia, where he 
spent the latter part of his life with his 
daughter, at whose home he died in the 
eighty-seventh year of his age. He married 
Miss Nancy Wells, of Montgomery. Three 
children were born of this union — James H., 
Adeline, and Darius. James H. married Miss 
Mary J. Ripley. He died, leaving a widow 
and two daughters — Florence and Josephine. 
Adeline, who is now Mrs. C. A. Gorton, of 
Lakeville, has no children. 

Darius H., the younger of the two sons of 
James and Nancy Wells, was educated in the 
district schools of Genesee County, and began 
his career in Peoria, where he engaged in 
mercantile business. From Peoria he re- 
moved to Livingston County, and was there 
in business for ten years. At the end of this 
period he went to Chicago, and joined his 
brother in a business enterprise, which con- 
nection was continued until 1864, the date of 
his brother James's death. Mr. Wells then 
conducted the business alone until 1880, when 
he sold his interests, and returned to Lake- 
ville, where he has recently built a handsome 
residence. He has spent two years in Da- 
kota, but has found the State which was the 
home of his early years sufficiently attractive 
to draw him back from his wanderings, and 
induce him to remain as a land-owner and cit- 
izen within its precincts. 

In 1852 Miss Cornelia Kimbark became his 
wife. She was a daughter of Adam C. and 
Sarah (Masten) Kimbark, of Ulster County, 
but residents of Livonia. The married life of 
Mr. and Mrs. Wells has not been entirely 
cloudless; for they have suffered inconsolable 
bereavement in the death of their only son, 
Charles J., who had just reached the threshold 
of manhood when he died in Chicago in 1877, 
aged twenty years. Mr. Wells is a member of 
the Masonic Lodge, and both he and his wife are 
members of the Union Park Congregational 
Church of Chicago. Mr. Wells cast his first 
Presidential vote as a Whig in 1 848, for Zachary 
Taylor. He is now a stanch Republican. 



J^XR. EDWIN L. WOOD, resident 
=1 physician and surgeon in charge at 
9y the Dansville Jackson Sanatorium, 
was born in Eden, Erie County, 
May 18, i860. 

The paternal grandfather, Jonathan Wood, 
came from Saratoga County to Erie County, 
and settled upon a farm in 1797. At that 
time Buffalo had but one frame building, and 
young Wood was one of the very first of the 
pioneer settlers. He put up a rough log 
cabin; and after two years was able to per- 
suade the maiden of his choice to share his 
humble home in the forest, which gradually 
developed a domestic charm under womanly 
guidance. Here a family of children were 
born and reared, three sons and four daughters. 
Here Jonathan Wood lived out far more than 
the old time-allotted threescore years and ten, 
dying at the advanced age of eighty-four years. 
Cyrenius Wood, the second child and el- 
dest son of Jonathan, and the father of Dr. 
Wood of this memoir, was educated in the 
district schools of Erie County, and, remain- 
ing under the paternal roof-tree after attain- 
ing manhood's estate, came into possession of 
the homestead, where he passed the rest of his 
life. He died at fifty-nine years of age. 
The wife of Cyrenius Wood was Miss Ellen 
Claghorn, a daughter of James Miller Clag- 
horn, of Erie County, New York. Mr. Clag- 
horn came originally from Eastern Massachu- 
setts, and settled in North Evans many years 
ago, purchasing a large tract of land and build- 
ing a house. He was a contractor and bridge 
builder in his younger days, and took con- 
tracts for the erection of a number of bridges, 
in which line of work he was widely and fa- 
vorably known. He is now a hale old gentle- 
man of ninety years of "shade and shine" 
within his memory. The mother of Mrs. 
Wood was one of a family of eight children. 
She reared si.x children — Carrie, who married 
Mr. Lucas Carter, of Eden, Erie County, 
N.Y. ; Lyrdon Dwight, a lawyer in Buffalo, 
who married Miss May Stanclift; Adelaide 
and Helen M., teachers, graduates of the 
State normal school; and J. Le Verne. Mrs. 
Wood spent the last years of her life in Eden, 
and died at the age of forty-seven. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



199 



Edwin L. Wood was nineteen years of age 
when his father died. The care and responsi- 
bility then thrown upon the youth, who was 
standing upon the threshold of manhood, was, 
no doubt, an important factor in developing 
his character upon the lines in which it has 
taken distinct shape and form, the lines of 
manly strength and unselfish purpose. He 
took charge of the home farm at Eden for two 
years, and then moved with his mother to 
North Evans, where he took a farm. Previ- 
ous to this period he had taught school during 
the winter seasons, when there was compara- 
tively nothing to do on the farm, and had laid 
up a small sum for himself in this way. In 
the autumn of 1883 he went to Hayward, 
Wis., and took the position of shipping clerk 
for the North Wisconsin Lumber Company, 
but gave up the clerkship the following year, 
and came to the Dansville Sanatorium, where 
he worked his way through the various de- 
partments as a student. The practical knowl- 
edge acquired in this way soon fitted him 
to enter the school of medicine in the Buffalo 
University, where he remained for several 
years. In the spring of 1888 he entered St. 
Barnabas' Hospital at Minneapolis, where he 
for two years and a half devoted himself with 
untiring zeal and devotion to the work. Dur- 
ing the entire period of his stay at St. 
B.irnabas he spent only two nights outside of 
the institution's walls, an almost unprece- 
dented record of professional devotion. His 
services were recognized by the faculty of 
St. Barnabas; and he was appointed Assist- 
ant Surgeon of the Sault Ste. Marie Branch of 
the Canadian Pacific Railroad, and was also 
House Surgeon in the hospital. In 1890 he 
returned to the Sanatorium, from which place 
he went to Boston, and took a course in anat- 
omy, and attended lectures. 

Dr. Wood's talents seem to run in a me- 
chanical as well as an intellectual line; and 
on the 4th of December he patented in the 
United States, Canada, and England a method 
of packing surgical dressings, which he after- 
ward sold to Seabury & Johnson, of New 
York. At the Jackson Sanatorium he con- 
ducts all surgical operations, and is regarded 
as a permanent member of the faculty of that 




institution. Dr. Wood is a member of the 
Livingston County Medical Society. The 
pressure of many professional duties has not 
made him forgetful of religious duties, social 
claims, or public interests; for he is a warm 
partisan of the Republican party, a loyal 
friend and kind neighbor, and a faithful com- 
municant of the Presbyterian church. 



LBERT P. GAGE, a resident of the 
village of Warsaw for the past nine- 
teen years, was born in the town of 
Eagle, in the same county of Wy- 
oming, March 17, 1838. His widowed grand- 
mother came to Eagle from Vermont in 1814 
with her son, Piatt K. Gage, then a child of 
seven years, and three other children, one 
having died. She was twice the mother of 
twins. Two of her sons. Almond and Alva- 
rous, who were twin-born, lived to be respec- 
tively eighty-one and eighty-two years of age. 
His mother was a woman of remarkable physi- 
cal and muscular strength, who retained her 
activity to the close of her life, and of whom 
it is recorded that she walked four miles some 
time in the year before her death, which oc- 
curred at the rarely reached age of ninety-two, 
in Sandwich, 111. 

Piatt K. Gage, who had been thus early left 
fatherless, was taken by his uncle, Jethro 
Grover, with whom he lived until he was 
twenty-one. In 1830 he was married in 
Eagle to Miss Adaline Keyes. Here they 
took up their abode on a farm of one hundred 
and sixty acres, where their five children were 
born. One little daughter, Livonia, died at 
three years of age, on June 16, 1835. The 
four who grew up were: Andrew, a farmer of 
Rushford, Cattaraugus County, where he now 
lives, aged sixty-four; Alta, Mrs. Marshall 
Haskins, of Iowa, who died in that State, Sep- 
tember, 1884, of lingering consumption, 
which finally developed itself, and ran its 
fatal course within six weeks, and of which 
fell disease her two children were soon after 
victims; Albert P., of this memoir; and Au- 
rilla, who married Mr. Jacob Shell, and who 
died at the pathetically youthful age of 
twenty-two years, leaving one daughter. Mr. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



I'hitt K. Gage died on April 19, i860. His 
widow survived him nearly thirty years, dying 
January 5, 1890, aged eighty-two years. Mrs. 
Gage was a woman of fine physique, broad 
mind, and noble nature, a woman to be loved 
and admired, and a mother whose children 
may remember her with pride as well as ten- 
derness. 

Albert P-. Gage received a district-school 
education. He was in his twenty-fifth year 
when he left his home to enlist, August 8, 
1862, as a private in the One Hundred and 
Thirtieth New York Volunteer Infantry, in 
which he served until he was stricken with a 
fever. He was discharged from the hospital 
on the 8th of March, 1865, as a Corporal. 
Returning to his farm immediately upon his 
discharge, he was married a month later, 
April 27th, to Miss Mary Baker, of Eagle, a 
daughter of Philip and Betsey (Leavenworth) 
Baker, both deceased. They left five chil- 
dren, one of whom, Leverett Baker, resides in 
Eagle; and Emily, now Mrs. James Flint, is 
living in Warsaw. Mr. and Mrs. Albert 
Gage left the farm in 1876, and moved into 
the village of Warsaw, he having been elected 
Sheriff in November, 1875. Mr. Gage was 
elected twice to this office, and between terms 
was Under Sheriff to Mr. Day, who was in 
turn his Under Sheriff. The two alternate 
incumbents of this office are very warm 
friends, having been closely associated in 
their army life. The farm which fell to Mr. 
Gage's inheritance at his father's death, and 
which has been a family possession for eighty 
years, is still owned by him, though culti- 
vated by a tenant. He spends most of his 
summers in North Dakota, where he owns an 
equal partnership in an estate of sixteen hun- 
dred acres. Since these lands were pur- 
chased, in 1882, he has journeyed thither 
twenty-three times. Abundant crops of grain 
and potatoes are annually produced from the 
fertile Western soil; and in 1894 two thou- 
sand bushels of the latter and over twenty-two 
thousand bushels of the former were sold. 

Mr. Gage is a Trustee of the Congrega- 
tional Church of Warsaw, of which his family 
are all members. He is a member of the 
Gibbs Post, of Warsaw, Grand Army of the 



Republic, is a Chapter Mason, and belongs 
also to the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows. The family circle, which consists of a 
son and daughter, besides the parents, is still 
unbroken. The son, Burt P., a very popular 
young man, who is engaged in the shoe trade 
as one of the firm of Lewis & Gage, married 
Carrie Otis, a daughter of George Otis, of 
this city. His sister. Belle Gage, whose 
graceful tact and pleasing manners have won 
for her general affection and consideration, is 
still at home. 

Mr. Albert P. Gage, who stands five feet 
eleven, and weighs two hundred and forty-five 
pounds, is remarkably athletic, inheriting his 
Herculean strength and catlike agility perhaps 
from the great-grandmother, whose legacy of 
physical prowess has come down through the 
sfenerations with an accession of force. It is 
worthy of mention that on the Gage farm is 
an apple orchard, famous for its apples, which 
has grown from the seed planted there eighty 
years ago by the grandfather of its present 
owner: and "grandpa's" apples are choice 
dainties among the descendants. 




USTIN W. WHEELOCK, an old and 
respected farmer of Leicester, in Liv- 
ingston County, N.Y., was born in 
Geneseo, in the same county, on 
May 8, 1827. His lineage is thus traced 
back to the originator of the family, so far as 
this country is concerned. 

Ralph Wheelock was born in Shropshire, 
England, came to America in 1637, and be- 
came one of the first settlers of the town of 
Medfield, now Norfolk County, in South-east- 
ern Massachusetts, on the level meadow land 
skirting the winding Charles River, where it 
is yet a narrow stream. Goodman Wheelock, 
as he was then called, was a member of the first 
town Board of Selectmen, selected because 
of their fitness to regulate the affairs of a 
new-born community. He died in 1683, hav- 
ing lived in Medfield nearly a half century, 
and there reared his nine children. It is 
worthy of mention that one of Ralph's great- 
grandchildren was the Rev. Eleazer Wheel- 
ock, D.D., a Congregational clergyman, who 




AUSTIN W. WHEELOCK. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



203 



was born in Windham, Conn., and died in 
1779, timid the patriotic throes of the Revo- 
lution. Dr. Wheelock is celebrated as the 
founder and first president of Dartmouth Col- 
lege, in Hanover, N.H., established for the 
benefit of the Indians. 

Ralph Wheelock's son Benjamin was born 
in Medfield in 1640, married Elizabeth Bull, 
and reared five children. One of these five 
was another Benjamin Wheelock, born in the 
same town in 1678. On December 9, 1700, 
he became the husband of Huldah Thayer; 
and they had four children. Among the four 
was Silas Wheelock, who was born in Med- 
field in 1 7 18, and who had eight children. 
One of them was Simeon Wheelock, born in 
Medfield on March 18, 1741. He died in the 
Concord fight, in the opening battle of the 
Revolution, April 19, 1775, at the early age 
of thirty-four, being one of the earliest to 
enlist as a minute-man; but he was already 
the husband of his cousin, Deborah Thayer, of 
Mendon, and was the father of eight children. 

Evidently the Revolutionary patriot became 
a resident of Uxbridge, for Royal Wheelock, 
one of his sons, was born in that good old 
town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, in 
1766. He married Lydia Taft, of the same 
place; and in 1794? a little over a century 
ago. Royal Wheelock came with his wife and 
two children to New York State, making the 
entire journey overland with teams, and set- 
tling in Ontario County. By trade he was a 
blacksmith, and erected a log house and shop 
in what is now known as West Bloomfield, 
having bought there a tract of timber land. 
He made by hand all the nails needed in his 
building operations, and also supplied these 
indispensable articles, as well as horseshoes, 
to the neighboring pioneers. His wife died 
January 13, 1847, after they had reared nine 
children; and he died November 24, 1856. 
He was always a homekeeping man, despite 
the fact of his early flitting from the old Bay 
to the Empire State. He never once travelled 
by rail, and never saw but one train of cars. 

Royal Wheelock's son Harry was only two 
years old when the family removed from Ux- 
bridge, where he was born, October 20, 1792, 
about the time of General Washington's re- 



election to the Presidential office. Harry 
served in the War of 181 2, but afterward 
worked on the homestead till 18 19, when he 
was twenty-seven years old. He then came 
to Livingston County, and purchased a tract 
of land in Leicester, whereon a log house was 
the only improvement. After this purchase 
he returned to Ontario County, and married 
Judith Gillett. The young couple commenced 
life in the log cabin; and within its lowly 
walls was born Austin, the special subject of 
this sketch. In due time a frame house took 
the place of the more primitive residence; 
and here Mr. Harry Wheelock remained till 
his death, which occurred on June 13, 1873, 
when he had passed his fourscore years, and 
had seen the county develop from wilderness 
to wealth. His union in marriage with Miss 
Gillett took place in 18 19. She was born 
February 4, 1797, in Lyme, Conn., and died 
January 28, 1867, aged threescore and ten. 
From this marriage came four children — ■ 
Charles Augustus, Austin W., Martha, and 
Ira Wheelock. 

Austin W. went to the district school, to 
the school at Temple Hill, and to Leicester 
Academy. Till his marriage he lived and 
worked on the home farm ; but then he re- 
moved to another farm, in what is now old 
Leicester, four miles from Geneseo and three 
miles from Mount Morris. Besides attending 
to general farming, he was at one time an 
extensive dealer in apples, which he shipped 
to Boston, New York, and Philadelphia; but 
since 1875 he has devoted himself mostly to 
market gardening. On November 10, 1853, 
at the age of twenty-six, he was married to 
Mary Louisa Francis, a native of New York 
City, the daughter of Harley and Sarah 
(Blakeslee) Francis. From this union have 
come eight children — Helen G., born Sep- 
tember 3, 1855; Minnie ¥., born December 
12, 1857; Ruth I., born March 3, i860, and 
dying at the early age of two years; Harry H., 
born September 26, 1862; George F., born 
November 29, 1864; Alice M., born January 
30, 1868; Charles Austin, born November 15, 
1871; Martha Lucille, born February 20, 
1879. The family are loyal adherents of the 
Bovina Presbyterian church. 



204 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Enthusiasts in genealogy, of whom there 
are many in these days, recall with satisfac- 
tion the words of the great Macaulay, "People 
who take no pride in the noble achievements 
of remote ancestors will never achieve any- 
thing worthy to be remembered with pride by 
remote descendants." The annexed portrait 
of Mr. Wheelock shows a worthy scion of a 
w-ell-rooted and vigorous family tree. 




iISS CATHARINE M. AUSTIN, a 
clear-sighted, womanly woman, of 
sterling worth and good common 
sense, is a descendant of one of 
oldest and most honored pioneer families 
of the county, and is of New England origin. 
Her father, Russell Austin, was the son of 
Joseph Austin, of New Hartford, Conn., 
which was the place of his nativity. ' Russell 
Austin grew to mature years in his Connecti- 
cut home, and was well drilled in agricult- 
ural labors on the home farm. When a young 
man, he wedded Miss Phoebe Hills, the 
daughter of Augustus Hills, of Connecticut, 
and a few years after, in 1815, came to Gen- 
eseo to take charge of the dairy farm of 
William Wadsworth. 

Before they had been in the town many 
months Mr. Austin purchased a tract of wild 
land, and began the improvement of a farm 
from the forest. The settlements in this 
vicinity were then scattered; and nearly the 
entire communication between them was by 
foot or horseback over the bridle paths, 
marked out by blazed trees. Mr. Austin 
materially aided in developing the agricult- 
ural resources of this part of the county, and 
was very influential in the management of the 
town and county affairs. In 1828 he was 
elected Sheriff of the county, and in 1832 and 
1833 served as Supervisor of Geneseo, con- 
tinuing a prominent and respected resident of 
the town until his death, at the age of seventy- 
seven years. He was a member of the Whig 
party during his earlier years, but subse- 
quently joined the ranks of the Republicans. 
Religiously, both he and his wife were faith- 
ful members of the Presbyterian church, of 
which he was an Elder for many years. 



Mrs. Austin died at their home, where their 
daughter still resides, to which they moved in 
1850, a little over a year before her husband, 
at the advanced age of seventy-five years. 
Five children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Austin; namely, Mary L., Norman E., Riley 
J., Zimri H., and Catharine M., of whom we 
write. 

Miss Austin and her youngest brother are 
the only members of the parental household 
now living. The former was educated in the 
town of Geneseo, where she has spent her en- 
tire life, having completed her studies at 
Temple Hill Academy. She taught school 
one term, and afterward taught instrumental 
music, and for eleven years was organist at 
the Presbyterian church, of which she is a 
valued member. She is very active in relig- 
ious circles, being a working member of the 
Ladies' Missionary Society and a faithful 
teacher in the Sunday-school. 






LTER B. FARGO, a successful 
armer and respected citizen of 
Warsaw, where he was born in 
1834, is a grandson of Nehemiah Fargo, who 
settled in this locality in 1804. His wife 
and six children made the journey by teams, 
and upon their arrival invested some of their 
small means in a farm of one hundred and 
sixty acres of uncultivated land. A log house 
was erected on the bank of a creek by the old 
dam, and here the family lived in peace and 
contentment. Nehemiah died, aged sixty, at 
his son's house, which was near the old cabin. 
His wife survived him but a few years. They 
were both within the fold of the Presbyterian 
church. 

Their youngest son, Allen, who was born 
in Barrington, Mass., April 4, 1802, married 
on October 30, 1822, Miss Polly Merchant, 
who was a native of Connecticut, born in 
1800. Their first child, John M. Fargo, was 
born in November, 1824, and is a farmer in 
Warsaw. Two children died; and one daugh- 
ter and four sons reached maturity, the young- 
est being Walter B., of whom this biography 
is written. Mrs. Polly Fargo died in 1863, 
aged sixty-three. Her husband died Decern- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



205 



ber 26, 1888, in the eighty-seventh year of 
his age. The grandparents left some prop- 
erty, which increased in value under the 
careful management of the parents. A large 
portion ot the original land was sold in lots, 
and is now occupied by village homes. Mr. 
Allen F"arg"o inherited a small estate from his 
grandfather, which, together with his lands in 
Iowa and other parts of the West, was valued 
at one time at one hundred and fifty thousand 
dollars. He was a man of strict morals, and 
was closely identified with the best interests 
ot his town and county, in which he held sev- 
eral public offices, notably that of Supervisor. 
He was for years a Deacon in the Baptist 
church in Warsaw, and gave two thousand 
dollars toward the erection of the new church 
building, the sum being paid after his death. 

Mr. Walter B. Fargo was appointed in his 
father's will as executor of the estate, which 
has only recently been settled. He had re- 
ceived in his youth a good education in the 
district school and academy of Warsaw; and 
on February 27, 1857, he was married to 
.Sarah M. Covell, a daughter of Simeon and 
Sally (Thompson) Covell. The parents of 
Mrs. Fargo reared a family of four daughters 
and four sons, one of whom, Allen, is a resi- 
dent of California. Mr. Covell died at 
seventy years of age, while his widow lived to 
be eighty. 

Mr. and Mrs. Fargo began their married 
life on a farm a mile east of Warsaw, where 
they lived for some years, and which they 
sold in 1868; and in 1869 they settled on 
a two-hundred-and-fifty-acre dairy farm at 
Orangeville. Eight years later Mr. Fargo 
returned to Warsaw, where he occupied the 
handsome house built by his father in 1844, 
and later modernized and renovated. This 
residence, with its spacious lawn and the 
towering elms planted by his father, attracts 
the admiration of the passer-by, and is one of 
the landmarks of the village. Though he 
still retains possession of this place, Mr. 
Fargo lives in his pleasant home on the corner 
of Grove and Butternut Streets. Of the four 
children that were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Fargo, three are living. One son, Adelbert 
B., a farmer in Alexandria, Genesee County, 



has a wife and two children, a son and a 
daughter; Wilber Fargo, who is also married, 
and has one son, lives in Warsaw; the daugh- 
ter, Blanche Maria, is the wife of Mr. Norman 
McLeod in Buffalo. Another daughter, whose 
name was Laura, died at four years of age. 

Mr. Fargo votes with the Republican party. 
He is village Trustee, though he has practi- 
cally retired from active life, and has given 
up the control of his farm to his son, Wilber. 
The name of Fargo has a conspicuous place in 
the history of Warsaw, the family having been 
for generations prominent in local affairs. 
Captain Nchemiah Fargo owned one of the 
first four frame houses in the village, the site 
of it being now occupied by the mansion built 
by his son, Allen; and he was the purchaser 
of the first bel-l, whose brazen tongue called 
the villagers to worship in the only church in 
the vicinity, the very first built west of the 
Genesee River, in 1825. Mr. Walter B. 
Fargo has faithfully sustained the reputation 
of his name and lineage, and has the confi- 
dence and esteem of friend and neighbor. 



OSEPH P. OLP is an extensive land- 
holder in Mount Morris, where he oc- 
cupies a conspicuous position among 
the farming population. Possessed of 
sound, practical sense and good financial abil- 
ity, he ranks as one of the enterprising busi- 
ness men of the town. Mr. Olp was born in 
Mansfield, Warren County, N.J., January 19, 
1825, being a son of Barnabas Olp, who was 
a native, it is supposed, of the same town. 

John Olp, the father of Barnabas, came 
from Holland stock, and was a native of New 
Jersey, where he spent a large portion of his 
life. He was reared to the habits of industry 
and thrift common to his Dutch ancestors, 
and acquired a comfortable estate. Emigrat- 
ing to New York .State in the early thirties, 
he settled in the town of Mount Morris, 
where, being quite well along in years, he 
afterward lived with his wife, Polly Olp, re- 
tired from active pursuits, rounding out a full 
period of existence. He reared three sons, 
all of whom he assisted in obtaining homes in 
Livingston County. 



2o6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Barnabas Olp grew to manhood in New Jer- 
sey, being a resident of that State until 1828, 
when, accompanied by his family, he came to 
Livingston County, N.Y., bringing all of his 
earthly possessions with teams. Purchasing a 
tract of land in Mount Morris, he moved into 
the small log house which stood in the clear- 
ing that had already been made, and there 
began farming. His first work was to cut the 
standing timber, which, having no commercial 
value, was rolled into piles and burned. 
There were then neither railways nor tele- 
graph or telephone lines spanning this broad 
country, and the evidences of civilization were 
few. For a time he drew his surplus produc- 
tions to Rochester, thirty-eight miles distant; 
but, notwithstanding the lack of modern con- 
veniences and helps, he made good success in 
his farming operations, and after a time 
erected substantial frame buildings in place 
of the log cabin and barn. Disposing of his 
homestead property at an advantage, he bought 
a farm in Leicester, which he occupied for 
four years; and then, selling it, he removed to 
Mount Morris, where he lived retired until 
his death, when sixty-three years old. He 
was twice married, the maiden name of his 
first wife being Amy Potts. She was a native 
of New Jersey, and died in 1838, leaving him 
with four children — Henry W., Sarah, Mary, 
and Joseph P. He subsequently married 
Maria Scobey, who bore him one child, 
George. 

Joseph P., the second son of Barnabas Olp, 
was three years old when his parents came to 
Mount Morris ; and here he was reared and 
educated, living at the parental fireside until 
nineteen years old, when he learned the car- 
penter's trade, which for seven years he made 
his chief occupation. Having bought sixty- 
three acres of land in Portage, he was there 
engaged in farming for three years, after 
which he returned to Mount Morris, and spent 
one summer in the village. The following 
seven years Mr. Olp carried on general farm- 
ing on rented land in the valley. He subse- 
quently bought a farm of three hundred and 
forty-two acres in the town of Nunda, and re- 
sided there for three years, doing an excellent 
paying business. Trading one hundred acres 



of that property for the farm he now owns, 
Mr. Olp continued his agricultural labors, 
and has now a valuable and well-equipped 
homestead, located about two miles from the 
village of Mount Morris, and containing two 
hundred and sixteen acres of rich land. In 
addition to this estate Mr. Olp still owns one 
hundred acres of his Nunda purchase, which, 
including his other landed property, makes an 
aggregation of four hundred and thirty-eight 



acres 



In March, 1853, Mr. Olp was united in 
wedlock with Harriet M. Warren, a native of 
Leicester, and a daughter of Ira and Ann 
(Sharpstein) Warren. Two children have 
been born to them — Florence E. and Henry 
W. Florence, who is the wife of James B. 
Hampton, County Treasurer, has two children 
— Carrie and Howard. Henry married Ida 
Perrine, and they have two children — Helen 
and Josephine. Mr. Olp is a man of great 
intelligence, strong in his convictions, inde- 
pendent in political matters, voting for the 
man he thinks best fitted for the office, and is 
broad and liberal in his religious views. 



/§jT. 



ILBERT M. COOLEY, an eminent 
\ '•) I contractor and builder in Leicester, 
Livingston County, N.Y., first saw 
the light in the town of York, December 17, 
18 1 5, the year when General Jackson fought 
the famous battle of New Orleans. He was 
the second son of Jonathan and Zeviah Coo- 
ley, the father being the second child of Jon- 
athan Cooley, Sr. Gilbert's early life was 
passed amid pioneer scenes. He can remem- 
ber the time when there were neither canals 
nor railroads, and practically no machinery 
used in farming, his father, in common with 
others, cutting grain with a sickle. 

When Gilbert was a lad of ten years, a man 
came to that place with a cradle, which he 
tried to introduce into the harvest fields. 
The child took particular notice of its con- 
struction, carefully observing the proportions. 
Being a country boy, with ample leisure to 
think out his work and work out his thoughts, 
he soon made a grain cradle, the first which 
was ever used in that section. He made good 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



207 



use of the opportunities afforded him to secure 
an education, attending the district school and 
Wyoming Seminary. In 1830, at the age of 
fifteen, he commenced to learn the carpenter's 
trade, serving three years as apprentice, after 
which he became a contractor and builder. 
In 1840, the last year of Van Buren's Presi- 
dency, he moved to Cuylerville, where he 
remained eight years, filling many large 
contracts with Mr. Cuyler for the erection of 
buildings. In 1848, the year gold was dis- 
covered in California, a contract was made to 
build canal-locks at Nunda and other points, 
which he worked on two years. In 1850, the 
year that President Taylor died, Mr. Cooley 
with a company built twenty miles of the Erie 
Railroad, and has since been quite extensively 
engaged in railroad construction. In 1884 he 
became a retired resident of Moscow. 

Mr. Cooley married in 1840 his first wife, 
Eliza Ann Dailey, who was born near New- 
burg on the Hudson. She died October 7, 
1879. In 1886 he married Mrs. Clarissa 
Wheeler Smead, a native of Leicester, and a 
sister of John Wheeler, whose biography may 
be found elsewhere in this volume. Mr. Coo- 
ley is a Presbyterian, as was also his first 
wife. The present Mrs. Cooley is a member 
of the Baptist church. Mr. Cooley is nearly 
eighty years of age; but he is hale and hearty, 
and still looks after his private interests. He 
and his sister, Mrs. Lucinda C. May, still 
own the old homestead at Covington. Mr. 
Cooley says, "I have lived to see steam and 
electricity introduced, and I expect to see 
electricity supersede steam as a motive power." 
Though there are no children in the Cooley 
household, it is, nevertheless, a bright centre 
of life and friendship. 



fllOMAS CLARK SOWERBY, a highly 
respected citizen of Perry, was born 
November 26, 1854, and is a son of 
Thomas and Isabel (Fluker) Sowerby, his 
father being a native of Hull, Yorkshire, 
England, and his mother of Warsaw, N.Y. 
Mr. Sowerby's grandparents were George 
and Elizabeth Sowerby, of Yorkshire, who 
reared eight children — John, George, Floater, 



Elizabeth, Francis, Jacob, Thomas, and 
Martha. 

George Sowerby died in 1812; and his 
widow was again married to James Clark, a 
miller of Hull, England, and emigrated with 
her children to America five years after her 
husband had come to this country. Thomas 
Clark, a son of James, and half-brother of 
Thomas Sowerby, became one of the most ex- 
tensive grain dealers in Buffalo, and died in 
middle life. James Clark died in Hudson, 
N.Y. ; and his widow, the subject's grand- 
mother, died at Perry in 1855, aged seventy- 
one years. 

Thomas Sowerby, son of George and Eliza- 
beth, came to America with his mother at 
the age of seventeen years. He worked as a 
miller at Seneca Falls for one year, and later 
went to Oswego, where he followed the same 
vocation for six years. In 1844 he came to 
Wyoming County, and purchased fifty acres of 
land in the town of Perry. He has rapidly 
increased his landed property, and to-day is 
the possessor of one of the finest farms in 
Wyoming County. He now lives in retire- 
ment. He is a Republican in politics. 

The maiden name of his wife was Isabel 
Fluker. She was born June 14, 1828, daugh- 
ter of William and Elizabeth (Wood) Fluker, 
who were natives of Ireland, and settled in 
Warsaw, where they were well-to-do farmers. 
The former died at seventy-nine years of age 
and the latter at eighty-nine. Both were 
members of the Presbyterian church. Mr. 
and Mrs. Thomas Sowerby reared two children 
— George F. and Thomas Clark Sowerby. 
The former is an extensive grain dealer and 
manager of large elevators in Buffalo. He 
married Maria Aiken. 

Thomas Clark Sowerby was educated at the 
district school, and on reaching his majority 
purchased a farm in the town of Castile, con- 
sisting of one hundred and eighty-seven acres, 
situated at the head of Silver Lake. This is 
a very valuable piece of property, and Mr. 
Clark has done much in the way of modelling 
his farm buildings. On February 19, 1879, 
he was united in marriage to Alice Sowerby, 
daughter of John and Harriet (Hutton) Sow- 
erby, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in 



208 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



this work. For a short time after his mar- 
riage he resided upon and operated one of his 
father's farms, purchasing the one above men- 
tioned, which he carried on successfully for 
three years. He then removed to the town of 
Perry, where he bought a valuable building 
lot on Lake Street, nearly opposite the one 
owned and occupied by his father. Here he 
built a large and handsome residence with all 
modern improvements, in which he now 
resides. 

He also purchased a farm of two hundred 
and twenty-eight acres; and this, together 
with his property in Castile, he rents to good 
advantage. 

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas C. Sowerby have 
three children — Grace E., born September 
21, 1882; Clara M., born August 28, 1886; 
and Alice I., born September 24, 1891. Mr. 
Sowerby in politics is a stanch Republican, 
and his religious views are liberal and con- 
sistent. 



S\ HOMAS SIMPSON, a much respected 
' I resident of Mount Morris, Livingston 
-*- County, N.Y., is a native of England, 
where he was born on May 13, 1831, being a 
son of William Simpson. The father was a 
farmer in England, and in the country of his 
birth he was satisfied to spend all his days. 

In 1850 Thomas determined to come to 
America, and accordingly he set sail on the 
good ship " Zeziga " ; and after seven weeks 
of tossing about on the broad Atlantic he 
landed in New York City, and thence made 
his way to Geneseo, Livingston County. 
After occupying himself for several years with 
work for others, he bought of Hannah Service 
fifty acres of land, and shortly purchased of 
one Horie thirty acres more, making eighty 
in all; and from that time on to the present 
he has given his whole attention to the im- 
provement and cultivation of his farm and the 
erection of fences and buildings. 

In 185s Mr. Simpson married Ann Aiken, 
of Ireland ; and she became the mother of four 
children — William Thomas, Phcebe Jane, 
Henry John, and Mary Ann. Mrs. Ann 
Simpson died in 1879; ^"^ ^^^ husband after- 



ward married Esther Boyd, daughter of Rob- 
ert Boyd, of York. Mr. Simpson, although 
of English birth, is now a citizen of the 
United States, having been naturalized in 
1866. He is an independent voter, and cast 
his first Presidential vote for Seymour in 
1868. Mr. Simpson has been glad to take 
advantage of all the opportunities afforded by 
the free institutions of this countrv, and in 
return does not shirk his duty as a citizen. 
Industrious, self-helpful, and well disposed, 
he holds the respect of his fellow-townspeople. 



T^HARLES D. NEWTON is a promi- 
I \y nent lawyer of Main Street, Gen- 
^'U , eseo, N.Y. He was born in the 
town of Birdsall, in Allegany 
County, May 25, 1861, and is of New Eng- 
land stock, his father, Daniel Newton, being a 
native of the State of Connecticut. His 
grandfather, who had been a sea captain, set- 
tled down near Rochester, and built and occu- 
pied the first log cabin in that section of the 
country; but later he removed to Granger, in 
Allegany County, where he remained until his 
death. 

Daniel Newton chose the occupation of a 
farmer, and cultivated a farm in Allegany 
County; he did not, however, give all his 
time to agriculture. He was a man of un- 
usual ability, noted for his excellent judgment 
in all general and local affairs, and was prom- 
inent among other capable and intelligent 
men of that time for his wise discrimination 
and good sense. He very naturally was 
elected to fill the office of Justice of the 
Peace, and continued to perform its duties for 
more than twenty years. At the present time 
Mr. Newton is retired from the responsibili- 
ties of a public life, and finds a congenial 
home with his son Charles, still, however, 
continuing the cultivation of his farm. Dan- 
iel Newton's wife, the mother of Charles, the 
subject of this sketch, was formerly Miss 
Annie Brudage. She was born in Steuben 
County, a daughter of Matthew Brudage, a 
well-known resident of the town of Granger, 
Allegany County. Five children have blessed 
this union — Dallas, Almeda, Joseph, George, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



209 



and Charles D. Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Newton 
are members of the Presbyterian church. 

Their youngest son, Charles, passed his 
early years until he was about nine years old 
on the homestead. He then entered the 
academy at Friendship, N.Y., where he re- 
mained with occasional interruptions until he 
was nearly eighteen, when he came to Gene- 
seo, and continued his studies here for three 
years more, working part of the time, how- 
ever, for Mr. John Young. Later he studied 
law with General Wood. The year of 1888 
Mr. Newton spent in the law department of 
Michigan University at Ann Arbor, and the 
next year he was admitted to the bar. Twelve 
months after he opened an office in Geneseo, 
where he commenced practice; and here he 
has gone on in a successful career ever since. 
This calls for more than passing notice; for, 
when a man has become successful in a pro- 
fession he has undertaken, it is not unfre- 
quently said that he owes his prosperity to 
the happy conditions of his life, his many 
friends, his favorable environment. But very 
often this is incorrect; and the attainment of 
the end, as in this instance of Mr. Newton, is 
rather the result of earnest effort in the single 
chosen direction. Fragmentary efforts de- 
tract from individual power; and, although 
the man of diverse interests may accomplish 
much, it is the one steady, unfaltering pur- 
pose which succeeds. 

Mr. Charles D. Newton was married in 
1887 to Miss Nellie Durfee, a daughter of Mr. 
Charles Durfee, a well-known and successful 
miller of Wyoming County. They have three 
daughters — Mary, Elizabeth, and Dorothy. 
Mr. Newton is a Democrat, and has the honor 
of being Master of the Geneseo Lodge, A. F. 
& A. M., No. 214. 



'AMES A. MAIN, a wholesale dealer in 
jewelry and watches, of Warsaw, N.Y., 
was born at Cold Spring on the Hud- 
son, Putnam County, N.Y., October 
26, 1827, son of Joshua and Polly (Mabie) 
Main. Mr. Main's grandfather was of Span- 
ish extraction, but died soon after landing in 
this country; and his young son Joshua, who 



was left without a natural protector and with 
no patrimony, was "bound out " on a farm for 
a time. He married Miss Polly Mabie, of 
Putnam County ; and they came to Genesee 
County in 1835, journeying by steamboat from 
Poughkeepsie to Albany, thence by canal to 
Rochester, and from there by wagon to Weth- 
ersfield. The brave young couple had scant 
means and a family of six young children to 
provide for. Their three sons and three 
daughters were: Caroline, the wife of Leonard 
Baker, of Wethersfield; Elias; James A.; 
Gilbert, a land owner in Kansas, who has 
been superintendent of schools there for five 
years; Susan, the wife of Mr. Walter Parish, 
of Hornellsville; and Mary, a widow living 
in Arcade, Wyoming County. Mrs. Main 
died at seventy-three years of age; and her 
husband survived her four years, dying at 
seventy-nine years of age on the farm upon 
which he settled, and which is now owned and 
occupied by his son Elias. 

James A. Main received a fairly good edu- 
cation in the district schools, and worked on 
the farm at home or out on the neighboring- 
farms by the month until he was twenty-six 
years of age. He was then married to Miss 
Celinda Tallman, of Castile, a daughter of 
Giles Tallman, one of the early settlers from 
Delhi in Delaware County. Mr. Main, being 
in a poor state of health, began travelling on 
the road as a salesman of jewelry, hoping that 
the constant change of air and scene would be 
of physical benefit. This occupation he fol- 
lowed for four years; and then, feeling much 
stronger and better able to endure a sedentary 
life, he went to New York, and, putting him- 
self under competent instruction, applied him- 
self diligently to acquiring a knowledge of 
the mechanical art of watchmaking and the 
trade of a goldsmith. This he accomplished, 
and in 1859 established a jewelry shop in 
Arcade. In 1862 he conceived the idea of 
following the army and offering his wares to 
the men in blue, a project which was put into 
execution, and which proved most remunera- 
tive. After the war was over, he went back 
to New York, and entered the employment of 
a jeweller by the name of C. S. Stone as a 
workman and salesman, and was so efficient 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



in both capacities that, when he left, he took 
with him the strongest recommendation from 
his employer. In 1865 he came to Warsaw, 
where he has certainly been successful, though 
his business ability and practical skill would 
have found wider scope in one of the great 
cities. 

The one daughter born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Main is the wife of Mr. James E. Reid, a real 
estate and insurance dealer in Warsaw, and is 
the mother of twin sons — Louis and Law- 
rence — who are remarkably bright and inter- 
esting little fellows, and in whom their 
grandfather takes the greatest pride and 
pleasure. In 1874 Mr. Main purchased on 
East Buffalo Street a residence, which he en- 
tirely rebuilt in the following year. Since 
that time he has bought a lot on the corner of 
Main and Buffalo Streets, upon which he has 
erected a handsome three-story brick business 
block. The building occupies one of the 
finest business stands in the town, and the 
post-ofifice has occupied a part of it for 
the past nineteen years. On the second floor 
there are many offices, and the whole building 
is heated by hot water, and is thoroughly 
equipped with all modern improvements. 

The strictly honest dealing of Mr. Main 
has been one of the factors of his success, his 
statement in regard to his wares being never 
for an instant questioned by those who know 
his reputation. He has agents who sell his 
watches and jewelry in New York, Michigan, 
W^isconsin, Ohio, and Pennsylvania; and he 
owns real estate in different States. He is a 
Royal Arch Mason, and is conservative in 
politics, voting for the best man for the place 
always. 

Mr. Main has worked slowly and patiently 
up to the present point of prosperity, and 
merits the congratulations of friend and neigh- 
bor, who have witnessed the eventual achieve- 
ment of quiet and unostentatious effort. 



^AMUEL EWART, formerly a pros- 
perous farmer of Geneseo, N.Y., 
was born in Northumberland 
County, Pennsylvania, in the year 
1773, and died in Geneseo in 1848. He was 




a son of John Ewart, who was born in Armagh 
County, Ireland, and when a young man came 
to America, crossing the ocean in a sailing- 
vessel, the voyage occupying several weeks. 

In 1794 John Ewart removed from Pennsyl- 
vania to Geneseo, making the journey in 
wagons. At that time this section of the 
country was a wilderness, with but few white 
settlers. He selected a tract of land near the 
village known as Lakeville, and there as- 
sisted in organizing the First Presbyterian 
church in the town of Geneseo, of which he 
was appointed one of the Elders. He resided 
near Lakeville but a few years, then sold his 
land, and bought for four dollars an acre a 
tract of one hundred acres in the southern 
part of the town. A hewed log house and a 
few acres of cleared land constituted his avail- 
able estate. Here he resided till his death, 
about 1812. He had five children — Mar- 
garet, Nancy, Mary, Samuel, and one other 
daughter, whose name is unknown, as she 
went to Ohio instead of to New York with her 
parents. 

Samuel Ewart was nineteen years old when 
he came to this county with his parents. He 
was brought up to agricultural pursuits, and 
always engaged in farming. For a short time 
he served in the War of 18 12, being in sight 
of the village of Buffalo when it was burned 
by the British. He inherited the home farm, 
to which he made additions, owning at the 
time of his death four hundred acres. The 
frame buildings which he erected were among 
the best in the town at that time. 

He married Elizabeth Magee, whose father, 
William Magee, was born in County Antrim, 
Ireland, but was of Scotch ancestry, as also 
were the Ewarts. Accompanied by his 
brother Henry, he came to America when a 
young man, and settled in New Jersey, where 
he resided some years previous to 1800, when 
he came to New York State, and settled in 
the village of Williamsburg. Later he pur- 
chased a farm in Groveland, which he sold a 
few years afterward, and bought another in 
the same town, residing on this latter farm 
until his death. His wife, whose maiden 
name was Hannah Quick, was of Holland an- 
cestry. Mrs. Ewart lived to be ninety years 




CHARLES L. G. SUTFIN. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



213 



of at?e, and died in the year 1885. Stie had 
three daughters — Mary A., who married Dr. 
Edward Patchen, of Dansville, and died in 
1892, leaving two children — Charles V. and 
Elizabeth S. Patchen; Elizabeth, who died in 
iSgo; and Hannah, a clear-headed, sensible 
woman, the only survivor of the family, who 
now occupies the homestead. 

Both Mr. and Mrs. Ewart were attendants 
of the Presbyterian church. Mr. Ewart was 
known to the town in which he lived as a very 
successful farmer, and was much respected 
both on account of his character as a man and 
his tcood work as a citizen. 



TTAHARLES L. G. SUTFIN, of Dans- 
I Vi-^ ville, whose sudden death on Sunday, 
^^is April 16, 1893, caused widespread 

sorrow in the community, was the 
third son of Abraham and Johanna (Wire) 
Sutfin, of Elizabeth, N.J. The Sutfin off- 
spring numbered eight children, six of whom 
grew to adult years. Charles L. G. Sutfin 
was born in Conesus, Livingston County, 
N.Y., January 25, 1841, and at the age of 
three years moved with his parents to Steuben 
County, where he lived until 1873. His 
early education was obtained in the Rogers- 
ville and Dansville Seminaries. He re- 
mained at home until 1862, when he joined 
the Union army in the month of August, 
entering as a private Company K, One Hun- 
dred and Thirtieth New York Volunteer 
Infantr)'. In July, 1863, the regiment was 
transferred from the infantry to the cavalry, 
called First New York Dragoons. Mr. 
Sutfin remained in the service for three years, 
and participated in many sanguinary conflicts, 
coming out unscathed, but with his health 
seriously impaired, his death, in his fifty- 
third year, being attributable to the priva- 
tions and hardships inseparable from army life 
in time of war. 

Previous to the war and for four years suc- 
ceeding, he was engaged in agricultural pur- 
suits; but, finding his health not equal to the 
hard work attendant upon farming, he took 
the business of insurance, and moved into 
Dansville, where he built up the largest in- 



surance business in Livingston County, being 
engaged with one company for over twenty- 
one years. He was a very prominent Grand 
Army man, and associated himself with the 
Seth N. Hedges Post, No. 216, Grand Army 
of the Republic, of Dansville, N.Y., of which 
he was Commander for five successive terms, 
holding that position at the time of his death. 
He was also a member and at the time of his 
death was President of the Veterans" Associa- 
tion of Livingston County, and also held the 
office of President of the Regimental Associa- 
tion of New York Dragoons. He was at one 
time on the staff of the .State Commander, and 
was well known throughout the Grand Army 
circles in this commonwealth. He belonged 
to the Canaseraga Lodge of Odd Fellows, and 
was County Deputy for some time. 

September 10, 1868 he was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Mary Sharp, a native of Dans- 
ville, N.Y., and daughter of Henry Sharp. 
Her father was born on Staten Island, 
where his father, William Sharp, was a prom- 
inent merchant. Mr. Henry Sharp came to 
Dansville in 1830, and resided there until his 
death, in 1877. Mrs. Sutfin's mother, Han- 
nah Preston, was a daughter of- Amos Preston, 
of Connecticut. Her paternal grandfather, 
also named Amos, was a surgeon and physi- 
cian, and served on the field in his profes- 
sional capacity during the War of the 
Revolution. Medical talent seems to be 
hereditary in the family; for two of his grand- 
sons, five of his great-grandsons, and two of 
his great-great-grandsons have been physi- 
cians. Mrs. Sutfin survives her husband. 
She has no children. The excellent likeness 
which appears in connection with this brief 
biographical sketch will be of special interest 
to many readers of this volume, who knew him 
personally or by reputation as a man "without 
reproach." 

■• None knew him 1_)ut to love him, 
None named him but to praise."" 

A kind-hearted, pure-minded man, pains- 
taking and successful in business, modest in 
self-estimate, and uniformly courteous in man- 
ner, Mr. Sutfin is well said to have "honored 
every station he was called to occupy." 



214 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 




HOMAS W. FLOWERS has been an 
industrious and successful farmer in 
the town of Warsaw, N.Y., for over 
thirty-six years. He was born November ii, 
1825, son of Thomas and Hannah (Movvbery) 
Flowers, in Lincolnshire, England, where his 
ancestors were probably natives for many ages 
back. His father was a gardener. The par- 
ents died, leaving but two children — Betty 
and Thomas W., the latter being the youngest. 
He was educated in the common schools of 
England, and at the age of a little over thir- 
teen years was apprenticed to a carpenter, of 
whom he acquired the trade, serving seven 
years, at the completion of which time he 
began work for himself. He thus continued 
until 1856, when he came to the United 
States, accompanied by his wife and four chil- 
dren, and settled at Warsaw, where he followed 
his trade, at the same time engaging in agri- 
culture, on a small scale at first, but rapidly 
advancing as circumstances would permit. 
His first land, which he purchased about 
thirty-six years ago, and which he still owns, 
consisted of one and one-half acres ; and here 
he commenced the independent life of a 
farmer, living frugally, and industriously 
laboring to increase his property, which stead- 
ily rose in size and value, his present farm of 
one hundred and five acres being exceedingly 
well cultivated and productive. He carries 
on general farming, and has solved the prob- 
lem of whether agriculture can be made 
successful or not. He has made many fine 
improvements, the work of his own hands, and 
has a very comfortable residence, together 
with well-constructed and spacious farm 
buildings. 

In 1848, previous to coming to the United 
States, Mr. Flowers was wedded to Mary Ann 
Skinner, daughter of John and Elizabeth 
Skinner, who were also natives of Lincoln- 
shire, England, and are now deceased. She 
was one of nine children, six of whom are 
still living. One brother and two of her sis- 
ters have died. 

Mr. and Mrs. Flowers have had seven chil- 
dren, four of whom were born in England and 
the others in this country. One son, Thomas 
W., Jr., who was born in England, died in 



Dakota, September i, 1883. The others, who 
are all married, are as follows: William, con- 
nected with the salt works in Warsaw; 
George, a farmer at Warsaw; Almena, wife of 
Charles King, a farmer at Covington ; John, a 
farmer at Wyoming; Frank, employed at the 
salt works; and Albert L., residing at home. 
Mr. and Mrs. Flowers were early settlers in 
the part of Warsaw in which they reside, and 
are well-known residents, having the respect 
and esteem of their neighbors. When Mr. 
Flowers arrived in Warsaw, his only capital 
consisted of an English shilling and his own 
native energy, which has bestirred itself to 
such good purpose that he now enjoys a very 
fair competency. He is a Republican in pol- 
itics, and both himself and family attend the 
Methodist church. Albert L. Flowers, who 
now manages the home farm, is a very pro- 
gressive young man, full of life and ambition, 
who will no doubt repeat his father's success 
in agricultural pursuits. 




RANK A. NORTH WAY, a worthy 
representative of the mercantile inter- 
ests of Tuscarora, and a veteran of the 
late Civil War, is a man whose good princi- 
ples, sound common sense, and vigorous and 
able management of his affairs have availed to 
lead him to prosperity, placing him in an 
honorable position among his fellow-men. 
He is a favored son of Livingston County, 
Mount Morris being the place of his nativity, 
and April 29, 1836, the date of his birth. 

Mr. Northway comes of substantial New 
England stock, his father, Asahel Northway, 
having been born in Colebrook, Litchfield 
County, Conn., of which State his grand- 
father, Abijah Northway, was likewise a na- 
tive. Abijah's father, the great-grandfather 
of the subject of this sketch, was born in 
England. He came to America in early Co- 
lonial days, and fought in the French and 
Indian War, and was later a soldier of the 
Revolution. He reared a family of thirteen 
sons and three daughters, and seven of his 
sons were soldiers in the Revolutionary War. 
His son Abijah was the youngest child of the 
family and a life-long resident of Connecticut. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



He there married Polly Grant, who bore him 
several children. 

Asahel, son of Abijah and Polly (Grant) 
Northway, was bred to a farmer's life, but 
when a young man made use of his mechanical 
ability by learning the carpenter's trade, 
which he followed until 1830, when he came 
with his wife to Mount Morris. They made 
the journey by stage to Albany, thence via 
the canal to Rochester, where they took teams 
to their point of destination. Buying a tim- 
bered tract about a mile and a half from Tus- 
carora, he erected the first frame dwelling in 
that section of the county. He continued to 
work at his trade, carrying on a flourishing 
business and hiring laborers to carry on his 
land, and remained a resident of his home- 
stead until the time of his demise, at the age 
of seventy-four years. He married Lucretia 
Griswold, a native of Colebrook, Conn.; and 
she, too, died on the home farm, passing away 
when sixty-one years old. They were the 
parents of five children — Mary, Eliza, La- 
vina, Frank A., and Lorana. 

The subject of this sketch acquired his edu- 
cation in the district schools, between ses- 
sions assisting in the farm labors until twenty 
years of age, when he began teaching. For a 
while he still worked at farming in seed-time 
and harvest, and taught school winters. In 
1859 Mr. Northway visited Ohio, and for one 
season was engaged in teaching in Franklin 
County. Removing thence to Kentucky, he 
was principal of a select school until the 
breaking out of the late Rebellion, when he 
returned to the place of his nativity, and re- 
sumed his agricultural pursuits. In August, 
1862, inspired by the patriotic spirit of his 
paternal ancestors, Mr. Northway was enrolled 
as a member of Company F, One Hundred 
and Thirty-sixth New York Volunteer Infan- 
try, and served until the close of the war, 
being honorably discharged with his regiment 
in June, 1865. Ever brave and faithful, he 
was an active participant in twenty-three dif- 
ferent battles, among them being some of the 
most decisive conflicts of the Rebellion. Re- 
turning to civil life, Mr. Northway once more 
took up farming, continuing thus employed 
until 1872, when he entered upon a mercan- 



tile career, opening his present store, which 
is well stocked with an excellent assortment 
of general merchandise. 

In 1868 Miss Belle Whitenack, a native of 
West Sparta, being the daughter of Cornelius 
and lAicinda Whitenack, became the wife of 
Mr. Northway; and their pathway through 
wedded life has been brightened by the birth 
of four children, three of whom are now liv- 
ing; namely, Edward, William H., and Tib- 
bie. One child, Freddie, the pet of the 
household, ended his earthly life at the tender 
age of one year. Three years ago, in 1892, 
Mr. Northway removed with his family to 
Nunda, in order to give his children the bene- 
fits of its excellent system of public-school 
education. He is a member of the Nunda 
Presbyterian church, and as a citizen takes a 
hearty interest in the welfare and advance- 
ment of the community. 




UELL D. WOODRUFF, a well- 
known farmer, stock dealer, and 
mill owner of Livonia, Livingston 
County, N.Y., was born July 14, 
1830. His grandfather, Solomon Woodruff, 
who was the first white settler in Livonia, 
came here in 1789, and bought a tract of land 
on what was known in those days as the "Big 
Tree Road," about three-fourths of a mile 
south of Livonia Centre. When the humble 
and rudely fashioned little log house, which 
he immediately began to build, was com- 
pleted, he went back to Connecticut for his 
wife and children. On the return journey, in 
1790, he left them at Bristol, while he came 
forward alone, in order to prepare a welcome 
for them in that new home; but, as he ap- 
proached the clearing where he had recently 
been busy in his labor of love, what was his 
consternation to find that the Indians had 
burned the log cabin to the ground.' But the 
brave heart was undaunted, and he immedi- 
ately set to work to rebuild. 

While he was thus engaged, Mrs. Woodruff 
remained in Bristol with her children; and 
during his absence one of them was stricken 
with an illness of which he died, so that it 
was with heavy hearts that the new-comers en- 



2t6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



tered their forest habitation, which was seven 
miles distant from their nearest neighbors. 
All the grain and farm produce had to be- 
conveyed by team to Albany, and visiting 
was of course done at rare intervals when 
one had to go all the way to Honeoye Flats to 
enjoy a gossip over a cup of tea. Mr. Wood- 
ruff's son Phillip was tlie first white child 
born in this locality, and the "pale-face 
pappoose " was doubtless an object of great in- 
terest to the Indians. One of their chiefs 
grew so fond of little Austin, an older son, 
who had been brought by his parents from 
Connecticut, that he made every effort to pur- 
chase the boy. Finding all inducements vain, 
he attempted to steal him, and had almost 
effected his purpose when he was discovered 
by a man in' Mr. Woodruff's employment, who 
rescued the frightened child from the hands of 
the savage kidnapper. 

Austin Woodruff grew up and became the 
most extensive drover and cattle dealer in this 
part of the country, travelling hundreds of 
miles with his herds, and meeting no doubt 
strange adventures in his annual journeyings 
through a comparatively thinly populated 
country. He married Miss. Julia Smith, the 
daughter of Mark Smith; and they reared a 
family of ten children, five of whom are still 
living, their names in the order of their birth 
being as follows: Almira N., Myron S., Col- 
lins, Orlando S., Love S., Wayne J., Austin, 
Jr., Buell D., Ann S., and Lucia M. Mr. 
Woodruff finally settled upon a farm, and 
spent his last years quietly. He lived to be 
seventy years old. His wife died at sixty 
years. 

Buell D. Woi);lruff, w-ho is the namesake of 
old Mr. Buell, the first schoolmaster who 
ever taught in this locality, was the first child 
born in the frame house built by his father in 
the place of the earlier and more humble 
abode. After completing his education in the 
Genesee Wesleyan Seminary at Lima, he pur- 
chased a farm of a hundred acres in Conesus, 
which he cultivated for ten years. He then 
sold it, and bought out the interests of the 
other heirs to the homestead, of which he is 
now sole owner; and about the same time he 
also purchased the grist and saw mill at Hem- 



lock Lane, which is now under the super- 
vision of his son. 

Buell D. Woodruff married for his first wife 
Miss Hortense Harding, of Steuben County; 
and the offspring of this marriage were three 
children — Herbert S., Edward B., and Frank 
H. Herbert S. owns a cattle ranch in Ne- 
braska, and is Treasurer of the county in 
which he lives. By his first wife, who was a 
Miss Quackenbush, Edward B. Woodruff has 
two children — Emma and Artie. Emma rep- 
resents the fifth generation of Woodruffs who 
have lived on this estate. By his second mar- 
riage, with Miss Flora Naracong, Edward B. 
has one infant child, Berta. Frank H. Wood- 
ruff married Miss Florence Morton, and has a 
family of four children — Julia, Buell D., 
Austin, and Morton. They live on a place 
adjoining the homestead. Mrs. Hortense 
Woodruff departed this life January 19, 1869; 
and Mr. Buell D. Woodruff was a second 
time married, February 26, 1873, to Miss 
Elizabeth A. Coe, a native of this town, 
being the daughter of Lewis and Rhoda 
(Bacon) Coe, early settlers of Livingston 
County. 

Mr. Buell D. Woodruff, whose first vote 
was cast for Franklin Pierce in 1852, is a 
stanch Republican. He has been Justice of 
the Peace for four years and Supervisor for 
two years. Mr. Woodruff's name has been 
identified with that of Livonia since the be- 
ginning of that village's existence, and the 
people of the county feel pride and interest in 
the success of the family who for five genera- 
tions have been sons of the soil. 



'CrA)/ALTER EUGENE GREGORY, 
VteV/ M. D., one of the managing physi- 
^ "^ cians of the far-famed Jackson San- 
atorium of Dansville, N. V., was born in Win- 
field, Wis., on .September 18, 1857. Ur. 
Gregory's father, Oscar Gregory, was a native 
of Ashtabula, Ohio, in which town Ezra Greg- 
ory, his grandfather, was also born. At the 
age of thirty-five Ezra moved to Wisconsin, 
where he lived until his death. He reared a 
family of seven children, three of whom are 
still living. Two followed the medical pro- 



^ BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



fession, and one was killed at Chalk Bluff, 
Mo., during the Rebelliun. 

Oscar, the second son ot lizra Gregory, and 
the father of Dr. Gregory, of whom this is a 
memoir, was brought up as a practical farmer, 
and received a plain education in the district 
schools of the neighborhood. Upon arriving 
at his majority, Oscar Gregory, with that inde- 
pendent spirit which is characteristic of Amer- 
ican republicanism, purchased a place of his 
own and became a landed i)roj)rietor in Win- 
field, \\'is. , where he remained until 1866, 
when he sold his farm, and, moving to Marsh- 
field, Mo., purchased a tract of land and be- 
came a dealer in real estate. After some 
time he removed to Carthage, Mo., where he 
is now living. His wife, Agnes Cottington, 
who died in Carthage in 1879, was one of a 
family of three daughters and four sons of 
Jes.se Cottington. She came from England to 
America when she was si.xteen years of age, 
the two months' voyage being made in a sail- 
ing-vessel. One of her brothers was a physi- 
cian. Mr. Cottington had been engaged iij 
the hop industry in his own country, and 
established a similar industry in New York. 
A few years after his emigration to New York 
he moved to W'infield, Wis. Here he cleared 
a tract of land, and built a log cabin, and 
brought the land into a fit state of cultivation. 
He died in the spring of 1893, at the age of 
seventy-si.x years. 

Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Gregory reared si.x chil- 
dren out of a family of seven, the eldest of 
whom is the original of this sketch. The 
others are : Robert ; Mary ; Fanny F. , who 
married Aaron Meeker; Jessie, who married 
A. G. P^ish; and Winfield, who, like his 
brother Robert, is a farmer in the West. 

Walter E. Gregory attended in his child- 
hood the graded schools in Missouri, and on 
returning to Wisconsin, at the age of si.xteen, 
continued his .studies in the district school, 
where he prepared for the high school course, 
which was completed in his twenty-first year. 
Two years afterward his health began to fail, 
and he came to the Jackson Sanatorium. 
The treatment at this institution proved .so 
beneficial that at the end of a year he found 
himself restored to health and vigor and able 



to accept the position of Assistant Superin- 
tendent of the establishment. This place he 
filled so efficiently that after two years he was 
appointed General .Superintendent. 

I-'ossessing a remarkable aptitude for medical 
science, as well as a natural inclination toward 
that branch of research, he entered the Buffalo 
University for a three years' course of study, 
spending his vacations at the Sanatorium, 
which was in itself a system of practical edu- 
cation in the various branches of hygienic sci- 
ence. Graduating in 1889, Dr. Gregory at 
once began to practise his profession, and was 
appointed one of the three managing physi- 
cians of the Sanatorium. His talents, attain- 
ments, social qualities, all combine to fit him 
for the position he holds. The unfailing con- 
sideration, the tender care, the unselfish effort 
to promote the well-being and happiness of 
those around him, have won the loving regard 
of all who know him, as well as the recipients 
of his kind offices. 

On April 34, 1889, Dr. Walter Eugene 
Gregory married Miss Helen C. Davis, of St. 
Andrews, Canada. The young lady is of 
Scotch descent through her mother, whose 
maiden name was McMartin. Her father, 
Theodore Davis,' is the representative of a 
very old and honored family. The patients 
at the Sanatorium divide their affections be- 
tween the Doctor and his wife, whose grace- 
ful little courtesies to the invalids are almost 
as efficacious as are her husband's more offi- 
cial and professional attentions. In politics 
Dr. Gregory is a Republican. 



kOBERT VALLANCE, a .substantial 



Tt^VOB] 

I ^-^ farmer of Scotch descent, residing in 
|_b\ York, Livingston County, District 

No. I, was born in this town on 
June 21, 1 84 1. His father, Robert Val- 
lance, Sr., came to America from Scotland in 
1820, when he was only twenty years of age. 
The voyage occupied seven weeks, and no 
doubt the young Scotchman's heart grew 
heavy many times as the vessel each day bore 
him farther and farther from the land of the 
purple heather and the associations of his 
childhood. 



2l8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Coming to York, which had been formed 
not long before from Caledonia and Leicester, 
he settled on a farm west of the village of 
Fowlerville. Here he built a log house, in 
which he lived for ten years. The nearest 
market was Rochester, and the farm produce 
had to be conveyed thither in order to get 
family supplies for domestic use. Those 
journeyings were made at a great expense of 
time and labor, and the farmer in this section 
in the early days of the settlement must needs 
be a man of strong determination and endur- 
ance who would successfully cope with the 
diilficulties of the situation. After a decade 
of such vicissitudes as the isolation of the set- 
tlement necessitated, Mr. Vallance sold his 
farm, and purchased another, upon which he 
passed the remainder of his life, and which is 
now occupied by his son and namesake, Rob- 
ert. His wife was Elizabeth Matthews, of 
Pittsford, N.Y., who survived him. He died 
at seventy-two years of age, while she was 
eighty-six at the date of her death, on June 24, 
1892. Their six children were born in the 
following order: Henry, Jane, Robert, Mary, 
John A., and Martha E. 

Robert, the third child, and the original of 
this sketch, was educated in the district 
schools and at Brockport Academy. He 
worked on his father's farm until his first 
marriage, after which he bought two hundred 
and ten acres of land from his father, and 
finally bought the homestead from his brother- 
in-law, H. C. Root. 1868 was the year of 
his marriage to Miss Mary J. McKenzie, 
whose father, Simon McKenzie, was one of 
the early Scotch settlers of York. Two chil- 
dren, both daughters, were born of this union 
— Elizabeth C. and Cora S. Mrs. Mary J. 
Vallance died October 20, 1870; and Mr. 
Vallance's second wife was Miss Rachel 
Clunas, who was the mother of three sons and 
one daughter ^ Robert B., Charles A., Al- 
bert B., and Mary J. Being left a widower 
for the second time, Mr. Vallance formed a 
third matrimonial alliance with Miss Anna 
Hunter, by whom he had no children. The 
heavy hand of bereavement was again laid 
upon Mr. Vallance, and he was for the third 
time a widower. Miss Margaret Hamilton, 



of Caledonia, became his fourth wife and the 
mother of two sons — William R. and Henry 
M. Vallance. 

Mr. Robert Vallance is a member of the 
First Presbyterian Church in Fowlerville, of 
which he is a stanch supporter. He is in 
political faith a Democrat, having been loyal 
to that party since casting his first Presiden- 
tial vote in 1864 for the martial hero who was 
at that time a candidate. General George B. 
McClellan. 



§AMES EDWIN REID, a prominent 
real estate and insurance agent of War- 
saw, Wyoming County, was born in 
Markham, York County, Ontario, Can- 
ada, April 25, 1862. His paternal grand- 
father, Samuel Reid, a native of Suffolk 
County, England, came to Canada in 1S37, 
bringing with him a wife and five children, 
all of whom grew up and became heads of fam- 
ilies excepting one daughter, who died in 
early youth. Only one of the sons is now 
lix'ing. 

George Reid, the father of James Edwin, 
was born in England, March 24, 1823, and 
came to Canada with his parents, being then 
a boy of fourteen. He married Miss Sarah 
Press, a native of Ontario, near Markham, and 
of American parentage. Four children were 
born to them, two of whom are now deceased 
— Perry, a baby of a year and a half ; and 
Mary A., a lovely girl of twenty-one, who died 
in the autumn of 1877. William PVancis 
Reid, the only brother of the subject of this 
sketch, is a boot and shoe dealer in Chicago, 
111. The mother of these children, after her 
husband's death, became the wife of J. H. 
Armstrong, and now resides in the State of 
Michigan. 

James Edwin Reid received a liberal educa- 
tion in Markham, New Market, and the high 
.school of Belleville, Ontario. He became an 
expert telegrapher, and, obtaining in 1882 a 
position as operator on the Erie Railroad, he 
was engaged in this employment for three 
years. He came to Warsaw, September 16, 
1883, and was married two years later, January 
I, 1885, to Miss Edith Adele Main, daughter 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



•ic, 



of James A. Main, a jeweller of Warsaw, 
N. Y. This marriage has been blessed by the 
birth of twin sons — Louis Raymond and Law- 
rence Main Reid — born September i, 1887. 
The parents of these boys are justly proud of 
their bright, active minds and engaging man- 
ners, which are remarked by all who meet the 
children. 

Mr. Reid opened his present office in 1886, 
and has since that time established a large and 
flourishing business. He is also engaged in 
the furniture and undertaking business in War- 
saw, under the firm name of Davis & Reid. 
He is a man of enterprise and ability; and, 
as he is still voung, he may well look forward 
to more than an ordinary share of worldly 
success. 




AMUEL L. WHITLOCK, of Spring- 
water, Livingston County, the effi- 
cient School Commissioner of the 
Second District, is the only son of 
the late Ira Whitlock and his wife Amelia, 
who were prominent among the earlier resi- 
dents of the town. Ira Whitlock was born in 
Granville, Washington County, N.Y. , where 
he passed the early years of his life. He was 
educated at the old Granville Academy ; and, 
after attaining his majority, he spent some 
time in teaching and in surveying. Subse- 
quently he went to New York City, and for 
several years was employed as engineer on the 
Hudson and East Rivers. In 1836 he came to 
.S])ringwater ; and in the following year he was 
married to Miss Amelia Shuart, of Conesus, 
who still survives him. 

Mr. Ira Whitlock was a man of more than 
average intellectual ability, and from the first 
commanded the respect and confidence of the 
people. As early as 1839 he was elected 
Commissioner of Highways; and afterward, as 
Assessor and Justice of the Peace, and in vari- 
ous positions of public trust, he faithfully 
served the interests of the community until 
prevented from further cares by the infirmities 
of advancing age. As a surveyor, his skill 
and accuracy were proverbial. He probably 
surveyed more land, determined more ancient 
bfjuiidaries, and settled more disputed ques- 



tions in that line than any other man in the 
county. Bold, fearless, and outspoken in his 
convictions of right, he was for many years one 
of the master spirits of the community in 
which he lived. 

His son, Samuel L. \Vhitlock, was educated 
at Genesee Wesleyan .Seminary and Genesee 
College. While pursuing his studies, he 
taught several terms in the schools of his na- 
ti\^e town. He then went to St. Louis, and 
soon afterward to Arcadia, where, as principal 
of Arcadia High School, he remained until 
called to Cincinnati, in which city he taught 
for several years in the public schools. While 
there he availed himself of the superior edu- 
cational advantages which that place afforded, 
taking several courses of study, and finally 
graduating in the law department of the Col- 
lege of Cincinnati. After taking his degree 
he was elected Vice-President of Arcadia Col- 
lege. There, as Professor of Mathematics and 
Civil Engineering, and finally as acting Presi- 
dent of the college, he remained until ill 
health necessitated a temporary abandonment 
of his profession. Returning to Springwater, 
he engaged in the mercantile business, becom- 
ing a member of the firm of Allen & Whitlock. 
He was married to Miss Almira Capron, a 
daughter of Sylvester Capron, a prominent and 
well-known resident of the town. She is a 
graduate of Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, and 
has always been an active and influential 
worker in school, church, and society. As 
teacher and superintendent of Sabbath-school, 
and member of various organizations tending 
to improve the moral and intellectual condition 
of humanity, her influence for good has been 
felt and acknowledged far beyond the immedi- 
ate circle in which she moves. 

Mr. Whitlock has always been identified 
with the Republican party, and for two years 
he was the representative of his town in the 
Board of Supervisors of the county. For sev- 
eral years he was a member of the Board of 
Trustees of the village schools, and took an 
active part in their organization and general 
management. He has always been deeply in- 
terested in the progress and development of 
the public school ; and, being in full .sympathy 
with the most advanced thought of the age in 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



educational matters, he is pecul'iaiiy qualified 
to supervise the work of both teachers and 
school officers. In recognition of this fact, in 
1893 he was elected School Commissioner of 
the Second District of Livingston Count}, a 
position which he still holds. 




.lAM GUY MARKHAM, of 
Avon, Livingston County, N. Y. , is 
a representative of one of the oldest 
families in the Northern States. His ances- 
tors originally emigrated from England about 
forty years after the arrival of the Pilgrims in 
the "Mavfiower," in 1620. The family set- 
tled, with others, in Cambridge, IVIass. ; but 
in course of time their descendants married 
and settled elsewhere. They count back, how- 
ever, in a direct line, six generations in 
America. 

Mr. Markham"s great-grandfather, William 
Markham, married in June, 1761, Miss Abigail 
Cone Wiley, of East Haddam, Conn. ; and 
they removed to the western part of New York 
State, where they settled as pioneers in what 
was then the town of Hartford, now the town 
of Rush, situated just north of Avon, and in 
the fertile valley of the Genesee River. Their 
children were eight in number. Mr. and Mrs. 
William Markham both died in or about 1790. 
Colonel William Markham, the eldest son, 
married Miss Phoebe Dexter in 1775. They 
had ten children, of whom Guy Markham, the 
eighth child, was afterward the father of the 
subject of this narrative, William (iuy Mark- 
ham. Colonel Markham built the old family 
residence in the year 1804. There were none 
but log houses in the town at the time; and, 
now that modern dwellings have taken their 
places, this is pointed out as one of the land- 
marks of a former period. Guy Markham, son 
of Colonel Markham, married Miss Eliza Will- 
iams, a daughter of John and Mercy (Weeks) 
Williams, who were of an old New England 
family. They remained through life residents 
of the town of Rush. 

William Guy Markham, who perpetuates the 
names of father and grandfather, was born at 
"Elm Place," the family homestead, in the 
town of Rush, September 2, 1836. He was 



educated at the Lima Seminary, and afterward 
engaged in farming, having been largely occu- 
pied since 1858 in breeding fine stock, princi- 
pally "short-horns. " In 1872 he commenced 
making a specialty of American merinos ; 
and in 1876 he designed and prepared for pub- 
lication the American Merino Register, the 
first register of individual pedigrees of sheep 
ever published. The rolling country of West- 
ern New York affords fine pasturage for sheep, 
and the production of wool has been an indus- 
try of this part of the country ever since the 
settlement of farmers and the cultivation of 
the land. By authorized reports the produc- 
tion of wool increased in the United States 
from thirty-five million, eight hundred and two 
thousand, one hundred and fourteen pounds in 
the vear 1S40, to fifty-nine million, nine hun- 
dred and thirty-two thousand, three hundred 
and twenty-eight pounds in i860. It should 
be noted that Mr. Markham's aim has been to 
raise chiefly fine grades. 

In 1877 he was elected President of the 
New York State Sheep Breeders' and Wool 
Growers' Association, -to succeed Dr. Henry 
S. Randall, which position he continues to 
hold. In 1879 he was elected first President 
of the American ]\Ierino Sheep Breeders' As- 
sociation, and held the office till 1884. In 
1876 he was elected Secretary of the National 
Wool Growers' Association, holding that office 
until 1883, and was re-elected in 1894. These 
associations are all important ones; and, as 
representing the interests of the wool growers 
of the country, Mr. Markham conducted the 
argument for them before the Tariff Commis- 
sion in 1883. Before this time, however, the 
interests of other countries in the way of ex- 
portation had engaged his attention. In 1879 
he selected two hundred thoroughbred sheep 
for the Japanese government, and delivered 
them in person ; and in connection with this 
trip, at the suggestion of General Grant, 
whom he met in Japan, and from whom he re- 
ceived letters of introduction to the Viceroy, 
Li Hung Chang, he visited China, India, 
Italy, F"rance, Germany, England, and Aus- 
tralia, in the interests of sheep husbandry. 

Mr. Markham, from his long and excep- 
tional experience, has frequently been ap- 




JAMES E. CRISFIELD. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



223 



pointed to act as judge of cattle and sheep at 
the principal fairs of the country, and was the 
judge of American merino sheep in the class 
of delaine merinos, at the Columbian Fair in 
Chicago in 1893. His exhibition of Ram- 
bouillet sheep from Prussia was regarded as 
the principal feature of the merino sheep exhi- 
bition at that fair. The introduction of new 
varieties is a stimulant in any market, and the 
sheep grower is wise who has found the truth 
of this. 

William Guy Markham was married in 1880 
to Miss Josephine Foote, the daughter of War- 
ren Foote, of Rush, and late of Brooklyn, 
Long Island. Their one child is named Mary. 
Mr. Markham is a member of the Masonic 
Order, the Knights Templars. He has always 
been a member of the Republican party in 
politics. 



■^/Tr 



ERLETT C. BEEBE, a resident of 
\fp Arcade, is an extensive buyer of but- 
'^ ter and cheese for the New York 
markets. He was born in Freedom, February 
4, 1 85 1, his father, Charles Beebe, Jr., hav- 
ing been one of the early pioneers of that 
town. Having made the best of his opportu- 
nities for obtaining an education at both the 
district schools and the Arcade Academy, at 
the age of nineteen young Beebe accepted a 
position as clerk in the grocery store of J. D. 
Nichols at Arcade, where he remained but six 
months. Going from there to Sardinia, he 
entered the dry-goods business with Myers & 
Beebe, a connection which continued two 
years, after which he returned to Arcade, and 
engaged in buying butter and cheese for the 
New York markets. This has since been his 
business, with the exception of one year, when 
he filled the position of foreman and book- 
keeper for Smith & Wilson. 

Mr. Beebe was united in marriage on Jan- 
uary 20, 1S85, to Miss Libbie McKerrow, of 
Arcade. Mr. Beebe is a Republican in poli- 
tics, and has served as a Trustee of the village 
and as a member of the County Committee for 
several years. He is a member of the Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows, Lodge of 
Arcade. 



'AMES E. CRISFIELD, M.D., of 
Dansville, a leading physician of Liv- 
ingston County, was born at Lodi, 
Seneca County, N.Y., August 6, 1851, 
son of John Crisfield, a native of Queen 
Anne's County, Maryland. John Crisfield 
was born March 4, 1805; and he and his 
brother Edward were quite young when after 
the death of their father, who was an exten- 
sive slave owner, their widowed mother lib- 
erated the slaves, and came North, and settled 
on a farm in Seneca County. 

John Cri.sfield married Lovina Wamsley, 
who was born in Seneca County, where her 
father, William A., was a pioneer and farmer, 
and remained a resident there until his de- 
cease. She was one of a large family; and 
she and her husband reared fi\'e children — 
Gilbert, Philip, Louisa, Henrietta, and James 
E. Dr. Crisfield's parents possessed many 
rare qualities, being high-minded and consci- 
entious people, whose active lives were produc- 
tive of much good. They were both members 
of the Methodist church, of which Mr. Cris- 
field was a Trustee for many years. He was 
seventy-six at the time of his death, and his 
wife reached the same age. 

The boyhood of James E. Crisfield was 
passed upon his father's farm, during which 
time he attended the district schools. At the 
age of fourteen he went to Lima, and attended 
the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, where he 
prepared for college, which he entered later, 
remaining through his Junior year. The col- 
lege being then removed to Syracuse, he began 
the study of medicine with Dr. John W. Gray, 
of Avon, N. Y., later entered the College of 
Physicians and Surgeons in New York City, 
and was graduated from this famous medical 
school in 1873. He began the practice of his 
profession the same year at York, but, after 
remaining there three months, came directly 
from that place to Dansville, where he has 
attained a large and lucrative practice. He is 
ne.xt to the oldest practitioner in Livingston 
County, Dr. Pennie, a sketch of whose career 
appears elsewhere, being the senior. 

Dr. Crisfield is a member of the New York 
State Medical Society and of the Livingston 
County Medical Society, of which he has been 



224 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



President. He is also a member of Dansville 
Lodge of Odd Fellows, and has held all of the 
different offices. He has been Warden, and is 
now Senior Deacon of Phoenix Lodge, No. 
115, A. F. & A. M., and is a member of the 
Chapter of Royal Arch Masons, in which he is 
King. He is financially interested in many of 
Dans\Mlle's industries, being a director of the 
chair factory and of the Fair Association, 
President of the K. M. Parmelee Medical Com- 
pany, and also connected with several land 
companies. He manifests a li\ely interest in 
political matters, being a strong Democrat, 
having been a member of the County Commit- 
tee many years, and having served as a dele- 
gate to the State Convention. He has served 
several terms as Trustee of the village, Presi- 
dent of the board, and four years as Supervisor 
of the town. He was Presidential elector from 
this district in 1S92, and not long ago received 
the appointment of Postmaster of Dansville 
for four years, having assumed his duties Octo- 
ber I, 1894. The office requires one deputy, a 
money order clerk, and three assistants. 

Dr. Crisfield married Miss Elizabeth Gray; 
and they have two children — Abbie and 
Louise. Dr. and Mrs. Crisfield are members 
of the Presbyterian church. Having always 
faithfully discharged his arduous duties, both 
professional and public, Dr. Crisfield enjoys a 
well-earned reputation as an experienced and 
skilful physician, while his kindness and 
never-failing courtesy have contributed to win 
for him the esteem and good will of his fellow- 
townspeople. 

The accompanying portrait of James E. 
Crisfield, M.D. , will be recognized and ap- 
preciated by many warm friends. 



LONZO B. COOLEY, notary public, 
is and has been for some years a use- 
ful and influential citizen and 
officer-holder in Leicester, Living- 
ston County, N. Y. ; but he has lived in other 
places, and was born in Covington, Wyoming 
County, on April 28, 1821. His grandfather, 
Jonathan Cooley, Sr. , was born in Springfield, 
Mass., and came as a pioneer to Lewis County, 
New York, settling there for life. 




Jonathan Cooley, Jr., son of the elder, was 
born in Springfield, Mass., February 11, 1784, 
and moved with his parents to Turin, Lewis 
County, when very young. There he grew up 
and married; and in 181 1 he came to the Gen- 
esee country with ox teams, when Rochester 
was but a hamlet. They settled in Greigsville, 
now in the town of York, Livingston County, 
and built a log cabin in the wilderness. In 
1 8 16 Mr. Cooley sold out, and cut a road 
through the woods to Covington, where he 
bought a tract of land heavily timbered, and 
there erected another cabin, wherein the sub- 
ject of this sketch was born. In due time 
Mr. Cooley's success transformed his log 
buildings into frame houses; and on that estate 
he lived until his death, on December 15, 
1855. His wife, Zer\'iah Ximocks, was born 
in Wcstfield, Mass., September 11, 1782. 
She joined the Methodist Episcojial church 
when onlv fifteen \ears old, and was a faithful 
member for eighty-eight years, dying January 
16, 1886. Her father, Richard Nimocks, who 
was a cousin of her husband, was born in Scot- 
land, but emigrated to Massachu.setts, and died 
in Westfiekl. His wife's maiden name was 
Fowler. She came from Massachusetts to 
Leicester, and finally died at the home of her 
daughter, Mrs. Cooley. Mr. and Mrs. Jona- 
than Cooley reared eight children — Freder- 
ick, Gilbert M., Lucinda, James A., Carleton, 
Alonzo B. , Almon O. , and Nancy Jane Coo- 
ley. Frederick Cooley died in his thirty- 
fourth year, I\la\' 21, 1847; but all the others 
are living. 

Alonzo B. , the sixth child of Jonathan and 
Zerviah Cooley, attended the scantily furnished 
pioneer school in a log cabin at Covington, 
and afterward graduated with honor at the 
Wesleyan Seminary at Lima. He lived with 
his parents until he came of age, when he 
bought a farm at Covington, where he resided 
until 1859. Then he sold this farm, and went 
to the town of Perry, where he remained till 
1864, removing then to a farm in Leicester, 
one mile north of Moscow. After living there 
six years, he moved into the village, at the 
time of the completion of the Delaware, Lack- 
awanna & Western Railroad, and became the 
first station agent, holding the position eight 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



225 



years, after which he retired from active life. 
He has been thrice married. His first mar- 
riage, to Eliza Ann Partridge, of Covington, a 
daughter of Ora and Betsey Partridge, natives 
of New Hampshire, and pioneers in Wyoming 
County, took place in 1848, when he was 
twenty-seven. Mrs. Eliza A. Cooley died in 
1863, after fifteen years of wedlock. In the 
month of March, 1865, Mr. Cooley married 
Hannah Emma Beebe, who was born in 
Leicester, and was a daughter of Russell and 
Orrilla Beebe, early settlers of the town. 
Mrs. Hannah E. Cooley died July 3, 1871. 
On August 2, 1874, Mr. Cooley married Eme- 
line Elizabeth White, who was born in Mos- 
cow, Livingston County, a daughter of Lewis 
B. and Hannah S. (Peirson) White, natives 
respectively of Bath, Steuben County, and 
Cazenovia, Madison County. 

By his first wife Mr. Cooley had one daugh- 
ter, Helen E. Cooley, born July 3, 1852, who 
married Addison P. Weisner, and died on 
March 5, 1889, leaving three children — Ar- 
thur P. , Harry, and Bertha Weisner. By his 
second marriage there were three children. 
Russell B. Cooley, born February 14, 1866, 
1883, aged seventeen, 
born on June 29, 1870, 
Burns, of Howell, Mich., 
October 11, 1889, and died December 21, the 
same year, aged nineteen. William Jonathan 
Cooley, the only living child of Mr. Cooley, 
was born on May 8, 1868, married F"annie 
Kennish, and has three children — Elmer, 
Russell, and Mabel Kennish Cooley. Mr. 
and Mrs. Alonzo B. Cooley are members of 
the Methodist PZpi.scopal church, as were his 
former wives. 

Mr. Cooley was one of the organizers of the 
Republican party in the neighborhood, and has 
been a stanch supporter of its tenets. He was 
Justice of Peace in Covington for twenty-three 
years, but resigned this office on coming to 
Perry, where he served as both Coroner and 
Justice of Peace four years. He has been ap- 
pointed Notary Public successively by Gov- 
ernors Cornell, Hall, and Flower; and, after 
coming to Moscow, he was elected Justice of 
the Peace, which office he still holds. He is 
one of those men who believe, with Plato, that 



died February 17, 
Mabel Cooley was 
married Charles E. 



"justice is, in the mind, a condition analo- 
gous to good health and strength in the 
body. ' ' 




YMAN C. BROUGHTON, M.D., a 
practising physician of the town of 
Castile, N. Y. , was born in the 
neighboring town of Covington ; 
and, though settled in one locality, he is so 
eminent in his profession that he may rather 
be said to belong to the whole county of Wy- 
oming than to any one part of it. Dr. 
Broughton is the son of Oscar L. and Mary 
(Barrett) Broughton, grandson of Lyman and 
Isabel (Webster) Broughton, and great-grand- 
son of John Broughton, who was a farmer and 
a hotel-keeper in very early times, and lived 
to a good old age. 

The grandfather, Lyman Broughton, was 
born January 6, 1808, in Washington County, 
New York. He was also a farmer ; and after 
his marriage he removed his family, in April, 
1844, to Covington, where he bought one 
hundred and forty acres of land, and built a 
substantial set of buildings. Deciding at 
length to make a change, he sold that place 
and purchased the adjoining estate, where he 
settled down, and has continued to live until 
the- present time. Although eighty-seven 
years old, he is still quite an active and ener- 
getic gentleman, and, with his wife of seventy- 
eight years, unites in lending to their 
neighborhood the charming personality which 
belongs only to serene old age. They have 
been blessed w'ith three children, namely: Isa- 
bella, who is the wife of John Thomson, and 
lives in Castile with their one child; Oscar 
L. ; and John, whose first wife, Stella Lewis, 
died, leaving two children, who married for a 
second wife Cornelia Chute, and lives in Cov- 
ington. Lyman Broughton w^as Justice of the 
Peace for over twenty-five years. He has 
always been a Democrat in his political prin- 
ciples, and both he and his wife are members 
of the Methodist Episcopal church. 

Oscar L. , father of the chief character of 
this sketch, was born in Washington County, 
and received his education at the Wyoming 
Academy. At twenty-one years of age he 



226 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



bought one hundred and twenty-five acres of 
land, and remained on the place, cultivating 
it for several years, when he concluded to 
marry, and took for a wife Mary Barrett, who 
was a native of Ridgeway, Orleans County, 
N. Y. She was a daughter of a Methodist 
minister, the Rev. William Barrett, and Han- 
nah Tanner Barrett, his wife, who are no 
longer living. 

After his marriage Mr. Oscar L. Broughton 
sold the farm and went to Buffalo, where he 
prosecuted the study of dentistry to such good 
purpose that he was able to enter that impor- 
tant field of work for himself, and opened an 
office in the town of Wilson, Niagara County. 
He built up a very successful practice in that 
place, and continued in Wilson for several 
years, moving from there to Kendall, in Or- 
leans County. His stay in that town was ten 
years; and at the expiration of these he 
came in 1892 to Castile, where he has an office 
over the bank, his pleasant residence being on 
Liberty Street. Oscar L. Broughton is, like 
his father, a Democrat in his party prefer- 
ences. Always interested in local matters and 
in the acquaintances made professionally, he 
takes part in the organizations which have a 
common bond of unity, and may be mentioned 
as a member of the Lodge Maccabee of Castile, 
Tent 151. He attends with his wife the 
Methodist Episcopal church. 

Lvman C. , only child of Oscar L. and Mary 
Broughton, received his early education at the 
Wilson Academy. His first business experi- 
ence was as a clerk iu a drug store in Buffalo. 
This occupation served to supply his material 
wants, and was indirectly an aid to the medical 
studies which he carried on in the evenings 
and at all other odd hours. His diligent ap- 
plication resulted in due time in his graduation 
from the Buffalo Medical University, in 1888. 
Having received his diploma, he at once began 
the practice of medicine. Dr. Broughton's 
first location was at Middleport, where he re- 
mained three years. Then, as Dr. Smith, of 
Castile, had been called to his well-earned 
rest, leaving a large practice, Dr. Broughton 
came here in 1892, and purchased the residence 
on Main Street, with a valuable library and 
other furnishings, constituting a desirable 



equipment for a physician's work. His prac- 
tice has steadily increased, and his work is 
considered to be after the advanced methods 
which have resulted from long continued in- 
vestigations in the medical profession. 

In 1890 Dr. Broughton was married to 
Minnie C. Warner, a native of Middleport, 
N.Y. , who was born on April 12, 1873. Her 
parents are James R. and Alice C. (Shippen) 
Warner. Her father was born in Orleans 
County, and for a time was a farmer there; 
but later he engaged in the hardware business, 
and at the present time is in the custom-house 
at Suspension Bridge. Of his two children, 
IMinnie, wife of Dr. Broughton, is the elder; 
and the other is a brother living at home. In 
defence of his country's flag in the late Civil 
W^ar, Mr. Warner enlisted, in 1862, in Com- 
pany I, New York Light Artillery, Battery 
E, Fifth Army Corps. He was wounded in 
1864 and soon after discharged. He is a Re- 
publican in politics. 

Dr. Broughton is likewise a Republican, and 
takes a loyal part in local public enterprises. 
His mission of healing being one that meets 
a general need, he has found a distinction in 
the practice of his profession which will cause 
his name to be long perpetuated. 



stead, 
1894. 



AMES W. JONES, a noted citizen of 
Leicester, Livingston County, N. Y. , 
was born in this town December 2, 
1 83 1, and died at his ancestral home- 
the Pine Tavern farm, on August 11, 
The Jones family is perhaps the most 

important in the history of the neighborhood ; 

and of it might be quoted the lines of John 

Quincy Adams, written toward the end of his 

distinguished career — 

'• This hand, to tyrants ever sworn the foe. 
For freedom only deahs the deadly blow. 
Then sheathes in calm repose the vengeful blade. 
For gentle peace in freedom's hallowed shade." 

Captain Horatio Jones, the grandfather of 
the special subject of this sketch, was born on 
February 7, 1763, in Chester County, Pennsyl- 
vania, and at an early age was taken by his 
parents to Bedford County in the same State. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



227 



He was nearly twelve years old at the date of 
the battle of Lexington; and it is not surpris- 
ing that his blood was aflame with military 
ardor, and that he enlisted, while a boy of six- 
teen, in the Bedford Rangers, for the Revolu- 
tionary contest. In the very heart of the war, 
1779, the year when Washington's army was 
encamped near Morristown, N.J., our lad was 
captured by the Indians, and taken into the 
Genesee valley. He was forced by his cap- 
tors- to run the gauntlet of their blows, but 
accomplished his painful task with so much 
agile bravery as to win the lasting friendship 
of the red men, who accordingly adopted him 
into one of their tribes; for he could outrun 
and outjump any of their youth. Such was 
his knowledge of Indian languages and affairs 
that at the close of the war Horace was ap- 
pointed by General Washington to the impor- 
tant post of interpreter for the Six Nations, a 
place which he held continuously for the next 
forty years. 

In 1785, at the age of twenty-two, he married 
a lady named Whitmore, from Schenectady, 
N. Y. , and about the same time established 
a trading-post at Schauges, now called Water- 
loo, in Ontario County, where he became asso- 
ciated in the fur trade with John Jacob Astor, 
the celebrated millionaire, who then and there 
was laying the foundation of his colossal fort- 
une. In 1789, at twenty-six years of age, 
Horatio Jones became the first white settler in 
the Genesee district, a locality with which he 
had been familiar during his sojourn among 
the Indians, and set himself to the task of 
making a home in what is now Livingston 
County. Securing land in the present town of 
Genesee, he erected a log house in the wilder- 
ness, miles away from the habitation of other 
civilized people, and in the very midst of wild 
beasts and wilder men. 

Captain Horatio Jones had three brothers 
who also came to this county, one, John 
Hunter, coming with him from Geneva, mak- 
ing the journey with a yoke of oxen and a cart, 
the first vehicle -ever seen in this region. 
John H. Jones located in what is now called 
Leicester, which was then within the lines of 
Genesee County, and became very prominent 
in public affairs, serving for a time as Count}' 



Judge. He erected a saw-mill, wherefrom he 
was able to furnish lumber to the Indians, in 
accordance with a government contract. An- 
other brother, George W. Jones, was a black- 
smith, and employed by the general govern- 
ment to do certain lines of iron work for the 
Indians; his last years were not spent in this 
valley, but in the State of Indiana. The 
fourth brother, William Jones, was a civil 
engineer by profession, and was employed also 
by the government, his last years being spent 
in Leicester. 

Other settlers soon followed the example of 
such enterprising leaders; but no one of them 
acquired more land than Captain Jones, who 
here made it his home till death translated 
him to a higher realm, in August, 1836. His 
first wife died many years before ; but he again 
married, and in all had sixteen children. One 
of this large household was Hiram, the father 
of our special ' subject. He was born in 
Geneva, Ontario County, in 1789, just before 
the Jones family removed to the Genesee val- 
ley. Here Hiram grew up from infancy amid 
the stirring scenes of pioneer life, and seeing 
far more Indians than white men. Young 
Indians were his playmates, especially the half- 
breed children of Mary Jemison, who had been 
brought up and married among the Indians, 
and was known as the "old white woman." 
Hiram was, of course, reared to farming. 
After marriage he established himself in 
Leicester, where he passed almost all his days 
till his death, at eighty-one years of age, in 
1870, though not always in the same house; 
for he owned and carried on two different 
estates. His wife, the mother of James W. , 
was Verona Shepard, who was born in Ver- 
mont in the first year of our century, the 
daughter of Otis and Grace (Everett) Shepard, 
both New Lngland people. Mrs. Verona Jones 
was nearl)- a dozen years younger than her hus- 
band, and died at the age of seventy-eight, 
leaving three children. Two of them, George 
Whitmore Jones and Sarah Everett Jones, are 
no longer on earth. 

The other child was James W. Jones, to 
whom this sketch specially relates. In boy- 
hood he attended the district school and Wy- 
oming Academy. At the age of twenty he 



228 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



became uneasy and went to sea, taking ship 
from New York City on board the "Nesto- 
ria, " engaged in the China tea trade. They 
touched first at Hong Kong, and then at 
Shanghai, reaching New York again after a 
lapse of thirteen months. The young advent- 
urer did not care for further seafaring experi- 
ments, and was glad to be once more at home. 
At the age of twenty-three, in 1854, he began 
farming for himself on one of his father's 
places, where he remained till 1862, eight 
years, when he took another farm, making it 
his permanent home. This formerly belonged 
to his grandfather, Captain Horatio Jones, and 
is called the Pine Tavern farm, taking its 
name from the fact that an inn was kept here 
in the early days. Being situated on the main 
road, the house was a favorite resort of travel- 
lers from all points of the compas.s. In the 
division of the grandfather's estate the heirs 
were allowed to bid for a choice of his farms; 
and thus Hiram Jones came into possession of 
this one of two hundred and fifty acres, which 
his son, James W., afterward inherited. 

In 1861, at the age of thirty, when the great 
rebellion was beginning, Mr. James W. Jones 
married a kinswoman, Elizabeth L. Jones, a 
native of Leicester, a daughter of Judge Johns 
H. and Julia Jones, and a grand-daughter of 
Captain Horatio Jones. Though no children 
cheered the home, it was still a centre of 
attraction to many friends, Mr. and Mrs. 
Jones being in the enjoyment of that calm 
which follows a stirring and prosperous career. 
In politics Mr. James W. Jones was a Demo- 
crat, and cherished an interest in all sorts of 
public matters. The loss of his presence and 
influence is deeply felt. 




NDREW J. BACKUS, a venerable and 
highly respected member of the farm- 
ing community of Livonia, Living- 
ston County, was born in Washing- 
ton County, New York, on the 6th of 
February, 181 5. His grandfather, John 
Backus, built the first grist-mill in Washing- 
ton County, where he lived until past middle 
age. He finally moved to Freetown, Onondaga 
County, where he remained until his death. 



Ebenezer Backus, son of John and father of 
Andrew J., was born in Massachusetts. He 
received a somewhat limited education in the 
district school of his native town, and, coming 
to New York, was a farmer in Fort Ann, 
Washington County, before coming to Living- 
ston County. He came to Livonia in 1830, 
when his son Andrew was a lad of fifteen. 
His farm here consisted of sixty acres, and the 
house in which he lived and died is now owned 
by his son whose name heads this memoir. 
Mr. Ebenezer Backus was seventy-four years 
old when he died. His wife was Miss Jemima 
Chandler, a daughter of Joseph Chandler. 
They had a large family of children, and 
reared three daughters and five sons. 

Mr. Andrew J. Backus, who is now the 
only survivor of the paternal household, is a 
"seventh son," wherefore the superstition of 
many ages would attribute to him an inherent 
aptitude for mystic research and occult sci- 
ence. As a matter of fact, however, he has 
displayed most practical sense and judgment, 
as is evidenced by his successful career. 
After his father's death he continued to work 
on the home farm ; and finally, having bought 
out the interests of the other heirs, he became 
its sole owner. He then invested in adjoining 
land, until the property now covers one hun- 
dred and ninety acres. In 1837 Mr. Backus 
married Miss Ann Patterson, a daughter of 
Alexander and Lucy (Lewis) Patterson, who 
were among the early settlers of Conesus, in 
Livingston County. The Patterson family 
consisted of eleven brothers and si.sters, six of 
whom are still living. 

F"our of the five children born to Andrew 
and Ann Backus lived to maturity — Andrew 
J., Jr., deceased; Theodore; Alexander; and 
George, deceased. Theodore married Gloanah 
S. Ganung, of Lima, and has two children — 
Tennessee and George. Alexander married 
Helen M. Har\-ey, and has reared a family of 
ten children — Henry, Annie, Lizzie, Donald, 
Nellie, Jennie, Bernice, Cora, Roy, and 
Alline. Mr. Andrew Backus has held the 
office of Highway Commissioner satisfactorily 
to his neighbors and with credit to himself. 
He cast his first Presidential vote for Mr. Van 
Buren in 1836, but has been a Republican 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



229 



since the establishment of that party about 
forty years ago. 




ARLON P. WILLIAMS, one of Ar- 
cade's prosperous farmers, was born 
in Rutland County, Vermont, March 
19, 1851, where his father, Benja- 
min F. Williams, was also a native, and was 
reared to agricultural pursuits. The latter 
when of age came to New York State, bring- 
ing his wife and family, consisting of three 
children, and settling in Cattaraugus County, 
where he purchased one hundred acres of wild 
land, upon which he constructed his log house 
and began as a pioneer to establish a home. 
He cleared and improved his farm as rapidly 
as possible under the circumstances, later 
erecting a frame house, together with other 
farm buildings, and resided there for nineteen 
years. At the end of that time he removed to 
Townsend Hill, Erie County, having pur- 
chased a piece of farm property there of four 
hundred and thirty-si.\ acres, which he carried 
on for a period of sixteen years. He owned 
property in Buffalo for a time, and from that 
city went to Springville, where he passed the 
remainder of his life. He was an educated 
and well-informed man, and a leader in local 
public affairs. He built the first school-house 
and organized the first school in the section 
where he first made his home. Mr. Benjamin 
F. Williams was a Republican in politics, and 
served as Supervisor several years in Catta- 
raugus County, and also as Highway Commis- 
sioner. He died at the age of sixty-si.\ years, 
being the first to break the family circle. 
His wife was, before her marriage, Sarah A. 
Harrison. She was a daughter of Charles 
Harrison, her parents having been of English 
birth ; and she became the mother of nine 
children. 

Harlon P. Williams was carefully trained 
by his father to agricultural life, and at an 
early age began to assist him in attending to 
the farm duties. His education, however, was 
not neglected. He attended the district 
schools, and also the Springville Academy; 
and, after completing his course of studies, he 
taught school during winters in the various 



towns throughout the locality. Later he pur- 
chased one hundred acres of land from his 
father, which he carried on for three years. 
Moving from there to Arcade, he purchased 
his present farm of one hundred acres, which 
he proceeded to improve and bring to a high 
state of cultivation. That he has labored to 
good purpose is apparent when it is known that 
his hay crop, which in the first year was but 
four tons, has increased to seventy-two tons. 
He erected his comfortable and substantial 
house, together with his other buildings, and 
at the present time has a perfect equipment of 
modern agricultural implements. His farm, 
which is one of the very best in this section, 
consists of ninety-five acres of tillable land, 
all cleared by himself. 

In September, 1875, Mr. Williams was 
united in marriage to Miss Lula Jones, daugh- 
ter of Evan Jones, a farmer of Arcade, who 
was born in Steuben, Oneida County, and spent 
his last years at the former place, dying at the 
age of sixty-five years. The mother of Mrs. 
Williams, who before marriage was Lydia 
Ward, was born at F'loyd, Oneida County, of 
New England parentage. She belongs to that 
religious sect known as Seventh-day Advent- 
ists, and now resides at Springville. Mr. 
and Mrs. Harlon P. Williams have five chil- 
dren, as follows: Milton Claude, Leora Pearl, 
Onnolee, Leeo Netto, and Harlon P., Jr. 

Mr. Williams has been Past Master of the 
Maccabees at Arcade, and is a Republican in 
politics. His parents were earnest Christian 
people of the Baptist faith ; but Mr. Williams 
attends the Methodist church, having sung in 
the choir for many years. Mr. and Mrs. Will- 
iams visited the Centennial Exhibition at 
Philadelphia in 1876, and also the Columbian 
Exposition at Chicago in 1894, where their 
time and money were profitably spent in view- 
ing the wonders of the "White City." 



B 



AVID PIFFARD, who died at his 
home, Oak Forest, Piffard, N. Y. , 
on June 27, 1883, had been a well- 
known land owner and a prominent 
and philanthropic citizen of Livingston County 
for nearly sixty years. He was born on the 



23° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



9th of August, 1794, in Pentonville, parish of 
Clerkenwell, Middlesex County, England, and 
bore his father's name, the family being of 
French Huguenot extraction. At the age of 
eight years he went to France, and, besides 
the usual course of study pursued in the 
schools of Versailles and Paris, he took up 
architecture, a profession in which he per- 
fected himself in I^ondon after his return 
to that city in 181 3. In his twenty-ninth 
year, and in the December of 1822, Mr. David 
Piffard came to America, bearing letters of 
introduction from his father to the gentlemen 
of the firm of Le Roy Bayard & Co. , with 
whom he remained during the summer. In 
1824 he came to the Genesee valley, far famed 
for its beauty and fertility, and purchased from 
Mr. John Brinton, of Philadelphia, a tract of 
land containing about six hundred acres, a part 
of this land being now covered by the village 
which bears his name. Mr. Piffard henceforth 
devoted himself to the care of his home farm 
and five thousand acres which he owned in 
Flint, Mich. 

Mr. I-'iffard was a man of wide experience 
and deep insight. He had witnessed three 
forms of government in France, having lived 
there during the successive conditions of the 
Consulate, the Empire, and the re-established 
dynasty of the unfortunate Bourbon family in 
Louis XVIII. He had been a subject of 
George HI., had lived in England during the 
regency of the Prince of Wales, and had seen 
the coronation of King George IV. In Amer- 
ica he lived through thirteen Presidential 
administrations. Few men, perhaps, ever had 
a wider acquaintance with the vicissitudes of 
governments; and it was after much delibera- 
tion upon the political situation of the day 
that he joined the American political party 
known as the "Old-line Whig," which in 
1856 was merged in what is now known as the 
Republican party. Although an ardent advo- 
cate and firm supporter of this party, he never 
allowed his name to be used as a candidate for 
office. 

In 1825 Mr. David Piffard was married to 
Miss Ann Matilda Haight, a daughter of 
David L. Haight, of New York. Five chil- 
dren were born of this union. The eldest. 



David Haight, who married Constance Theall, 
died in 1881, leaving four children — D. Hal- 
sey, Nina H., Charlotte O. , and Emma M. 
Sarah Eyre died in 1881. Ann Matilda resides 
at the homestead. Charles Carroll, who has 
been an extensive traveller in the West, is now 
living on a ranch in California. Henry G. 
Piffard, M.D., is a prominent physician in 
New York City. Dr. Piffard married Helen 
H. Strong, a daughter of General William K. 
Strong. They had four children — Henry H., 
who died in 1892 ; Helen, who married Everett 
Oakes ; Charles H. ; and Susan F. 

Mr. Piffard was a member of the First Ves- 
try of St. Michael's Parish, Geneseo, and was 
on the building committee of the first church 
building of that parish. A love of scientific 
study led him to read medicine, in which he 
became very skilled. He practised, receiving 
no remuneration for his services, and was in 
verity a true friend to the poor and needy, to 
whom his ready sympathy was always offered. 
He was universally loved and respected during 
his life, and his memory is affectionately held 
in the hearts of the many who were recipients 
of his kindness. 




EIL STEWART, who died in the town 
of York on the thirtieth day of April, 



1893, had been for many years one 
of the leading citizens, and perhaps 
the most prominent business man in that town 
for more than thirt}' years prior to his death. 
He was of Scotch descent, his father, Alexan- 
der Stewart, having been born in the High- 
lands of Scotland in the year 1778. When he 
attained the age of about thirty years, Alexan- 
der Stewart married Margaret McDougal, of 
the same neighborhood; and, emigrating to- 
gether to the United States, in the year 18 10 
they settled among the then almost unbroken 
forests of the town of York. This place, then 
forming a part of the town of Caledonia, was 
largely settled by emigrants from Scotland; 
and they naturally drew to their vicinity others 
of the same nationality, both from Scotland 
and from the eastern part of New York State, 
particularly from P"ulton and Delaware Coun- 
ties. Alexander Stewart, at the time of his 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



settlement in York, was potir in money, but 
rich in the virtues of industry and economy; 
and by perseverance and toilsome manual labor 
he soon made himself a home amid the forests, 
which year after year were cleared away, their 
sites becoming productive farms and homes of 
families worthy of such an ancestry. He 
raised to maturity a family of six children, 
four sons and two daughters, and died in the 
town of York, in February, 1845, his wife 
Margaret surviving him fifteen years. 

Neil Stewart, the subject of this sketch, was 
born on his father's farm in the town of York, 
July 12, 181 1, and remained until the time of 
his death a citizen of that town. His early 
years were filled with hard work and strict 
economy; and thus, under the supervision of 
his father, he laid the foundation of what was 
a successful and prosperous life. For those 
times he acquired a fair education, studying 
first in the common schools near his home, and 
afterward at a select school in Caledonia, and 
then became a teacher for several years in the 
district schools of those towns, performing the 
duties of that vocation with credit to himself 
and great satisfaction to the district by which 
he was employed. 

As Mr. Stewart grew to manhood, he devel- 
oped an unusual capacity for business, and at 
the age of about twenty-three years he entered 
the employ of Messrs. J. H. and I{. S. Beach, 
millers at Rochester and Auburn; and so well 
were his business qualifications apprecfated by 
his employers that he was given full charge of 
their large warehouse and boats at York Land- 
ing, on the Genesee River, and continued as 
manager of such business for about six years. 
He then located himself at the village of York, 
and engaged upon his own account, and also 
upon commission, in the purchase of grain and 
wool. For a number of years in his early life 
he was also engaged in mercantile business at 
York Centre, a part of the time carrying on 
the business alone, and at other times in co- 
partnership, severally, with James McPherson 
and with Edward Brown and Charles Stewart, 
dealing in dry goods, groceries, and all the 
other various departments usually found in a 
prosperous country store. During a portion 
of this time he was also the Postmaster at 



York. He began by purchases of land to lay 
the foundation for what afterward became his 
chief occupation; namely, farming upon the 
most extensive scale, being the owner and 
active manager of nearly two thousand five 
hundred acres of land, a large part of which 
was held under his own immediate direction, 
assisted by his three active sons, Alexander 
N., Charles N. , and William N. During 
these active business years Mr. Stewart was 
also at one time the owner of the flouring-mill 
at York Landing, and was largely engaged in 
other business. 

In the year 1870 he began to deal largely in 
grain, wool, and lumber, a part of this busi- 
ness being carried on in the town of York, and 
a considerable portion of it at Livonia Station 
in the County of Livingston, under his super- 
vision, but under the direct management of his 
son, Alexander N. Stewart. His purchases of 
grain and wool were very large, and at many 
points upon the railroads, and also upon the 
Genesee Valley Canal, which was then in 
operation through the county of Livingston ; 
and for ten or fifteen years succeeding this 
period he was undoubtedly the largest pur- 
chaser of wool and grain in the county. 

On October i, 1871, he engaged in the 
banking business at Livonia Station, being the 
sole proprietor of the business carried on at 
that point under the name of "Bank of Li- 
vonia" until a few years prior to his death, 
when he associated with him as a copartner in 
the bank his son, Alexander N., under whose 
direction and control the business had been 
hitherto largely conducted. This business 
was successful from the beginning, and under 
the careful supervision and prompt, methodi- 
cal, and courteous management of Messrs. 
Stewart, father and son, contributed in no 
small degree to the fortune which Mr. Neil 
Stewart acquired as a result of his business 
capacity and enterprise. As has been the case 
with others similarly engaged, his dealings in 
wool and grain were not always successful ; 
and at times in his extensive business career 
he met with several severe losses. But, as a 
result of his whole life, it can positively be 
said that no man ever lost a dollar by Neil 
Stewart. 



232 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



His political principles were like his per- 
sonal integrity — firm, consistent, and known 
of all men ; and he was always frank and out- 
spoken in his enunciation of them. In early 
life he was a member of the Whig party; but 
upon the organization of the Republican party 
he became an intelligent and somewhat enthu- 
siastic member of that party, and continued to 
adhere to its principles and policy during the 
remainder of his life. He never sought pub- 
lic office, but at times consented to serve his 
fellow-citizens in the discharge of the duties of 
local office; and in that way he held many 
positions of public trust during his lifetime. 
In addition to the office of Postmaster, to 
which he was appointed and served for many 
years, as we have before stated, he was Super- 
visor of his town for three years, and also held 
the office of Assessor and Justice of the Peace 
for several terms, thus revealing the trust and 
confidence which his neighbors and fellow-citi- 
zens, who knew him best, reposed in his sagac- 
ity, honesty, and wise judgment. 

On the 1 2th of March, 1840, Mr. Stewart 
married Miss Jane Nichol, daughter of Will- 
iam and Jane Nichol, of York, who proved a 
capable helpmeet and wise counsellor to him 
for over half a century, living to celebrate 
their golden wedding in 1890. Ten children 
were born to them, namely : Margaret, the 
widow of Homer McVean, late of York ; Jane 
R. , the wife of George K. Whitney, now of 
Geneseo; Eliza, the wife of John Sinclair, of 
Caledonia; Ella, the wife of Edward C. Cald- 
well, of York; Alexander N. ; Agnes, the 
wife of George D. Smith, of New York City; 
Charles N. ; William N. ; Mary K., the wife 
of George A. Donnan, of York; and Neil 
Stewart, Jr. These children are all living, 
excepting Neil Stewart, Jr., who died in New 
York City, March 30, 1891, while engaged in 
business there, that being the first death which 
had occurred in the familv. Mrs. Stewart 
died May 20, 1891. Each (if these children 
received a good education; and all have be- 
come prosperous and useful citizens and mem- 
bers of the community in which they live, 
revealing in every instance the results of their 
sound early training, coupled with the substan- 
tial traits of their Scottish ancestry. They 



have all established homes of their own, ex- 
cepting Mr. Charles N. Stewart, who is un- 
married and occupies the comfortable residence 
where his father and mother spent their last 
years, the old homestead being occupied by 
William N. and his family, Alexander N. liv- 
ing in Livonia, of which town he is a promi- 
nent resident and business man, having there 
held the office of Supervisor and other local 
positions. Charles N. is largely engaged in 
buying and selling grain, wool, and other 
produce. These three sons follow in their 
father's footsteps in holding, the respect and 
confidence of the community in which they 
live, and, like him, seem to take great pleas- 
ure in carrying on and adding to the large 
farms which they received from him, in addi- 
tion to which Alexander N. has now the entire 
management and control of the banking busi- 
ness established by his father at Livonia 
Station. 



~UFrANK J. BONNER, a model farmer 
P] residing in Ossian, Livingston County, 
*- N. Y., two and a half miles from Dans- 
ville, was born on his present farm, March 9, 
1853, the year Franklin Pierce was elected 
President. His father and his grandfather 
each bore the name Samuel Bonner. The 
former was a native of Pennsylvania, the date 
of his birth being October 18, 1795. The 
grandfather's birthplace was Ireland. He 
came to America with his wife and one child, 
.settling at fir.st on a farm in Pennsylvania. 
From there he moved to Dansville, and later 
was found among the pioneers of Sparta, where 
he died after rearing a large family. Before 
that, however, he had returned to Dansville, 
and taken up land where the present Main 
Street is now located. 

His second son, Samuel, was trained as a 
farmer; and the boy continued to live at home 
until he was of age, meanwhile attending the 
pioneer school. When he first came to the 
present home of his son Frank, which was on 
December 11, 181 3, it was then a mass of im- 
cultivated land. The first wife of Samuel 
Bonner, son of the elder Samuel, was Nellie 
Covert, daughter of Peter Covert. She reared 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



233 



seven children — William; Samuel, deceased; 
Marietta ; James ; P'rederick ; Nathaniel ; and 
Rose. Mr. Bonner cleared the land, built a 
part of the present buildings, and spent the rest 
of his life there, dying August 10, 1879, at 
eighty-five years of age. His second wife was 
Maria Knapp, daughter of Joel Knapp, of Con- 
necticut, where she was born October 18, 
1808. Joel Knapp' s family came to Ossian 
among the early settlers. Mrs. Maria Knapp 
Bonner reared three children — Alice, Celia, 
and Frank J. Bonner. The mother still lives, 
making her home with her son, Frank J., our 
subject. Although eighty si.\ years of age, 
she is hale and hearty, and a member of the 
Presbyterian church, where her husband served 
as Deacon for many years. 

Mr. Frank J. Bonner .spent his early life on 
the farm. He was educated at Dansville Sem- 
inary, after which he assisted his father up to 
the time of the old gentleman's death. His 
mother, two sisters, and himself live happily 
at the old homestead. The brother and sisters 
evidently prefer single bles.sednes.s, neither 
having married. The fine farm upon which 
they live contains four hundred and forty 
acres, and is practically three farms. Mr. 
Bonner is diligent in business, overseeing all 
this valuable land. He is also interested in 
Buffalo real estate. Mr. Bonner has been a 
successful office-holder, serving as Supervisor 
three years, 1883, 1884, and 1889. He is a 
stanch supporter of the Republican party, and 
has always taken an active interest in political 
measures. The family attend the Presbyterian 
church, of which they are all members. Mr. 
Bonner is not only a man of means, but a man 
of resources, and is regarded as the leading 
man in the town of Ossian. He is universally 
respected — is, in fact, an excellent pattern for 
the risins generation. 



/^TeORGE TOMLINSON, an esteemed 
\ '•) I resident of Perry, who is e.xtensively 
^^-"^ engaged in operating mills, and is 
noted for both business ability and literary 
attainments, was born at LeRoy, Genesee 
County, August 15, 1822, being the second 
son of John and Hepsibah (Ransford) Tomlin- 



son, and grandson of David and Poll}- (Hull) 
Tomlinson. David Tomlinson was a native of 
Derby, Conn., and a blacksmith whose spe- 
cialty was the production of scythes and hand- 
made axes. He died in Newtown, Conn., at 
about the age of seventy-five years, and his 
wife at about fifty-five. They reared a family 
of eleven children, namely: Hull; Zerry ; 
Austin; John; Russell; Lucy Ann Lewis; 
Anna Peck; Sally Everetts ; Betsey Sherman ; 
Polly Douglass ; and Laura, a maiden lady. 

John Tomlinson was born in Newtown, 
Conn., and, having been bound out to a 
farmer when a small child, ran away on 
account of ill usage at the age of fourteen, 
and engaged himself to a carpenter in Massa- 
chusetts, where he acquired the trade of a car- 
penter, joiner, and millwright, becoming an 
expert workman. In 18 15 he moved to LeRoy, 
N. Y., where he became a building con- 
tractor. His first millwright work was on the 
Tufts mill in LeRoy. He built a mill at 
South Warsaw, one in Warsaw village, the 
Judge Sprague mill on Pearl Creek, the James 
Sprague mill in Covington, the Allen mill 
at Roanoke, the Bailey mill, now in Pavil- 
ion, the Haskins mill and the lower mill in 
LeRoy. He also built a mill at Morganville, 
two on Genesee River, one at York, and one 
at Geneseo, and the Bailey mill in Perry. He 
erected a large number of saw-mills, dwell- 
ing-houses, and the Presbyterian church in 
LeRoy. 

Subsequently he purchased the Tufts mill in 
LeRoy, which he took down, and built a new 
mill on the same site, which he successfully 
operated for thirty years. In 1870 he retired 
to a small farm in the vicinity, where he died 
at the age of seventy-six years. He married 
Hepsibah Ransford, whose parents resided in 
Oneida County, and were farmers. She was 
an expert spinner and weaver, and not only 
spun both flax and wool, but wove her linen 
and her cloth, and, dyeing and bleaching them 
herself, made her full wedding outfit. A 
homely, but certainly honorable, trousseau ! 
She died at the age of thirty-four years, and 
was a member of the Episcopal church. Five 
children survived her — Julius, George, Eliza, 
Susan, and Caroline. John Tomlinson mar- 



234 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ried for his second wife Doritha Hitchcock, 
who died at the age of sixty years, leaving two 
children — Ogden and Jane. Mr. Tomlinson 
was an anti-^Iason, a Whig and Republican in 
politics, and held the office of Supervisor for 
fifteen years. He was Commissioner to build 
the court-house in Genesee County. 

George Tomlinson commenced his education 
in the district schools, and later attended the 
Wyoming Academy and a select school at 
I.eRov. At the age of eighteen he began work- 
ing on farms during the summer, at eleven 
dollars per month, and taught school during 
the winter, which he continued to do for five 
years, when he married Marion B. Sprague, 
daughter of James and Martha (Keath) Sprague. 
Her father was the proprietor of a large card- 
ing and cloth manufactory at Covington, Wy- 
oming County, and was also a farmer. Both 
parents lived to an advanced age. Mrs. Tom- 
linson was their only child to reach maturity, 
one other having died young. Mr. and ]\Irs. 
Tomlinson have two children, a son and a 
daughter. J. Frank Tomlinson married Hattie 
Root, and is a partner with his father in the 
flouring-mills. He has three children — Irene 
A., Agnes M., and Charles S. Helen Eliza 
married Walter Gillett, of Perry, and has one 
child, Ruth N. Gillett. After his marriage 
Mr. Tomlinson went to Pavilion, and con- 
tinued to teach school two years. He then 
learned the business and traiie of a clothier, 
and, leasing the establishment, carried on the 
manufacturing of cloth. After si.x years had 
elapsed, he opened a general store, which he 
conducted for si.x years more, and was then 
burned out. He purchased a farm of one hun- 
dred acres, which he conducted until 1870. 
In 1863 he purchased of George Taylor Nobles 
& Co. a third interest in the flouring-mills at 
Perry, the firm name then becoming Nobles, 
Tomlinson & Co. ; and in 1870 he moved to 
Perrv, where he became an active member of 
that firm. He subsequently built a vinegar 
and spoke factory, which he sold in 1878, tak- 
ing in exchange the Silver Lake Mills, which 
he has since continued to operate, carrying on 
a general merchant milling business. 

Mr. Tomlinson is Vice-President of the Cit- 
izen's Bank, and ex-president of the knitting- 



mills, of which he was one of the founders. 
He is a stanch Republican, was a Justice of 
the Peace eighteen years, and Superintendent 
of Schools at Pavilion, and has also been Su- 
per\'isor at Perry. He was one of the organ- 
izers of the Historical Society, of which he 
was President for nine years. He has deliv- 
ered several lectures and published consider- 
able literary work of more than ordinary merit, 
among which mav be mentioned "F"rom Youth 
to Seventy, and What I saw by the Way, 
"Democracy," "The Crusade," and "The 
Anglo-Saxon Race." He has also given sev- 
eral addresses before the Teachers' Association 
and the Wyoming Pioneer Historical Society. 



AMES STANLEY ORTON, late Pres- 
ident of the Genesee Valley Bank, 
whose portrait accompanies these brief 
memoirs, was for many years an influ- 
ential and highly respected citizen of Geneseo, 
Livingston County, N. Y. , where his death 
occurred on July 4, 1892, in the seventy-sixth 
year of his age. Mr. Orton was born in 
Woodbury, Conn., on November 26, 18 16, son 
of Truman and Martha Maria (Curtis) Orton. 
Truman Orton was a life-long resident of 
Woodbury, and died at ninety-seven years of 
age, in 1881, in the same house in which he 
was born, and where he had always made his 
home. His widow in her eighty-sixth year 
came to Western New Wnk, and spent her re- 
maining days, residing alternately, till her 
death at the age of ninety-five, with her son 
James in Geneseo and her daughter, Mrs. Sam- 
uel Vance, in Grovcland. 

James S. Orton in his youth received an 
education fitting him for mercantile life, and 
later was known as a sagacious and prudent 
financier, a good manager in business matters, 
and was called to fill positions of trust and 
responsibility. He took up his residence in 
Geneseo in 1844, and entered the oflfice of the 
County Clerk, served as Deputy till 1852, 
when he was elected County Clerk for the term 
of three vears. He was next engaged with 
Mr. William H. Walker in a private banking 
business, but withdrew from that in December, 
1857, when he was chosen Cashier of the Gen- 




JAMES S. ORTON. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



237 



esee Valley Bank;. After thirty years of faith- 
ful service in that capacity he was elected 
President of the bank, which position he con- 
tinued to hold to the time of his death. Mr. 
Orton was for many 3ears a Trustee of the 
W'adsworth Library, and he was one of the 
executors of the will of the late General 
Wadsworth. He was a Republican from the 
beginning of that party. He was a consistent 
and earnest member of the Presbyterian 
church, in which he was an Klder, and a Trus- 
tee of the society for more than thirty years. 
A man of strict integrity, he was of a genial 
and kindly disposition, exemplary in social and 
domestic relations, and interested in the pub- 
lic good. He is survived by his wife, a sister, 
and a brother. 

The marriage of Mr. James S. Orton and 
Miss Emily Stillman Stanley took place in 
Dansville, N.Y., on May 22, 1843. Mrs. 
Orton was born at Mount Morris, May 23, 
1 819, the day before the birth of Queen Vic- 
toria, and was one of the ten children of 
Luman and Martha M. (Hinman) Stanley. 
She attended school in Mount Morris, and 
afterward enjoyed the advantages of a higher 
course of study at the seminary in Rochester. 
Endowed with pleasing social qualities, admi- 
rably fitted for the position she has been called 
to fill, Mrs. Orton has shown herself a cheerful 
companion, a gracious hostess, and a kind 
neighbor. She is a member of the Presbyte- 
rian church, a cordial helper in its activities, 
and is known as a woman of character and 
influence. She has one brother now living, 
Elihu Stanley. 

Luman .Stanlev, Mrs. Orton's father, was a 
descendant in the seventh generation from 
John Stanley, who was born in England, and 
who embarked for America in 1635, with his 
brothers and three children, and died on the 
passage. This is the lineage: John, son of 
John Stanley, Sr. , born in England in 1624, 
*came to America in 1635, moved with his 
uncle, Thomas Stanley, to Hartford, Conn., 
and there married Sarah .Scott. Their son 
John, born in 1647, married Plsther Newell. 
Nathaniel, son of Deacon John and Esther 
(Newell) -Stanley, married Sarah Smith, and 
died in 1770, aged ninety-one. William, 



their se\'enth child, born at Farmington, 
Conn., in 1729, married Amy Baldwin. Jesse 
Stanley, second son of William and Amy, born 
at Goshen, Conn., in 1757, married Eunice 
Bailey, and in 1811 moved to Mount Morris, 
N. v., where he bought ninet\'-eight acres of 
flats at twenty dollars per acre, and afterward 
sold twenty acres at one hundred dollars per 
acre. He also bought a hundred acres of 
heavily timbered land. The first frame house 
in the village was built by him. Mr. Jesse 
Stanley reared a family of four children — 
Oliver, Luman, Elmira, and Roxa. He died 
on June 24, 1845, in the eighty-eighth year of 
his age. Luman Stanley was born in Goshen, 
Conn., November 15, 1779, married Martha, 
daughter of John Hinman, of a well-known 
('onnecticut family, and died in Dansville, 
N. Y. , on October 14, 1839. 

John Stanley, the second of the name, was a 
Lieutenant and then a Captain in King Philip's 
War. He was a Deputy to the General Court 
of Connecticut almost continuously for thirty- 
seven years, 1659 to 1696. He died in 1706. 
For further records see Stanley genealogy. 



rm^> 



FORGE S. SKIFF, M.D., a highly 
\ •) I esteemed and skilful physician of 
Gainesville, Wyoming County, was 
born in Hume, N. Y. , January 24, 1865, son 
of Edmund and Fanny (Goodrich) Skiff, also 
of Hume. The ]3aternal grandfather was 
Myron Skiff, a native of Otsego County, New 
York, and a farmer by occupation, having been 
born on a farm which his father had cleared 
and improved. Edmund Skift' was early reared 
to agricultural pursuits, and on the death of 
his father came into possession of the old 
homestead, on which he resided until 1872. 
He is now retired from active life, and re- 
sides in the village of Pike, being in his sixty- 
sixth year at the present writing. He is a 
sturdy Democrat in his political faith, and is a 
loyal and much respected citizen. His wife 
died when about thirty-three years of age, 
leaving an only child, George S. , whose name 
appears at the head of this sketch. 

George S. Skiff passed his early boyhood in 
Pike, to which place he moved with his father 



238 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



at the early age of six years. After some 
preliminary schooling he attended Pike Sem- 
inary, from which institution he was graduated 
in 1882. He then passed two years at Cornell 
University, and later studied at Buffalo Uni- 



versity, being graduated from 



the medical 
1887. After 
the practice 



remaining there 
in 1889 he re- 



department of that institution in 
his graduation he commenced 
of medicine in Fillmore, 
about eighteen months ; but 
moved to Gainesville, where he has since 
resided, and where he has already built up a 
lucrative practice. Dr. Skiff is a gentleman 
well versed in a knowledge of his profession. 
He has already gained a good reputation as a 
skilful physician and surgeon, and is regarded 
in many homes as a competent and trustworthy 
medical adviser. He has successfully treated 
many difficult cases; and, as he is still a 
young man, his prospects for the future are 
e.xceptionally good. He is a member of both 
the State and County Medical Societies, and 
of the New York State Society of Railway 
-Surgeons. In fraternal affiliations he is a 
member of Oriona Lodge, No. 229, A. F. & 
A. M., of Fillmore, and of the Knights of the 
Maccabees. Like his father, he is a Democrat 
in politics, but is quick to appreciate the good 
in all parties. 

In 1887 Dr. Skiff was united in marriage to 
Miss Hattie E. Barker, daughter of Professor 
S. Barker, of Buffalo, N. Y. , who is the prin- 
cipal of public school No. 18, in that city, 
and a gentleman who stands high in educa- 
tional circles. Mrs. Skiff is a graduate of the 
Buffalo High School, and is a lady of high in- 
telligence and many accomplishments. She is 
the mother of three children — Fanny, Laura, 
and George. As a useful and loyal citizen, 
accomplished in his profession and clean in 
his private life. Dr. Skiff's value to the com- 
munity is too well known to need further 
attesting. 



irXAVID B. MORGAN, a thriving 
1=^ farmer of Lima, Livingston County, 
^4^^ N.Y., descendant of an early pio- 
neer, was born on April 4, 1838, in 
the house he now occupies. His great-grand- 



father. Captain John Morgan, was a soldier of 
the Revolution. He came from Massachusetts 
to Lima, and settled on the old Buffalo and 
Albany State Road, where he built a log 
house, and spent his last days, dying in 1791. 
His wife also remained there until she died, 
July 3, 1810. 

His son, John Morgan, grandfather of the 
subject of this sketch, was a native of Spring- 
field, Mass., having been born there October 
3, 1762, near the close of the F"rench and 
Indian wars. His journey from the East in 
an ox wagon, with a family of two and all 
their worldly goods, required six weeks, to say 
nothing of its constant discomforts. At that 
time, the land being wild, there were no 
roads; so the party were forced to follow 
Indian trails and marked trees, until they 
reached their destination. The younger Mor- 
gans settled on a farm adjoining Captain John 
Morgan's in Lima. Like other pioneers, they 
burned many acres of valuable timber in 
clearing the land. John Morgan, Jr., built a 
brick house in 181 5, the year when Jackson 
fought the famous battle of New Orleans. 
This house is still standing, being occupied by 
the builder's grandson, David B. Morgan. 
The old log tavern, on the Albany and Buffalo 
Road, where the stage-coaches made their 
daily change of horses, was kept by John Mor- 
gan for many years — in fact, until his death 
in 1836. Grandfather John was evidently an 
advocate of matrimony, having been married 
three times. His first wife was Alice D. 
Shaw. His second wife, Mary Pierce, was 
the mother of Shepard Morgan, the father of 
the subject of this brief record. Alma A.sh- 
man was Mr. Morgan's last wife. 

Shepard Morgan was educated in the public 
.schools of Lima, and always engaged in agri- 
cultural pursuits on the homestead. His wife 
was Marietta H. Ashman, who was born in 
Lakeville, November 12, 18 16. They had 
four children — David B. , Mary P., John S., 
and Alma M. Morgan. Besides paying at- 
tention to his farming interests, Shepard Mor- 
gan served his town as Super\-isor, holding the 
office longer than any other man except one in 
the history of the town. 

David B. Morgan was educated at the dis- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



239 



trict schools and in Wesleyan Seminary. 
With this mental outfit, well adapted for prac- 
tical purposes, he entered upon the work of 
farming, in which he has since been success- 
fully engaged. His wife, whom he married 
December 19, 1867, was Melissa M., daughter 
of Anson and Elizabeth (Dann) Angle, of 
Lima. Her father also was a Supervisor of 
Lima for many years. Mr. and Mrs. Morgan 
have five children — Mary Elizabeth, Anson 
A., John S., Melissa, and Annie Morgan — all 
of whom, with the excej^tion of John S. , are 
living at home. In politics Mr. Morgan has 
always been a Republican; and his first Presi- 
dential \-ote was cast for Abraham Lincoln, in 
I 860. 




ENRV WIARD, a prosperous farmer, 
formerly engaged in the manufacture 
of ploughs, is one of the oldest citi- 
zens of Avon, N. v., he having been 
born here July 14, 181 5 ; and, as he has been a 
constant resident of the town from his birth, 
it is but natural that he should be very widely 
known in this section, although he has always 
shunned notoriety. 

Thomas Wiard, his father, was born in the 
"Land of Steady Habits" (Connecticut), but 
was one of the early settlers in Livingston 
County, New York. He first took up his 
abode at Geneseo, where he lived for twelve 
vears. He was a blacksmith by trade, and 
was also one of those "all round mechanics" 
for which this country was once famous. An 
illustration of his skill and of his putting it to 
]iractical use is afforded by the vehicle he built 
to carry him to Connecticut, where he went on 
a visit a few years after he had removed from 
that State. It was made from a crockery 
crate, and the shafts were pine poles. Con- 
siderinsr the roujrhness of the roads in those 
days, that wagon must have been subjected to 
many severe strains on its journey to Connect- 
icut and return; but it stood the test all 
right, and was in good working trim when the 
trip was finished. 

Thomas Wiard finally removed from Geneseo 
to Avon, where he bought a farm and built a 
frame house. But farming was merely a "side 



issue" with him, for blacksmithing was his 
occupation. He married Miss Susan Hall, of 
Connecticut, and by her had nine children, of 
whom the first six were boys and the last three 
girls, as follows: Matthew, Henry, George, 
Thomas, William, Seth, Mary A., Margaret, 
and Rachel, the subject of this sketch being 
next to the first-born. The mother, Mrs. 
Susan Wiard, died ; and after some years the 
father married again, his second wife being 
Miss Nancy Ganson. Two children were born 
to them — Elizabeth and Nancy. Thomas 
Wiard was a prominent member of the commu- 
nity. He held a commission as Justice of the 
Peace, acted as Supervisor of the town for sev- 
eral years, and had a more than local reputa- 
tion for skill as a mechanic. Some of his sons 
inherited his ingenuity in that line; and one 
of them, Thomas, was the originator of the 
famous Wiard plough. 

Henry Wiard was educated in the Avon dis- 
trict schools, and worked on the farm for his 
father, also doing some work in the black- 
smith-shop. He was identified with the man- 
ufacture of ploughs for about thirty years, but 
finally purchased a hundred-acre farm, and has 
since given exclusive attention to tilling the 
soil. His close devotion to his personal 
affairs and his objection to anything approach- 
ing unnecessary publicity have restrained him 
from assuming a foremost place in the govern- 
ment of the community; but his skill as a 
mechanic and his experience as a business man 
and as a farmer have made him too valuable 
a citizen to be allowed to entirely escape pub- 
lic office, and he has served for twelve years as 
Commissioner of Highways. 

Mr. Wiard has been married twice, and by 
his first wife. Miss Caroline Palmer, daughter 
of David H. Palmer, of Avon, has two children 
— Fred H. and Julia D. Fred married Adele 
Spencer, and has three children — Fannie, 
Maud, and Robert Wiard. Julia married Lo- 
renzo Wilbur, and has one child, Harold Wil- 
bur. Mr. Wiard married for his second wife 
Miss Amanda Landon, daughter of Luther 
Landon, of Avon. 

As we have before intimated, the subject of 
this biographical sketch has led a quiet life, 
being averse to notoriety, and finding his chief 



240 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



enjoyments in home labors and comforts. 
Hence he is not of the "hail-fellow-well- 
met " type: his friends are many, but he does 
not make friends in a day, and neither would 
he desert one in time of need. 

Henry Wiard cast his first Presidential vote 
for Daniel Webster in 1836. He joined the 
Republican party when that party came into 
existence, and has always been consistent in 
the expression of his political principles. 




fejyOLOMON G. WOODRUFF was 

^^V born in Livonia, March 8, 1827. 

''^^^ His grandfather, Solomon Woodruff, 
was a native of Litchfield, Conn., 
and was the first settler in the town of Li- 
vonia, where he lived on what was known at 
that time as the "Big Tree Road," about a 
mile from what is now called Livonia Centre. 
After buying some land and building a log 
house, he returned to Connecticut for his wife 
and child. He came with them as far as Bris- 
tol in an ox team, and there, leaving his wife 
and son, went on ahead to prepare a welcome 
for them in their new home. The pleasant 
anticipation of the father and husband were 
rudely broken as he neared the clearing in the 
forest where he had lately been busy, and 
found the little cabin in ashes, the Indians 
having set fire to it during his absence. With 
an undaunted courage, however, he went to 
work to rebuild the house, and before long the 
young couple took possession of their new 
abode. Their isolation may be realized when 
one considers that Albany was the nearest 
market for their grain. The nearest grist-mill 
was at Chapinville, Ontario County; and their 
closest neighbors were at Honeoye. The first 
son who was here born to the lonely pair was 
the first white child born in the town. The 
wife's maiden name was also Woodruff; and 
she reared six children, one of whom was 
Jeremiah. 

The father of Solomon G. Woodruff, of whom 
this is a memoir, Jeremiah Woodruff, received 
such an education as the district schools of 
that time and section offered. He married 
Almira Dunks, a daughter of Joel Dunks, of 
Connecticut. Their ten children were Laura 



A., Solomon G. , Susan A., Frederick D. , 
Charles E., Mary J., Elizabeth, Alton, 
Frances, and Sarah. Six of this family are 
still living. 

Solomon G. Woodruff was educated in the 
district schools and at the Genesee Wesleyan 
Seminary of Lima. In his boyhood he went 
with his parents to Michigan, where his father 
tried several different localities, but found 
none that suited him for a permanent home. 
They returned to Livonia when young Solomon 
was a lad of fourteen years, \\hen he grew 
old enough to take the responsibilities of life 
upon himself, he became a cattle drover and 
dealer. Later he went to New York City, and 
was there successfully engaged for ten years in 
selling cattle. After the expiration of this 
period he returned to Livonia, where he 
bought a farm and erected a residence in Li- 
vonia Centre. So successful has Mr. Wood- 
ruff been in his business that he owns three 
farms, including about eight hundred acres in 
New York State and one in Michigan. His 
banking enterprise has been a source of con- 
stant revenue for the past twenty-five years, 
and he has shown much financial acumen in 
the disposition of his affairs. 

In 1890 Mr. Solomon G. Woodruff was 
married to Miss Flora ^LBosley, a daughter 
of Bradford Bosley, of Livonia. Mr. Wood- 
ruff has been for two terms Supervisor of his 
town, and has been a zealous Republican since 
that party came into existence. His first 
Presidential vote was cast for Zachary Taylor 
in 1848. He is a member of the Presbyterian 
church. 



ARC US W. WILNER, at one time 
a merchant and lumberman, and at 
present a well-to-do farmer of the 
town of Portage, Livingston 
X.Y. , was born in this town, January 
His father, George Wilner, was 
of Berkshire County, Massachusetts; 
grandfather was a soldier in the Baron 
Von Driscol Brigade, which came through 
from Canada to join forces with General Bur- 
goyne in the Revolutionary War, and was in 
the detachment commanded by Lieutenant 




a native 
and his 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



241 



Colonel Baum. He was made prisoner of war 
during a fight with the American forces under 
the celebrated General Stark, and was given 
his choice of settling in Massachusetts and 
becoming an American citizen or being con- 
fined upon the prison ships in Boston Harbor. 
He chose the former, taking up land and set- 
tling in Berkshire County, where he resided 
the remainder of his life. George Wilner be- 
came a farmer in his native State, later mov- 
ing to Connecticut, and then joining the 
American army in the War of 1812. His 
brother also joined the army, and was killed at 
the battle of Plattsburg, in 1814. George 
Wilner was present at the battle of Stoning- 
ton. The captain of his company was a man 
named Perkins, and at the conclusion of hos- 
tilities induced many of his command to ac- 
company him to New York for the purpose of 
taking up land. Mr. Wilner came to Living- 
ston County from Connecticut, making the 
entire journey by wagon, and took up eighty 
acres of land situated in the then town of 
\unda, now Portage, on the Genesee River, 
which at that time was very heavily covered 
with pine timber. Cutting the timber, he had 
it sawed into lumber and rafted it down the 
Genesee River to Rochester. This property 
Mr. Wilner at length sold, and then removed 
to Indiana, going there by the way of the Ohio 
River. About three years later he returned to 
Portage, and, settling upon a land grant, here 
remained during the rest of his life. At the 
time he came to New York State, land at 
Rochester was offered at seventeen dollars per 
lot, but was refused, as there was no timber 
upon it, and consequently it was considered 
about worthless. Mr. Wilner engaged in the 
cutting and hauling of timber, and furnished 
the New York Central Railroad Company with 
the materials for constructing the first bridge 
over the Genesee River, cutting most of it 
upon his own farm, rolling the timber down 
the hills to the river, and then floating it to 
Rochester. 

His wife was Betsey Moses, daughter of 
Elijah Moses, a pioneer of Livingston County, 
who was a blacksmith by trade. The Moses 
family, according to tradition, were Jews, who 
came to this country from England about 1640. 



They were blacksmiths, and some of their 
tools are now in the possession of the families. 
Six children were the result of the marriage of 
Mr. and Mrs. George Wilner; namely, Han- 
nah, Flavia, Marcus W. , Malcolm, Merriman 
J., and Mortimer Wilner. The father and 
mother spent their latter days with Marcus W. 
and Merriman J., who are the only sun^ivors. 

Marcus W. Wilner, the subject of this 
sketch, was educated at the district schools, 
and for twenty-five years of his early life was 
a merchant in Portageville, where he was also 
engaged in the lumber business. In 1850 he 
married Susan A. Adams, daughter of Gaylord 
Adams, who removed from Massachusetts to 
the town of Granville, Ohio, and was one of 
the first settlers there, all his family being 
born in that State. Four children have been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Marcus W. Wilner; 
namely, Frank A., F'red M., Gaylord, and 
Nellie. Frank A. is a Lieutenant in the 
United States navy, and is inspector of steel 
plate for government war vessels at the Car- 
negie Steel Works in Pittsburg. P'red is mar- 
ried, and lives on the farm with his parents. 
Gaylord is a Warden in the State Lunatic 
Asylum of Michigan. 

^Ir. Wilner was Super\-isor at Genesee 
Falls, \\"yoming County, for two terms, and 
was also Assessor for several years. He cast 
his first Presidential vote, as a Whig, for 
Zachary Taylor, and has always been a Repub- 
lican in politics since that party was formed. 
With an honorable and useful record to look 
back upon, Mr. Wilner now enjoys that reward 
which is dear to all, the hearty esteem and 
confidence of his fellow-men. 



7TAARL0S L. STEBBINS, a portrait 
I sX painter of exceptional excellence in 
^^Hs Pike, Wyoming County, N. Y. , was 

born in the town of York, in Liv- 
ingston County, January 11, 1824. His 
paternal grandfather, Sylvester Stebbins, was 
a native of Conway, Mass., from which State 
he came to Pike, N. Y. , where the last years of 
his life were spent. He was a farmer in both 
States, and died at eighty-four years of age, 
having reared eleven children. 



242 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Elijah, one of the sons of Sylvester Steb- 
bins, was for some time a woollen manufact- 
urer in Manlius, Otsego County, X. Y., having 
previously worked in the first broadcloth fac- 
tory in Northampton, Mass., where the first 
broadcloth ever manufactured in America was 
produced. After giving up this line of busi- 
ness, he became a farmer, owning farms in 
Livingston and Wyoming Counties succes- 
sively. His wife was Harriet Lenardo, who 
was of Italian birth, and one of .several chil- 
dren. She was born on the Coon River near 
the birthplace of her husband. Two children 
were of this marriage — Carlos L. ; and Sylves- 
ter, who died in Texas. Mr. and Mrs. Stebbins 
both died at their son's home in Pike, aged 
respectively sixty-nine and .seventy-one years. 

Carlos L. Stebbins, whose artistic nature, 
like his Italian Christian name, was an inheri- 
tance from his mother, remained at home with 
his parents until he became of age. The nat- 
ural instinct of talent began to assert itself; 
and the young man, in whose veins ran the 
blood of a people in whom love of color and 
harmony and beauty is inherent, decided to 
take up portrait painting as a profession. 
This vocation he has followed since 1844, and 
the keen pleasure he takes in his work is a 
warrant of its success. The villagers are 
justly proud of their native artist, and many 
specimens of his skill adorn their homes. Mr. 
Stebbins also possesses a genius for mechanics, 
and has patented a sewing machine of his own 
invention, and has a shop and tools in his 
house, where he amuses himself with cunning 
handiwork. 

In 1S43 he was married to Miss Elenor 
Griggs, a daughter of Philip Griggs. Miss 
Griggs was born in Pike, where her father was 
an early settler. She was one of a family of 
ten children ; ind both of her parents died in 
the village where the years of her childhood, 
girlhood, and married life have been passed. 
Mr. Carlos L. Stebbins is an Odd Fellow and 
a Mason, having filled high offices in both 
orders. He is a teacher of painting in the 
Pike Seminary, and was, until his recent 
resignation, President of the State Bank of 
Pike, of which he still is a Director. His 
home is about one mile south of the village 



where he has lived for almost si.xty years. A 
gentleman of superior mental endowments, 
blameless morals, and pleasing social quali- 
ties, Mr. Stebbins stands high in the estima- 
tion of his fellow-citizens. 




ILLIAM P. LOW, a thriving farmer 
in the Genesee valley, was born in 
Ovid, Seneca County, X. Y. , on the 
fifteenth day of October, 1823. His father. 
Garret Low, was born in Middlesex County, 
New Jersey, to which State his grandfather, 
Abraham Low, came from Germany. It is 
supposed, however, that the Low family is of 
English descent; for tradition says that its an- 
cestors fled from England to Germany in order 
to secure religious liberty. Two or three 
generations of the Low family were born in 
Germany before Abraham Low emigrated to 
America. About the time of the opening of 
the present century he removed with his family 
from New Jersey to the town of Ovid, N. Y. 
The journey was made overland, and was a 
long and toilsome one, the roads being poor 
and the teams not being capable of furnishing 
rapid transit. Mr. Low bought an extensive 
tract of unimproved land in Ovid, and resided 
there for the rest of his days, dying at the good 
old age of ninety. Abraham Low was twice 
married, and reared five sons and one daughter. 
One of the sons. Garret, above named, was 
very young when his parents came to this 
State. He received what was deemed a good 
education in those early days, and he intended 
to adopt the tailor's trade; but, although he 
learned it, he found it inexpedient to follow 
it, on account of failing health. He went to 
Allegany County in 1824, bought a tract of 
wild land, and set earnestly to work to render 
it fit for cultivation. Of course that was no 
light task. The timber was of positively no 
value, and the felled trees were destroyed by 
fire as soon as they were dry enough to burn. 
Their size was so great and the mechanical 
aids were so few that no man could do much of 
anything alone after he had felled the timber; 
so the neighbors used to co-operate, and make 
practical application of the principle, "In 
union is strength." 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



243 



Garret Low lived in Allegany County seven 
years. Then he came to Geneseo, and rented 
land till 1849. He then went to Delavan, 
Wis., and resided there for the rest of his 
days, reaching the good old age of eighty- 
eight. The maiden name of his wife, mother 
of the subject of this sketch, was Lana Post. 
She was a native of Virginia, and was a daugh- 
ter of Cornelius and Jane (Quick) Po.st. Mrs. 
Garret Low was almost as long-lived as her 
husband, she dying at the age of eighty. 

William P. Low was but an infant when his 
parents removed to Allegany County. His 
education, which was there begun in the pio- 
neer schools, was subsequently advanced by 
attendance at the .schools in Livingston 
County. He was married at twenty-two years 
of age, on November 13, 1845, his laride being 
Miss Prudence A. fuller, who was born in 
Avon, on the farm on which .she now resides. 
Mr. and Mrs. Low began their married life in 
the central part of Groveland, where he rented 
a farm of about four hundred acres. Then he 
operated the Fuller homestead farm one year, 
and next carried on a three-hundred-acre farm 
for a year. After that he went on what may 
be called a sort of "exploring expedition"; 
for he occupied some seven months in the in- 
spection of lands in the States of Michigan, 
Illinois, and Missouri. Returning to Avon, 
he rented lands for a period, and finally pur- 
chased the Fuller homestead, a farm of thirty- 
eight acres, where he has since remained. 
This farm is located in the Genesee valley, 
three miles from Avon and five miles from 
Geneseo. .Since adopting it as his permanent 
home Mr. Low has bought one hundred and 
seven acres of adjoining territory. 

He and his wife are nearly of the same age, 
she having been born October 29th of the year 
following his birth. Her father, Joel F'uller, 
was born in Connecticut ; and her grandfather, 
Klijah I'uller, was born in the same State, 
but finally came to Geneseo, from whence he 
removed to Avon, where he died at a ripe old 
age. The maiden name of his wife was Abi- 
gail Kellogg. Joel F'uller, father of Mrs. 
Low, was reared and married in Connecticut, 
and came to New York State, accompanied by 
his wife, three children, and his parents. 



They made the journey overland with an ox 
team and a horse, bringing with them all their 
worldly goods. 

Joel F"uller bought a tract of partially 
cleared land in Avon, and the family took up 
their abode in the log house in which Mrs. 
Low was born. There were then no railroads 
and no canals, and but very poor country roads. 
Carriages were conspicuous by their absence, 
and women as well as men did their travelling 
on horseback and in lumber teams. Mrs. 
Low's mother used to card and spin, and not 
only that, but also to weave the fabric out of 
which she made her children's clothing. Joel 
Fuller died in 1829, at the age of forty-nine. 
His wife survived him many year-s, and passed 
away at the age of eighty-two. Her maiden 
name was Mehitable Spinks, and .she was by 
birth a daughter of Connecticut. 

In William P. Low and Prudence A. Low 
may be found a " happy couple " in the truest 
sense of the term. They have lived together 
nearly half a century, cheered and strengthened 
by that mutual respect and mutual affection 
which betoken a true "union"; and it 
scarcely needs to be added that they have a 
high standing in the community of which they 
are members. 



OHN L. SCOTT, a most estimable citi- 
zen of Geneseo, Livingston County, 
N. Y. , and a self-made man, was born 
of Scotch ancestry in County Antrim, 
Ireland. His great-grandfather, George Scott, 
was a native of Dumfriesshire, Scotland, and a 
follower of William III., Prince of Orange. 
He served the prince through his memorable 
campaign in Ireland, and was the recipient of 
a farm in County Antrim, where he passed the 
remainder of his life. The maiden name of 
his wife was Maria Crawford. 

William Scott, son of George, inherited his 
father's estate, and was a life-long resident of 
County Antrim. He married Mary Kyle, who 
was also of Scotch ancestry, but a native of 
County Antrim. They were both members of 
the Presbyterian church. James Scott, their 
son, succeeded his father in the ownership of 
the estate, and remained at the place of his 



2 44 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



birth during his entire life. He married 
Ann Laughlin, who was born in County An- 
trim, of which her father, John Laughlin, was 
a native; but his father, John Laughlin, Sr., 
was a Scotchman, who removed to Ireland, and 
there became an extensive land owner, at one 
time possessing the entire town of Gara Vaghy. 
He spent his last years in Ireland. His wife, 
whose maiden name was McFadden, was a na- 
tive of Scotland. Their son John succeeded 
to the ownership of one-half of the estate, and 
continued to reside upon it until his decease. 
The estate is still in possession of his descend- 
ants. James Scott and his wife were both 
life-long residents of County Antrim, and they 
reared nine children. Of these the only ones 
who came to America were John L. and his 
sister Ann. The latter married Mr. Jennings, 
and settled in Michigan, where she died. 

John L. Scott abandoned the parental roof at 
the age of seventeen years for the purpose of 
embracing the many advantages offered by the 
broad and rapidly growing republic of the 
West to the young men of his native land. 
He had been carefully reared by his loving 
parents; and, with the principles of morality 
firmly instilled in his nature, he started out 
for himself, fully determined to win the battle 
of life. He sailed from Belfast to Liverpool, 
and there embarked upon the ship "Onward." 
He landed at New York, June ii, 1852, and 
from there came direct to Geneseo. In the 
month of August he commenced to learn the 
trade of a miller; and, after serving an ap- 
prenticeship of four years, during which time 
he attended school at York Centre two months, 
he was placed in charge of a mill. In i860 
he went to York, and operated a mill there 
until 1866, and then returned to Geneseo and 
opened a mill on his own account. He con- 
tinued to conduct a successful business until 
1885, when he was elected Superintendent of 
the Livingston County Home for the Poor. 
He was re-elected in 1888, and again in 1891, 
after which he declined to stand for another 
re-election. 

Mr. Scott was married in 1861 to Miss 
Mary Jane Jamison, who was born in the town 
of York, daughter of Hugh and Jane Jamison. 
Thev have reared eight children — Helen J., 



Mary B. , James A., Ann E. , George G. , S. 
Clara, John J., and Walter E. The two 
youngest are students, all the others being 
gra'duates, of the normal school. Mary was a 
teacher for five years previous to her marriage 
to Dr. George Cutter. She died at the age of 
twenty-five. 

Mr. and Mrs. Scott and their children are 
all members of the Presbyterian church. Mr. 
Scott's career again reminds us of the value of 
the sturdy Scotch element in the ]wpulation of 
our country. His fi.xed determination to suc- 
ceed, which he entertained at the time of his 
advent in America, has been fully realized; 
and, though his native soil loses an upright, 
high-minded, and intelligent citizen, the Em- 
pire State has won the same, and is proud of 
its acquisition. Mr. Scott is a Republican 
in politics, and a stanch supporter of the prin- 
ciples upheld by that party. 



MJ 



LOCKWOOD THAYER, attorney- 
at-law in Warsaw, Wvoming County, 



X. Y., was born in this village on 
April 28, 1842. He is a descend- 
ant of Ferdinando Thayer, who emigrated 
from PZngland to America about 1630 or 1635, 
and settled, with other English colonists, in 
Braintree, Mass. On Jan Liar)- 14, 1652, he 
was married to Huldah Hayward, of Braintree. 
He moved after his father's death to a new 
plantation called Mendon ; and, being pos- 
sessed of considerable wealth for that period, 
he was able to give each of his sons a farm. 
Several of them became extensive land owners. 
Ferdinando Thayer lived to be nearly ninety 
years old, and died in 171 3. 

Mr. L. Lockwood Thayer's great-grand- 
father, Gideon Thayer, a great-grandson of 
Captain Thomas, son of P'erdinando and Hul- 
dah Thayer, was born in 1753, in Smithfield, 
R. I., in which jjlace he married Miss Meribah 
Wilcox, January 10, 1776. He was a soldier 
during the Revolutionary War, and was one 
of the first who received a pension. His 
hatred to the Tories was very bitter; and it is 
related of him that, when eighty years old, he 
administered a caning to one of the obnoxious 
party. After peace was declared, he settled 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



245 



in Oswego, N.Y. , and from there came to 
Lima, where he died aged eighty-four years. 

Willard Thayer, son of Gideon, was born in 
1784, and came to Wyoming County, New 
York, in 1807. He was married twice, his 
first wife being Miss Phcebe Harris, who was 
the mother of four children : — Isaac; Linus 
W. ; Mary; and Israel, who was accidentally 
drowned in the Mississippi River in early 
youth. The second Mrs. Thayer was, before 
marriage, Rebecca Thomas. Of the seven 
children she bore her husband, only one, Will- 
iam F., is now living. Mrs. Rebecca Thayer 
died March 12, 181 7, aged twenty-eight. 
Her husband lived to the age of seventy-nine, 
dying on March 23, 1862. He was an arbiter 
and counsellor among the farmers of the neigh- 
borhood, who had great faith in his judgment 
and impartiality. 

His son, General Linus W. Thayer, was 
born in Gainesville, Wyoming County, May 
23, 181 1, and married October 28, 1840, 
Miss Caroline Matilda Lockwood, whose birth 
date was the twelfth day of January, 1823. 
There were seven children born of this mar- 
riage, all of whom were daughters except 
Linus Lockwood, the subject of this sketch ; 
and he and his sister Florence, who lives with 
him, are the only survivors. General Linus 
W. Thayer was admitted to practise law in 
1839, and moved to Warsaw in 1841, winning 
and holding a position among the lawyers of 
his county and of Western New York, working 
in his chosen profession, the peer of his ablest 
associates, for fifty-three years, the last week 
of his life preparing for an argument in the 
Court of Appeals, and dying in the harness, 
August 6, 1892, at the age of eighty-one 
years. He had an unfailing fund of humor. 
He was direct and earnest, sometimes blunt in 
e.xpression, but kind at heart. His success in 
his profession is explained by his love for it, 
and in the last analysis it appears to have 
been largely due to his rare common sense. 
No one of his ancestors, in a direct line for 
five generations, died under the age of seventy- 
six years. His father died at seventy-eight, 
his grandfather at eighty-four, a more remote 
ancestor at ninety. He was commissioned in 
1838 by Governor Marcy as Major in the 



Twenty-sixth Regiment of New York Cavalry, 
and in 1839 commissioned as Colonel by Gov- 
ernor Seward, who in 1841 commissioned him 
as Brigadier general. When the physician 
at his bedside, near the end, inquired, "How 
do you feel, General.'" he replied, "I feel 
like an honest man." 

After all that may be said of his attain- 
ments, of his ability, of his courage, of his 
power, of his success, it also deserves to be 
said of Linus Warner Thayer that he was, and 
he might feel like, that "noblest work of 
God," an honest man. His motives and his 
methods of political work were always manly 
and free from hypocrisy or indirection. What 
he did to assure the nomination of Grover 
Cleveland for the ofifice of Governor of New 
York is well known. The newspapers and 
many sagacious observers at the time recog- 
nized the efficient work which he did in mak- 
ing that nomination possible. In a letter 
received from Mr. Cleveland to the chairman 
of the memorial meeting of the Wyoming 
County bar, he says, "His death cannot but 
be a very great loss to the community in which 
he lived, and cannot but be sincerely mourned 
by all those who are fortunate enough to claim 
his friendship. " 

Mr. L. Lockwood Thayer, who, like his 
father, has followed the legal profession, grad- 
uated from the Warsaw Academy at twenty. 
He had been reading law previously in his 
father's office; but, after leaving school, he 
put himself under the tuition of Mr. A. D. 
Ditmars, of New York, No. 61 Williams 
Street. This gentleman, who is still in prac- 
tice there, must have been a competent in- 
structor; for in 1866 Mr. Thayer was admitted 
to the bar after standing a rigid examination 
from Judges Grover, Davis, and Marvin. Mr. 
Thayer entered partnership with his father, 
which was dissolved only with the death of the 
latter. 

On the 13th of October, 1S68, he was 
united in marriage to Miss Emma Hurlburt, a 
daughter of Julius C. and Dorothy (Ames) 
Hurlburt, both deceased. Mrs. Thayer has 
two own and two half-brothers living, one of 
whom, Mr. Herschel Hurlburt, is foreman of 
the printing-office of the U'yoming County 



246 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Times. Three children were born to bless 
and sanctify this union: Blanche L., "a fair 
girl graduate," one of the most popular and 
attractive young women in Warsaw, just re- 
turned with high honors from Wellesley 
College; L. Clinton, a student at Rochester 
Business College; and Maud, a winsome little 
maiden of thirteen. Mr. Thayer is a Democrat 
in politics. He was appointed Postmaster in 
1888 under President Cleveland, and filled the 
ofifice under Harrison. He is a Master Mason, 
and also an Odd Pellow, belonging to Crystal 
Salt Lodge of the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows. 




ILL! AM KRAMER, a veteran of 
the Ci\'il War, merchant tailor, and 
dealer in ready-made clothing and 
gentlemen's furnishings in Dansville, was born 
in Gettersbach, province Hessen Darmstadt, 
Germany, July 31, 1842. Bernhardt Kramer, 
father of William, received his education at 
the schools of Germany, and learned the trade 
of a cooper, which he followed in his native 
country until 1847, when he came to America, 
bringing his eldest son, Adam, with him. 
He settled for a time in Dansville, and worked 
at his trade in the shop of his brother John on 
Perine Street. In 1849 he and his son Adam 
went to New Orleans. While there his sight 
became impaired, and he decided to return to 
his family in Germany for treatment. He 
eventually recovered his sight, and in 1856 
came with his wife and children to Dansville, 
where he followed his trade to the time of his 
death, which occurred in April, 1872, at the 
age of seventy- two. 

The maiden name of the wife of Bernhardt 
Kramer was Eva Elizabeth Ereidel. She was 
a native of Germany, and she and her husband 
had five children, as follows: Adam, who left 
his father at New Orleans and went to Cali- 
fornia, and there died in 1858; Catherine, 
who married Louis Hess, of Ottawa, 111. ; 
Fred; George; and William, the subject of 
this sketch. The mother died at Dansville, 
at the age of seventy-three. Both she and 
her husband were members of the German 
Lutheran church. 



William Kramer came to Dansville at the 
age of fourteen. His education had ended in 
Germany, and he therefore commenced work- 
ing with his father in the cooper-shop. In 
1857 he entered the employ of James Krein, a 
grocer, as clerk, remaining three years, and 
then filled a like position in the employ of 
Milton J. Puffer, the clothier. Messrs. Kel- 
logg & Nares purchased the stock of Mr. 
Puffer in 1861, and Mr. Kramer remained with 
them until August, 1862. His patriotism and 
love for his adopted country made him enlist 
as private in Company K, One Hundred and 
Thirtieth Regiment of New York Infantry, 
serving as such until the summer of 1863, 
when the regiment, through influence of its 
colonel, Alfred Gibs, were mounted and 
united with the cavalry forces of the Potomac, 
and thereafter known as the First New 
York Dragoons. Mr. Kramer was promoted 
to Corporal in 1862, to Sergeant in 1863, and 
to Sergeant-major in 1865. He was wounded 
on the loth of May, 1864, at Beaver Dam Sta- 
tion, Va. , by a minie ball, which necessitated 
his confinement in hospital for si.x weeks. 

After his discharge from the service at 
Cloud's Mills, Va. , in July, 1865, the war 
being ended, he returned to Dansville, and 
accepted a position as clerk in the clothing 
store of F"ritz Durr, with whom he remained 
until the spring of 1872. Mr. Kramer ne.xt 
formed a copartnership with his brother Fred, 
and established a clothing business in the 
Krein Block, under the firm name of William 
Kramer & Brother, said firm remaining in 
business until 1S86. William Kramer then 
purchased his brother's interest, and continued 
the business until 1893, when he admitted his 
son Fred as a partner, the firm being now 
William Kramer & Son. They carry a full 
line of ready-made clothing and gentlemen's 
furnishings. A custom tailoring department, 
under the management of his son Carl, is a 
great addition to the business. 

Mr. Kramer married Margaret Huber, a na- 
tive of Dansville, whose father was a farmer, 
and came to Western New York many years 
ago from Germany. Mrs. Kramer is the 
mother of six children, namely: Mary E. , who 
married Edward C. Schwingle, a dealer in 




WILLIAM KRAMER. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



249 



hardware and farming implements at Dans- 
ville, and who has one child named Margaret; 
Fred L. ; Carl B. ; William ; and Florine. 
William died at the age of eighteen, and a 
twin sister at the age of three months. The 
children were educated at the public schools of 
Dansville. Fred also attended the normal 
school at Geneseo, and both he and Carl B. 
attended the business college at Rochester. 

Mr. Kramer is a member of Phoenix Lodge, 
No. 115, A. F. & A. M., Canaseraga Lodge, 
No. 123, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, 
and of Royal Arch Chapter, No. 94, and has 
been Commander of Seth N. Hedges Post, 
Grand Army of the Republic, for three years, 
and Officer of the Day for several years. He 
has been a member of the Board of Education 
for several years, as well as Vice-President of 
the Merchants' and Farmers' National Bank, 
and has served the public in various stations, 
from Corporation Clerk to Supervisor. Having 
been identified with many matters of interest 
to the general community, besides being closely 
attentive to his own private affairs, he has 
faithfully discharged the duties of the different 
positions of public trust which have fallen to 
him, with both credit to himself and his con- 
stituents. 

A portrait of this patriotic, eminently use- 
ful, and highly esteemed citizen meets the 
eye of the reader on another page. 




LEXANDER HUSTON, an extensive 
farmer of Geneseo, Livingston County, 
N. Y. , favorably known in these 
parts, is a native of County Antrim, 
Ireland, where he was born in February, 1820. 
His father, David Huston, and his grand- 
father, Thomas Huston, were natives of the 
same county, the latter being of Scotch ances- 
try and a weaver by trade. David Huston ac- 
quired the calling of his progenitor at the 
period when all the looms were operated by 
hand, following that occupation a part of the 
time, the remainder being spent in tilling the 
soil, until the year 1848, when he came to 
America to pass his declining years with his 
children. He died at Geneseo, at the ripe 
old age of eighty-five years. David Huston's 



wife was Jane Kirkwood, of County Antrim, 
daughter of Thomas and Jane (Alexander) 
Kirkwood. Her family were also of Scotch 
ancestry. She died at the age of seventy-one 
years, having given birth to seven children; 
namely, Thoma.s, James, Alexander, Jane, 
David, William, and Mary. Thomas still re- 
sides at the old homestead in Ireland; while 
all the rest came to America, where James and 
Mary have since died, David and Alexander, 
the subject of this sketch, being residents of 
Geneseo. 

Alexander Huston was a weaver himself in 
his younger days, and followed that calling 
until 1846, when he, in company with two of 
his brothers, emigrated to America, leaving 
Belfast, March 28, for Liverpool, where they 
embarked on a sailing-vessel, landing in New 
York the seventh day of May. He came 
directly to Geneseo by the way of the Hudson 
River to Albany, and thence by the Erie and 
Genesee Canals. For a time he worked for 
monthly wages, but ere long he began life for 
himself upon rented land. He continued in 
this manner until able to purchase a small 
tract of five acres for himself. From this 
small beginning he rapidly rose in prosperity, 
steadily adding to his landed possessions, 
which at the present time amount to four hun- 
dred and ninety-four acres, nearly all of which 
is under the highest state of cultivation. 

Mr. Huston married Sarah McDill, of 
County Antrim, Ireland, who, like himself, is 
of sturdy Scotch ancestry; and five children 
have been born to them ; namely, Alexander 
N., Jennie J., Agnes J., Mina J., and Sarah 
A. Mr. and Mrs. Huston have the highest 
respect and esteem of their fellow-townsmen, 
and richly deserve the abundant prosperity 
which they hav'e so laboriously acquired. 
They are enjoying the peace and contentment 
of a moral and religious life, Mrs. Huston 
being a member of the Baptist church. 




ILLIAM BEATTY WOOSTER is 
a prominent resident of the town of 
Leicester, Livingston County, N.Y. 
His birthplace, however, was in Schenectady 
County; and his birthday was Christmas, 



250 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



1828, when Andrew Jackson's triumph over 
John Quincy Adams was delighting the Demo- 
cratic party. 

It is thought that his grandfather, Reuben 
Wooster, was born in Danbury, Conn., a de- 
scendant of one of four brothers who came from 
England in the early Colonial days. Reuben 
removed from Connecticut to Dutchess County, 
New York, and finally settled in Duanesburg, 
Schenectady County, where he spent the rest 
of his days, working at his trade of tailor. 
He had a son, William Ward Wooster, who 
was born in Dutchess County on the first day 
of balmy June, in the first year of this century, 
but grew up in Duanesburg, and there lived 
till 1833, when thirty-three years old. 

William W. and his wife then went to 
Rochester via the Erie Canal, and thence 
came to Livingston County, where he pur- 
chased of David Shepard the place known as 
the Granger farm, located five miles from 
Geneseo and four miles from Mount Morris. 
On that farm he died, in 1855; and his re- 
mains lie in the churchyard of the United 
Presbyterian church of Covington. His wife 
was Marion Milroy, a native of Princetown, 
Schenectady County, a daughter of Anthony 
Milroy, who came from Scotland. The grand- 
father, John Milroy, also came from Scotland, 
in the very first year of the American Revolu- 
tion, 1775, and became one of the Princetown 
pioneers when this settlement was known as 
Currie's Bush. He once lived on the site of 
the old capitol in the city of Albany ; but his 
later years were passed in the town of New- 
Scotland, Albany County. Mrs. Marion 
Wooster outlived her husband, and died aged 
seventy-five, having reared three children — 
Jane Ann, William Beatty, and Anthony Mil- 
roy Wooster. Jane is now the widow of Hugh 
D. McCall, and resides in Woodward, la. 
Anthony Milroy died June 25, 1888. 

William Beatty Wooster was very young 
when his parents came to Livingston County. 
He first attended the district school, but later 
went to the Temple Hill Academy. He re- 
mained with his parents till he was eighteen, 
and then settled on the farm he now owns 
by inheritance from his uncle, Mr. William 
Beatty. It is a beautiful place in the Genesee 



valley, five miles from the village of Geneseo, 
and four miles from Mount Morris. In addi- 
tion to general farming, he has of late years 
been engaged in the produce business with 
Dorus Thompson, in Moscow. In 1856, at the 
age of twenty-eight, he was married to Mar- 
garet Jane Gifford, of Princetown, daughter of 
William Gifford and Catherine Wingate. The 
Woosters have four children : Jane Anthony, 
born in 1857; George Bradshaw, born in 1859; 
William G., born in 1863; and Beatty, born 
in 1867. Mr. William B. Wooster is a Trus- 
tee and Elder in the United Presbyterian 
church. As a Republican he has filled various 
offices of trust, having served seven terms as 
a member of the county Board of Supervisors, 
and later as Sheriff, to which post he was 
elected in the centennial year. Well has it 
been written — 

"No grace is more necessary to the Chris- 
tian worker than fidelity — the humble grace 
that marches on in sunshine and storm, when 
no banners are waving and there is no music 
to cheer the weary feet." 



/iTo 



EORGE MILES PALMER, M.D. 
\ '•) I Whether it helps or hinders, heredity 
^ — is a formative influence in every char- 
acter. Observation and Scripture teach this, 
though Mr. Depew is reported to have said of 
Lincoln that he "did not represent heredity, 
for he had none." The influence of heredity 
is not plain if we do not interpret it fairly. 
In the last analysis, however, it is always felt. 
A glimpse of ancestry and surroundings, with 
pertinent facts and sidelights of opportunity, 
cannot well be left out, even in a short sketch 
of life and character. We know them better 
by knowing where they grew. Mr. James 
says, "We know very little about a talent till 
we know where it grew up." 

It cannot be said that a man has lived in 
vain because we cannot see any great or imme- 
diate result of his life. To live up to his op- 
portunity, to do what the hand finds to do, to 
act right, as it is given him to see the right — 
by this a man may deserve a statue when a 
vulgar man who poses for greatness earns only 
contempt. We are not considering one of 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



25^ 



Plutarch's men. We would write fairly of the 
career of a man who deserves mention among 
those who live to a purpose, though his esti- 
mate of himself would be modest enough. 

George Miles Palmer, M.D., was born at 
Angelica, then the county seat of Allegany 
County, New York, October 4, 1827. His 
father, John Flavel Palmer, who was Sheriff 
of Cattaraugus County, New York, in the year 
1846, was born in Connecticut in the year 
1800. Stephen Palmer, the father of John, 
was born and spent his life in Connecticut. 
His lineal ancestor was Walter Palmer, a 
stout Puritan, who came to Stonington, Conn., 
from Plymouth Colony in 1653, having emi- 
grated from London, England, to Massachu- 
setts Colony in 1629, and moved from there to 
Plymouth in 1642. 

The maternal grandfather of the subject of 
this sketch was John Mullender, a Scotchman, 
whose father was driven from the land of his 
birth, like many another north-of-the-Tweed 
man in the middle of the eighteenth century, 
because he favored the Stuart claim to the 
English throne. John Mullender married 
Catherine Van Winkle, the daughter of a 
Dutch burgher who had settled in the Mohawk 
valley. He was Sheriff of Allegany County 
in 181 3, and was killed by a falling limb when 
travelling on horseback along the bridle path 
that was then the only highway from Ham- 
mondsport to Angelica. His daughter, Cath- 
erine Scaffe Mullender, wife of John F. 
Palmer, and the mother of George Miles 
Palmer, was born at Angelica in 1804. She 
was the first white child born in Allegany 
County. ■ She died December 21, 1894. 

It may be inferred from the time and place 
of his birth, without detailed statement, that 
young Palmer's opportunities at school were 
limited in character and extent. He had the 
common-school instruction usual half a century 
ago in the lumber district about the head 
waters of the Alleghany River. I-'rom the age 
of thirteen years he was practically thrown 
upon his own resources. The boy is so far 
"father of the man" that it would be difficult, 
were it desirable, to state in such a case pre- 
cisely where actual preparation begins for the 
pursuit which finally becomes the chosen work 



of a successful life. The bent of young 
Palmer's mind was indicated early. With an 
open sense of his opportunity, when he heard 
of a surgical operation he sought to witness it, 
sometimes going ten or twelve miles for this 
purpose, when other boys talked about the 
coming and were satisfied with the show of a 
travelling circus. Drs. Colg'rove and Simeon 
Capron were then surgeons of local prominence 
in Allegany and Cattaraugus Counties. These 
able practitioners took a kindly interest in the 
boy, and in their professional work gave him 
object-lessons which proved a formative influ- 
ence in his development. An older brother, 
the late John Mullender Palmer, who was 
afterward a surgeon in the War of the Rebell- 
ion, also helped him. 

Nature urged and directed his growing ambi- 
tion, as she always directs and inspires the 
boy who is to make a useful man. There were 
obstacles in his way. The manner of sur- 
mounting them, and the fact that they were 
surmounted, vindicated the quality of his man- 
hood. He began to read medicine under the 
direction of his brother. As an auxiliary and 
a stepping-stone to his profession, he studied, 
and from 1854 to 1864 he practised dentistry, 
for which his mechanical aptitude fitted him. 
He attended two courses of medical lectures at 
the University of Michigan, and afterward at- 
tended courses at Buffalo Medical College, 
where he graduated and received his diploma 
in 1864. He also passed the special examina- 
tion then required for service as an army sur- 
geon, and was designated for such service with 
orders to report at Beaufort, N. C. Eight 
years later he attended a course of lectures 
at Bellevue Hospital Medical College, New 
York. So the purpose and ambition of his 
boyhood crystallized into his chosen pursuit. 
His profession has been the master passion of 
his life; and thirty years of active practice 
have shown how wisely he chose, and how well 
he could follow his calling. Such success 
proves fitness for his profession, and shows 
that the healing art or the science of surgery 
is not a more jealous mistress than he an 
earnest devotee. To use Sydney Smith's apt 
illustration, his choice was not a vain "at- 
tempt to fit a round peg to a square hole." 



252 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



While this is true, he has not been so en- 
grossed in professional duties as to overlook 
the demands of citizenship. Dr. Palmer has 
never been an indifferent spectator of political 
events. He gives no assent to the shallow 
platitude of the man who does not vote, and 
who believes that the success of the defeated 
candidate in any Presidential election of the 
last fifty years would not have materially 
affected the prosperity of the country. Dr. 
Palmer has been a Republican from the birth 
of that party, devoted to its principles, influ- 
ential in its councils, and a contributor to its 
success. He has been Supervisor of his town 
five terms. In 1 880-81 and again in 1884-85 
he was the representative of Wyoming County 
in the State legislature. In the language of 
that day, he was a stalwart. Personally he 
was friendly to Mr. Conkling. The arrogant 
leader who had quarrelled with Mr. Blaine and 
sulked in the last campaign, had resigned the 
United States Senatorship, thrown down the 
gage to the President because he had used his 
discretion in making an appointment to office, 
and asked the legislature to send him back to 
this vacant seat, — in effect, to proclaim the 
hostility of New York to the Garfield adminis- 
tration at the outset. The candidate sum- 
moned the Assemblyman to an interview, and 
spoke of the situation. His visitor frankly 
told the haughty leader he could not be 
elected. "I thought you were one of us. 
You do not understand the situation," said the 
great orator. ' ' I have supported you, ' ' was 
the reply, "and I regret that you are not now 
the senior Senator from New York ; but you 
threw away your opportunity and resigned your 
trust. I have accepted your resignation and 
cannot vote for you." Through months of 
fruitless balloting, of intrigue, and base 
methods, the member from W'yoming was the 
manly opponent of the proud leader he had 
formerly followed, and the honest servant of 
the people who elected him. 

While faithful performance of these duties 
attests his usefulness as a public servant, 
political service was only an episode in his 
busy life. In his view such service becomes 
a duty which every citizen owes to the State 
when he is called to it. This belief, however. 



has nothing in common with the spirit that 
seeks place for what individual profit can be 
made in it, and degrades politics into a mer- 
cenary scramble for pelf. Undertaken as 
duties in his career, they were gladly laid 
down when the occasion came. His political 
service in no sense eclipsed what he regarded 
as the real business of his life, or prevented 
his keeping abreast of the advancecl medical 
investigation of the time. Leaves from the 
diary of a physician, in this case, would illus- 
trate the mechanical and technical skill which 
supplements the elementary learning of the 
profession and insures skillful surgery. A vol- 
ume of judicious selections might be gleaned 
from his note-books that would prove useful to 
the practitioner, interesting to the intelligent 
reader, and a credit to the professional skill 
it would illustrate. 

The case related by Abercrombie of the 
woodman who remained in a semi-comatose 
state for a year after a blow on the head, and, 
on being trepanned, completed the sentence he 
began before he was struck, has an authenti- 
cated parallel in the boy of thirteen years who 
was knocked down by a blow on the head from 
a stone thrown by a boy with whom he was 
quarrelling. The patient lay for weeks in a 
semi-unconscious state. Medical treatment 
gave no relief. The physicians in attendance 
declared the case beyond their skill, and pro- 
nounced a cure impossible. Dr. Palmer was 
then called. He made his diagnosis, honestly 
stated the possibilities, and assumed the re- 
sponsibility of an operation which proved suc- 
cessful in his hands after others pronounced 
the case hopeless. The first words the boy 
uttered completed the angry sentence begun a 
month before, when the missile of his antagon- 
ist broke it abruptly. 

There is a strange case of a bov "f foiuteen 
who had ridden a bicycle, become heated, then 
undressed and plunged into a pond, when he 
felt, he said afterward, as if a sharp blow had 
been dealt just over and behind his left eye. 
Violent headache and delirium followed, with 
occasional partial paralysis after a few days. 
A swelling came just under the superior border 
of the orbit of the left eye. It grew rapidly 
until there was complete motor paralysis of the 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



2S3 



right side. The microscope revealed parti- 
cles of dead bone in the contents of this 
abscess. Then a tumor developed in the mid- 
dle and upper surface of the forehead. After 
the second abscess began to heal, and after 
some exfoliation of the outer plate of bone, a 
large vascular tumor appeared on the top of 
the head. Introducing a drainage tube through 
the tumor along the cranial surface, the pro- 
fuse flow of blood made it necessary to close 
both ends of the tube. The sensations of the 
operator may be more easily imagined than de- 
scribed. The emergency was met, however, 
and skill triumphed. Dead bone was removed 
from time to time. Treatment extended over 
a period of eighty days. The troublesome 
symptoms at last disappeared, and the boy 
regained his usual health. His intellectual 
faculties were unimpaired. He pursued a 
course of study, graduated from a seminar}' 
with credit, and learned and practised teleg- 
raphy until he received a fatal electric shock. 
"It was to me," said the Doctor, "one of the 
most interesting cases that ever came under 
my observation. I have never been able to 
give it a name, and I have seen no literature 
that gives any explanation of its peculiar feat- 
ures. . . . These two cases show the wonder- 
ful tenacity with which the two great factors 
of our being, the physical and the mental, 
cling to their vitality, and retain their integ- 
rity under so hopeless and adverse conditions. 
In one the intellectual and physical organs 
could be paralyzed by a little pressure of the 
thumb and fingers : in the other, after long 
weeks of stupor that made the whole life a 
blank, the removal of the pressure instantly 
restored all the faculties." 

With less modesty Dr. Palmer might have 
gained more notoriety. He has followed the 
traditions of the profession, and left advertis- 
ing to itinerants, and newspaper accounts of 
miraculous cures to the quacks. He has never 
encouraged reports that magnify trivial opera- 
tions into capital, and represent the work of 
cutting a fish-hook out of a boy's thumb or 
opening a felon as operations worthy of Mott. 
Yet one who has opportunity to look over the 
Doctor's note-books can hardly avoid the re- 
flection that he might contribute to the relief 



of suffering on a field broader than his own 
patients and practice, should he give due pub- 
licity to his crucial cases within the limits 
approved by the faculty. The Doctor's com- 
mon sense is not smothered under a burden of 
theory and bookish rules. Asked in the lect- 
ure-room how he would treat a case of pneu- 
monia, he replied: "I don't know. Show me 
a patient, and I will indicate the treatment. " 
"You would treat the patient, not the disease.' 
So would I," said the lecturer. In no sense 
rash or careless, either in diagnosis or treat- 
ment, — in fact, patient and painstaking in 
investigation, his faculties are trained, his 
knowledge is in hand and available in emer- 
gencies, his reading and observation have as- 
similated into faculty so that he has the cour- 
age of his convictions; and he sometimes wins 
success because he dares to do what duller men 
of equal information would hesitate to attempt. 
In emergencies profound knowledge is useless 
without prompt action; and, in critical mo- 
ments, when to do is quite as important as 
what. 

Instances are not wanting which illustrate 
his personality and character better than 
formal statement. We can only indicate one 
or two here. He once had charge of Union 
soldiers who had been sent to hospital after 
their release from rebel prisons. He cared 
tenderly for these men, who had stood in ser- 
ried ranks, closed up as their comrades fell, 
and moved steadily forward, looking into the 
muzzles of the enemy's guns. Men who had 
been starved into the weakness of children 
shed glad tears when they tasted dainty food, 
and brave men wept when the Doctor gave 
them delicacies which recalled a mother's care. 
Patriotic sentiment was quickened by such 
duty and surroundings. 

In April, 1864, Wessel's force of nineteen 
hundred men had been captured after four 
days' fighting at Plymouth, N. C. , by a rebel 
army of twelve thousand, aided by the rebel 
ram "Albemarle. " John M. Palmer was the 
Post Surgeon. The Twenty-fourth Battery, 
largely recruited in and about Perry, N.Y. , 
had been taken prisoners. The sad news came 
April 20. On that evening the Doctor found 
five Knights of the Golden Circle gathered at 



254 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



"Bascomb's store" to exult over this news in 
the venomous spirit that characterized the 
Northern copperhead of that day. Then past 
thirty-six, five feet ten and a half inches, 
weighing one hundred and seventy pounds, 
alert and sinewy, this Yankee of Connecticut 
parentage, who had never used tobacco or 
narcotics or spirituous liquors, with race ten- 
drils striking into English Puritan, Dutch 
burgher, and Scotch cavalier, stood among the 
ne'er-do-wells who exulted over such disaster 
to "Lincoln's hirelings," though it had cost 
the blood of their own neighbors. He heard 
the vile epithets and the coarse abuse of things 
sacred to him. The hospital beds rose before 
him; the hell of battle, the privation of march 
and bivouac, the nameless horror of prison pen, 
stirred him. His Scotch blood was hot. His 
diagnosis was rapid, his prognosis correct, his 
treatment heroic. As he finished the success- 
ful operation, he stood alone of the six, the 
sole occupant of the store. The next day sev- 
veral sullen men, who were never known to 
cheer the stars and stripes, wore significant 
strips of adhesive plaster, while the Doctor 
was as free from scratch or bruise as he was 
from sympathy with treason. He was never 
heard to boast of this; though, when the affair 
was alluded to in his hearing, he was under- 
stood to offer as an excuse for drastic methods 
that he had faith in radical treatment, and he 
never gave homceopathic doses in such dis- 
orders. 

His courtesy to associates and his modest 
estimate of his own services are characteristic. 
Called in consultation in the case of a child, 
then some time ill, examination satisfied him 
that the child must die unless it could have 
speedy relief. He indicated a radical change 
of treatment. The family physician was 
startled, and protested that the traditions were 
violated. "Well, Doctor," said he, "this is 
your patient; and under present treatment the 
child will not see the sun rise again. " This 
was evident. Still the physician said, "I can- 
not consent to administer your remedies with- 
out a prescription over your signature in your 
own handwriting." The prescription was 
written, and the treatment changed. During 
the day the patient grew better, and soon re- 



covered. It appears that the attending physi- 
cian manifested more discernment in the selec- 
tion than courtesy in the treatment of coun- 
sel. It is fair to infer that he did not report 
his protest against the treatment which he 
adopted, as the mother was lavish in praising 
the skill of the family physician who saved 
her darling when "old Dr. Palmer said it must 
die. " 

In 1859, at Pike, N. V. , where he had then 
resided four years. Dr. Palmer was married to 
Hannah Orrilla Wilson. There were two 
children of this union. A daughter died in 
infancy ; and the son, George Freeman Palmer, 
M.D., who was already winning his way in his 
profession, died December 21, 1893, young, 
promising, and lamented, at the age of twenty- 
nine, in California, where he had gone for his 
health. In 1891 Dr. Palmer removed from 
Pike to Warsaw, N. Y. , where he has since 
made his home. He is a communicant of the 
Presbyterian church and a member of the 
Masonic fraternity. He has been Health 
Officer of Warsaw, and for several years a pen- 
sion examiner. He was one of the organizers 
of the Wyoming County Medical Association, 
of which he is a leading member, an original 
member of the Medical Association of the 
State of New York, and an active member of 
the Central New York Medical Societ}'. He 
is now a member of the Board of Curators of 
the Buffalo Medical College. 

Dr. Palmer is a respected citizen, open- 
handed to the needy, interested in whatever 
concerns the public welfare, without affecta- 
tion of skill or learning, modest and tolerant 
of the opinions of others, though firm and 
sturdy in his own. Patients are apt to confide 
in such a man while ill, and to respect him 
afterward. He has not always measured his 
obligation to others by the strictness of legal 
rules. Sometimes he has served those near to 
him by assuming burdens that were not his 
own. Without giving particulars that might 
seem indelicate in a public statement, it can- 
not be amiss to say that he has sometimes gone 
further with generous help than the recipient 
asked. As a young man, he voluntarily turned 
aside from his chosen pursuit and engaged in 
affairs for a time, that he might lift the bur- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



25s 



dens another could not bear alone. When he 
had earned and used the money for a need 
which he thought greater than his own — the 
deed seems to have the fla\'or of the cup 
handed by the English knight at Zutphen — 
he again bravely pursued the path from which 
filial duty had turned him. The first money 
he ever earned was fifty five-franc pieces 
paid him by Staley N. Clark, then at the 
head of the Holland Land Company's office 
at Kllicottsville, N.Y. ; and he gave it to his 
mother. In the same spirit fifty years later 
the son used his money freely for that 
widowed mother, and tenderly smoothed her 
declining years. 

A lamented physician of Buffalo, whose 
early death prematurely ended a useful career, 
once said to the writer, when he offered pay- 
ment after consultation: "Put up your money. 
It's a luxury occasionally to l)e able to feel 
that one has done some good without being 
paid for it." In the order of modern chivalry, 
when his shoulder has been touched, the true 
knight feels the obligation to use the talent 
gi\-en him, as occasion offers, for the relief of 
disease and suffering and sin, even were there 
no prospect that it would put money in his 
purse. The medical practitioner has his share 
of golden opportunity to minister to the needs 
of the poor. The volume of unrewarded ser- 
vice rendered by the subject of this sketch, by 
contrast, would shame the bountv of some 
reputed charitable givers. In a world of self- 
ishness and greed, there is little fear of an 
overgrowth of such sentiment. Such a life 
sheds blessing in any community. Its re- 
moval would be a public loss. His ripened 
power and his sterling character make George 
Miles Palmer a useful member of society. 
It is to be hoped that his active service may 
round out manv additifinal years of a worthy 
career. 



'YLVANUS RICE, one of the exten- 
sive land owners of the town of 
York, a highly intelligent, practical 
farmer, was born in the town of 
Wallingford, Conn., February 10, 1818. The 
farm in Connecticut on which his father was 




born was in the possession of the family from 
1670 until 1868, a period of nearly two hun- 
dred years. 

Mr. Rice's great-great-grandfather was Ne- 
hemiah Royce, born May 18, 1682, whose wife 
was Keziah Hall ; and his great-great-great- 
grandfather was Nehemiah Royce, Sr. , who 
was twice married. They were descended 
from early colonists, who had emigrated from 
England to Massachusetts, and who removed 
in 1636 to Connecticut, which was then chiefly 
tenanted by Indians and wild game. A com- 
pany of about sixty persons, men, women, and 
children, made the tedious journey of full four- 
teen days, over roads which were little else 
than the narrow Indian trail, sometimes 
through streams and swamps, over abrupt hills, 
and chiefly through a continual forest. And, 
when thev arri\ed, there were terrible hard- 
ships tt) be endured frnm want of the comforts 
of life. Some became discouraged, and found 
their wa)' back from the mouth of the river 
b}' boat. Those who remained subsisted on 
acorns, nuts, and game, but were on the 
borders of starvation through the entire winter. 
The next June another company came out to 
join them, about a hundred persons, with more 
than a hundred head of cattle. So the little 
colony was soon in a state of prosperity. Cap- 
tain James Rice, son of the second Nehemiah, 
was born June 30, 171 1, married Miriam Mun- 
son, and died January 20, 1796. He held a 
commission from the crown in the French and 
Indian War, and was in the expedition to Can- 
ada. His son, James Rice, born December 
18, 1748, married Mary Tyler, and died P"eb- 
ruary 7, 1827. His wife died August 6, 
1834. Their son James, born August 5, 
1785, married Oli^'c P'rancis, who was born 
July 7, 1796. 

By the time James Rice, the third of the 
name, had taken his place in the line of de- 
scendants, traces of those old times had nearly 
all passed away. As he afterward used to re- 
late, sometimes when he was a boy Indians 
used to come along in the fall and stop at his 
father's cider-mill. Mr. James Rice made his 
first trip to Western New York in the winter 
of 181 5, coming on horseback to the home of 
Judge Atwater in Canandaigua, the Judge's 



256 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



York 



following 



wife being his cousin. From that place he 
drove a team for Mr. Andrews, who was mov- 
ing with his family to Rochester. There were 
at that time but three frame houses on the east 
side of the river. Mr. Rice went back to 
Connecticut; and in the summer of 1818, in 
company with Ally Smith, of Berlin, Conn., 
he made a visit to this place, the part of 
that was then Leicester. In the 
winter he engaged a man who was coming this 
way with a team to bring him and his family 
and their goods from Wallingford. When 
they arrived at the Hudson River, the weather 
being mild, the water had begun to run over 
the ice. They crossed, however, in safety, 
the father walking on the ice, bringing the 
infant son in his arms. The next day the ice 
broke up. 

On February 5, 1819, they arrived at their 
new home in York, a log house on a farm of 
twenty-five acres. Mr. Rice being both a 
farmer and a carpenter, he soon improved his 
land, and erected other and more convenient 
buildings. Still for a long time everything 
was in a primitive state; and, when he had a 
load of wheat to take to Rochester for sale, it 
had to be drawn with an ox team. But pa- 
tience and perseverance brought a reward ; and 
he added more and more to his land till he 
owned at the time of his death one hundred and 
fifty acres, most of which was cleared and in 
good condition. Mr. James Rice died, No- 
vember 9, 1875, at the age of ninety years, his 
widow, Mrs. Olive Francis Rice, surviving 
him two years and six months, dying May 9, 
1878, when nearly eighty-two years old. They 
brought up five children, as follows: Sylvanus; 
P'rancis; Mary, deceased; Sylvester, who lives 
in the State of Iowa; William, who died at 
the age of twenty. 

Sylvanus Rice was educated at the district 
schools of York and at the \\'yoming Academy. 
After finishing his studies, he was considered 
competent to take the position of teacher ; and 
he established his reputation in that profession 
by filling with acceptance the preceptor's desk 
three several terms in York and in Pavilion. 
After working for his father by the month for a 
time, Mr. Rice began farm life for himself, 
purchasing in 1844 twenty-five acres of land 



on the site of his present home. Since then 
he has added to his possessions, and at present 
is the owner of two hundred and fifty acres of 
land. Mr. Rice bought the homestead estate, 
his father deeding the land, and he giving notes 
for it, till he was able to pay for the whole; 
and he has since lived on the old farm. Set- 
ting fire to stumps and brush heaps, picking 
up roots, ploughing, threshing, raising cattle, 
feeding, fattening, and milking them, in a 
"small farmer way," as he terms it, thus the 
busy years have passed, bringing Mr. Rice, it 
is to be trusted, "both health and cash. " He 
is certainly one who has found the right place, 
and has taken life's labors cheerly. 

Mr. Sylvanus Rice was married in 1845 to 
Miss Jennette Smith, who was born on Sep- 
tember 15, 1 8 19. They have brought up four 
children — Belle, James Franklin, Hattie L., 
and Willie S. Belle has married Mr. George 
E. Clapp, and they reside at the homestead. 
James Franklin Rice, born March 4, 1843, 
married Louise Ressler, and now lives in 
Iowa. Their children are Olive, Jennett, and 
Carl. Hattie married Calvin E. Bryant. 
Their home is in Buffalo ; and they have one 
child named Clarence Bryant. Mr. and Mrs. 
Rice have been faithful members of the Bap- 
tist church for fifty-seven years. Mr. Rice 
has been a Republican since the formation of 
that political party. His first Presidential 
vote was cast for William Henry Harrison in 
1840. 




F. SKIXNER, a retired merchant of 
Arcade, Wyoming County, N.Y., was 
born in Farmersville, Cattaraugus 
County, April 13, 1836. His 
father, Erastus Skinner, was born February 
14, 1797, in the town of Hamilton in Madison 
County. At twenty-one years of age he moved 
to F"armersville, when there were but four 
houses in the settlement, and the smoke from 
the wigwams on the forest borders proclaimed 
the dangerous proximity of their aboriginal 
neighbors. Clearing a tract of land here, he 
built a log cabin and began housekeeping in a 
very simple fashion. His wife, who was Miss 
P'unice Willev before her marriage, and a 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



257 



native of the same county in which her hus- 
band was bom, bore him six sons and two 
daughters — Sarepta, Saxton, Monroe, Nelson, 
Caroline, Adonijah F. , Daniel Webster, and 
Madison Hamilton. Of these the subject of 
this memoir, one younger brother, and two 
daughters are the only survivors. Five of the 
six brothers ser\"ed in the ranks of the federal 
army. One was killed in battle; and one met 
a more terrible fate in Salisbury Prison, where 
he was star\ed to death. Mrs. Skinner spent 
the last years of her life in Cortland, Cortland 
County, where she died at the home of one of 
her daughters in 1875. The date of her birth 
was the 2d of Januar)', 1801. Mr. Skinner was 
a Deacon of the Baptist church for a number of 
years. 

Adonijah F. Skinner, whose name is the 
initial word of this biography, was a child 
of five years when his father moved to the 
farm in Arcade; and in this village he re- 
ceived such education as the public school 
afforded. At eighteen he set to work to learn 
the tinsmith craft, and was an apprentice for 
three years under John Dillingham, a hardware 
merchant in the village. After acquiring a 
thorough knowledge of his trade, he went 
westward to Missouri, where he followed it 
until 1 86 1. Answering the call for recruits, 
he enlisted in that year in Company E, under 
Captain Frederick Steel, 2d, United States 
Infantr}', as a private. He served three years, 
during which time he was promoted to be 
First Sergeant, and was honorably discharged 
at Brandy Station, Va., in 1864. The latter 
part of his militarj" service was with the Army 
of the Potomac, and he was a participant in 
many of the principal engagements. Being 
left in the field of battle for dead at Chancel- 
lorsville, he was taken prisoner and held for 
ten days before he was paroled. Mr. Skinner 
received two other wounds during the war, be- 
sides the more serious one already mentioned. 
Returning to Arcade after the stars and stripes 
of the Union floated once more in undisputed 
sway from the national capitol, Mr. Skinner 
embarked in the hardware business, in which 
he continued for twenty-five years, and then 
sold out to Mr. C. J. WTiite, who now con- 
ducts the hardware store at the old stand. 



In 1864, on the 25th of May, Mr. A. F. 
Skinner was married to Miss Eunice L. Sprig, 
a daughter of Leverett Sprig, a lawyer in full 
practice in Arcade until his death. Mrs. 
Skinner's mother, whose maiden name was 
Lucy Upham, is still living. She is seventy- 
five years of age, and makes her home with her 
daughter. Mr. Skinner is a zealous Republi- 
can, and is a man of strong political influence 
in his county. He has been Postmaster for 
five years and a half, and has held the offices 
of Collector and Village Trustee for a number 
of years. He belongs to the Masonic Order, 
in which he has held the office of Master of 
his lodge, and has been Commander of the 
local Grand Army Post, both of which places 
of trust he has filled with honorable distinc- 
tion. Mr. Skinner is in the communion of 
the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he 
is Trustee and Steward. 



"|r\R. EDWARD 
|l=4 PERRY, of No. 
^X^ -^^on. ^'-Y., bee 



CORNELIUS 
1 2 Park Street, 
became a resident of 
this historic place early in the sum- 
mer of 1892, and, here continuing the practice 
of medicine and surger}', rapidly acquired an 
extensive reputation of skill in his professional 
work, and soon made a wide circle of friends 
and acquaintances. The same year he was 
appointed Surgeon of the Erie Railroad, and, 
as Health Officer of the village and member of 
the Fire Board, became interested in matters 
relating to the public welfare. 

He was bom in Bridgeport, Conn., Septem- 
ber 6, 1865. Some years later his father. 
Rev. T. C. Perrj-, removed with the family to 
Montreal, Canada; and it was in the best pri- 
vate schools of these two cities that Edward 
received his preparatory education. Return- 
ing to the United States, he entered Cazenovia 
Seminary at Cazenovia, N. Y., and was grad- 
uated in the four years' classical course of that 
institution. Subsequently, after a four years' 
medical course, he received his diploma from 
the College of Physicians and Surgeons in 
New York City, spending some time afterward 
in the Roosevelt, New York, and Sloane Ma- 
ternity Hospitals, and the Vanderbilt Clinic. 



258 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



He began the practice of his profession in 
Nelson, N.Y. , and continued it in Cazenovia, 
N. Y. , before removing to Avon. 

One can almost believe that Dr. Perry was 
predestined to be either a physician or clergy- 
man, for the study of his ancestry reveals the 
fact that on both his mother's and his father's 
side of the house these two learned profes- 
sions are very largely represented. His 
father. Rev. Talmon Cornelius Perry, is a 
graduate of the Princeton Theological School, 
and also of Vale University. He is known as 
a ripe Latin and Hebrew scholar, and was 
offered the professorship of Latin and Greek at 
Yale soon after his graduation. He is a min- 
ister of the Presbyterian church, of the West- 
chester Presbytery ; and after a twelve years' 
pastorate at Windsor, Me. , he was variously 
stationed in Connecticut and New York. 
Having been twenty-five yeais in ministerial 
service, he entered into educational work, 
being at one time principal of Biddle Insti- 
tute, at Charlotte, N. C, and later at St. An- 
drew's Academy in Canada. He now is the 
United States representative of the Canadian 
French Evangelical Board. He married Sara 
Conger Clark, daughter of William and Mary 
Bogart Clark, of New York City. 

This brings us to the Doctor's ancestral 
tree, which is strikingly eminent. The Perry 
branch leads back to Commodore Perry, of 
early American history, and embraces the 
name of Judge John Perry, of Southport. The 
Doctor's grandmother on his father's side was 
Sarah Cornelius Perry, daughter of Dr. Elias 
Cornelius, of wealthy English descent, who 
served as surgeon in the Revolutionary War. 
His son, the Rev. Elias Cornelius, Jr., D. D., 
was a renowned New England divine, and a 
member of the celebrated order of the Cincin- 
nati, to which Washington belonged. His 
sister, Betsy Cornelius, married Judge Thomp- 
kins, of Washington, D. C. The Doctor's 
father possesses a sword given by General 
Lafayette to his grandfather as a token of his 
services. The Cornelius branch, through the 
English peerage, dates back to very remote 
periods into Roman history. The Doctor's 
mother is of Knickerbocker stock, the daughter 
of Mary Bogart Clark, whose father was Abra- 



hamus Bogardus. It is through the Bogardus 
line, and especially Everadus Bogardus, that 
the family traces its origin through the first 
settlers of the old Trinity Church farm (in 
New York City) to Anne Ke Jans, and through 
her to King William IV. of Holland. With 
this branch is connected the celebrated Dr. 
Freeman and Dr. Conger. 

The Clark branch of this ancestral tree is 
of English origin, represented by W'illiam 
Clark, the Doctor's grandfather. He was the 
son of Samuel Clark, who came from England. 
This branch includes many illustrious names : 
Lord Entwizzle ; Judge Nelson; Judge Van 
Harring (and through him is connected N. 
Hawthorne) ; Dr. Mower, for forty years 
United States Army Surgeon, and many others 
familiar to searchers of biography. 

The Bogardus records are contained in a 
finely embossed leather volume in possession 
of the descendants of Daniel Bogardus, and 
scattered through the records of the Collegiate 
Dutch Reformed churches of New York City. 
Many valuable heirlooms of antiquity are still 
preserved in the Doctor's family. 

The Rev. T. C. and Mrs. Perry have had 
seven children born to them — Sarah Corne- 
lius, Mary Clark, Elizabeth Bogart, Emmeline, 
Charlotte Mandeville, Christine, and William 
Clark — besides the subject of this sketch. 
Elizabeth married Dr. Samuel Strock, of Lake 
Placid, N.Y. ; and Emmeline married the Rev. 
A. C. Frissell, Secretary American Tract So- 
ciety of New York City, whose son is now 
President of Fifth Avenue Bank. Dr. Perry 
married Miss P2va Adelle Gaige, daughter of 
George E. Gaige, of Nelson, N. Y. Mr. Gaige 
was a veteran of the late Rebellion, and met 
his wife, a Miss Jane E. DeMain, at Alexan- 
dria, Va. , which is the birthplace of Mrs. 
Perry. Mr. Gaige has devoted his time to 
legal matters, is prominent in the political 
affairs of Madison County, and has spent sev- 
eral years in the Senate and Assembly at Al- 
bany as Clerk of the General Committee. 

Both the Doctor and his wife are active 
members of the Presbyterian church ; and he is 
also connected with various scientific, fraternal, 
and civic organizations, being a member of the 
Livingston County Medical Society, the Liv- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



259 



ingston County Historical Society, A. F. & 
A. M. (Avon Lodge, No. 570), the Loyal 
Templars of Temperance, the Independent 
Order of Red Men, the Knights of the Mac- 
cabees, and the Avon Hook and Ladder Com- 
pany. Reared amid the refinements of a 
wealthy and cultivated home, the Doctor natu- 
rally is of a genial disposition, and possesses 
those qualities so necessary to a good physi- 
cian. 

Although Dr. Perry's residence at Avon has 
so far extended over a period of but three 
years, he has been here long enough to show 
his interest in the welfare of the community; 
and, as "like attracts like," the community 
shows a decided interest in him. Whether 
acting in a public or private professional capac- 
ity. Dr. Perry avoids all unnecessary formali- 
ties, is simple and direct in his methods, and 
cares more for the attainment of satisfactory 
results than for the following of certain speci- 
fied means, one consequence of which is that 
he is esteemed as a physician and surgeon, as 
well as popular as a citizen. 




'TAFFORD WADE, a well-known 
and influential merchant of the town 
of Arcade, Wyoming County, N.Y. , 
was born in Stafford, Genesee 
County, N. Y. , November 20, 1820, and re- 
ceived his name from being the first child born 
there after its settlement. His father, Jona- 
than Wade, was a native of New Jersey, and 
was the son of Jacob Wade, who came to Gen- 
esee County among the early settlers, and 
later removed to Cattaraugus County, where he 
spent the remainder of his life. Jonathan 
Wade was brought up a farmer, but also 
learned the trade of tinsmith, which occupa- 
tion he carried on for many years. He stocked 
a wagon with tinware of his own manufacture, 
and travelled through the country, disposing of 
the products of his industry to the busy house- 
wives in the remote settlements. Only those 
who live in such localities can realize the good 
wife's interest in the tinman's cart and the 
advantage of having needed supplies brought 
to the door. These supplies often included 
other "notions," with a budget of welcome 



news from the outside world. Jonathan Wade 
travelled not only throughout the length and 
breadth of New York State, but into Canada 
as well. His last years were spent in Arcade, 
in which place he died, at the age of eighty- 
six. His wife before marriage was Miss 
Annie Child. Their children were seven in 
number, three of whom are still living; 
namely, Jonathan, Oliver, and Stafford. The 
mother resided in Stafford in her later years. 

Stafford Wade remained in the town of his 
nativity till he was six years old, when he 
came to Arcade, and, when old enough, ac- 
quired a knowledge of farming, which he made 
his occupation in part, but united with it the 
buying and selling of produce of various kinds. 
He purchased a farm of two hundred and 
twenty-six acres, which he now has under suc- 
cessful culti\-ation, and which yields a profit- 
able return for his labors. The mercantile 
business which he has built up is quite exten- 
sive, including a heavy line of marketable 
goods — baled ha)', straw, potatoes, etc. He 
is also agent for Dederick & Co. 's celebrated 
hay-presses. 

In 1845 Mr. Wade was married to Miss 
Ziba E. Willson; and this union has been 
blessed by one son, Earle C. , who was born in 
East Arcade, March 31, 1855, and was edu- 
cated in Arcade Seminary. This son married 
Miss Carrie O'Neil, daughter of Thomas 
O'Neil, of Arcade, the O'Neil family having 
been residents of the town for many years. 
Mr. and Mrs. Earle C. Wade have two chil- 
dren — Pearl and Earle, Jr. Since the mar- 
riage of his son, Earle C. , Mr. Wade has 
relinquished some of the more active work of 
the business, and is beginning to rest on the 
results of past years of toil, his son managing 
the business in his stead. Mr. Wade is a 
Democrat in his political leanings, and has 
been Highway Commissioner the past ten 
years. He represented the town as Railroad 
Commissioner on the Western New York & 
Pennsylvania Railroad, and bonded the town 
for fifty thousand dollars. 

Mr. Wade was formerly an Odd P'ellow, and 
belonged to the first lodge in Yorkshire, Cat- 
taraugus County, which lodge is not now in 
existence. Both Mr. and Mrs. Wade are 



26o 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



members of the Baptist church, and take an 
active interest in its prosperity. Stafford 
Wade stands high in the town in all commer- 
cial and social matters. A successful mer- 
chant and a good neighbor and citizen, he has 
many warm friends. 




N. Y. 



kATHAN S. BEARDSLEE, a civil 
engineer of wide experience and signal 
ability, well known also as an enter- 
prising business man of Warsaw, 
was born in New Berlin, Chenango 
County, October i8. 1848. The first Ameri- 
can ancestor of this family settled in Stratford, 
Conn., in 1639. The grandfather of Mr. 
Nathan S. Beardslee, Jabez Beardslee, was 
born in Connecticut in 1770, and settled in 
the town of Pittsfield in Otsego County, just 
across the river from New Berlin. He and 
his wife, whose maiden name was Eunice 
Somers, came to Otsego County in 1797 by 
team, with their two young children and vari- 
ous houshold effects. Having means, they 
were enabled to purchase several hundred 
acres of land at once. Besides investing 
largely in lands, Jabez Beardslee was a prom- 
inent projector of the cotton, woollen, and 
grist mills of that section. His children, 
nine sons and one daughter, all grew up and 
became heads of families, so there are a num- 
ber of descendants of the name now living. 
Mrs. Beardslee died in the prime of life. Her 
husband survived her many years, and was 
eighty-four years old when he died. Their 
remains are buried in the New Berlin ceme- 
tery, surrounded by the graves of most of their 
children, who have gone to their " long 
home. " 

Jesse Beardslee, one of the nine sons of 
Jabez and Eunice, was born in the year 1802. 
This gentleman was married twice. His first 
marriage, with Miss Adeline Angell, was 
blessed by the birth of one son and two daugh- 
ters. His second wife, Miss Mary Ann Chat- 
field, became the mother of one son, Nathan 
S. Beardslee. Mr. Jesse Beardslee was for 
many years a successful dry-goods merchant in 
New Berlin, and became in later years the 
owner of one of the cotton-mills which his 



engaged 

Oswego & Midland Railroad 



father had been instrumental in establishing. 
In agricultural matters he was an undisputed 
authority, having successfully managed seven 
large farms during his busy life. His last 
years were spent in tranquil retirement on the 
homestead farm, where he died in 1879, aged 
seventy-seven years. His widow survived him 
a half-dozen years, dying in the June of 1885, 
having attained the age of seventy-five years. 

At twenty years of age Nathan S. Beardslee, 
who had profited by the educational advantages 
offered in the neighboring schools, and had 
been a studious pupil, became a teacher in the 
school of his own town, having for pupils the 
children of the cotton-mill hands. In 1869 
he joined the engineering corps at that time 
n the construction of the New York, 
taking a subordi- 
nate place, from which he worked up to his 
present position. After fifteen months with 
this corps he went to Michigan on the survey 
of the Chicago, Milwaukee & Lake Shore 
Railroad, then in projection, and at the early 
age of twenty-one was made Assistant Engi- 
neer in this work. A year later he went to 
Olean, N. Y. , where he held a position on the 
Buffalo, New York & Philadelphia Road. In 
May, 1872, he was engaged on the Rochester 
& State Line Road, and in the September of 
the same year came to Warsaw in charge of the 
heavy construction work on this road. 

May 19, 1874, Mr. Beardslee was married 
to Miss Caroline Bristol, a daughter of Mr. 
William Bristol. His whole life, though not 
covering a long period of years, has been both 
busy and eventful ; and in his engineering he 
has tramped o\-er the greater part of New York 
State, with which he is entirely familiar. He 
had charge of the laying of the double-track 
line of the Erie Road, and was chief engineer 
in the building of two hundred miles of other 
railroads. In 1877-78 he located one hundred 
and fifty miles in Illinois. In 1883 he and 
Mr. F. B. Kearney built fifteen houses in the 
village of Warsaw. A vear later he embarked 
in salt manufacturing, being one of the origina- 
tors of the Empire Dairy Salt Company, of 
which he became President ; and three years 
later, in connection with Judge Farman, he 
founded the Warsaw Bluestone Company. He 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



261 



was President of the company until he sold 
out his interest in 1894. In 1882 Mr. Beards- 
lee was a delegate from this Congressional dis- 
trict to the Republican National Convention at 
Minneapolis, to nominate James G. Blaine, of 
whom he was an enthusiastic admirer and 
ardent supporter. 

The spacious and handsome house in which 
he resides was built in 1891 of bluestone from 
the quarry which he partly owns. As a build- 
ing material this stone is as durable as it is 
effective, and his dwelling is one of the most 
imposing in Warsaw. Mr. Beardslee is one of 
the leading citizens of Warsaw, and takes great 
interest in the welfare of the town. 




(HRISTOPHER McCORMICK, a pros- 
perous farmer in Java, was born in the 
town where his life has been passed, 
on November 29, 1838. Mr. Mc- 
Cormick's grandparents, Richard and Cather- 
ine (Clyne) McConnick, reared four sons and 
one daughter, none of whom are now living. 
One of the sons, Richard McCormick, Jr., 
born in Longford, Ireland, was the first of the 
name to cross the Atlantic. He took passage 
in a vessel bound for America in 1826; but 
the vessel was wrecked, and passengers and 
crew were cast upon an island, where they re- 
mained for three months before they were 
rescued by a passing ship. Nine months were 
consumed in this fashion before the young 
emigrant landed at New York. Having no 
means, he set out immediately to find work, 
and was fortunate enough soon to secure a 
position as book-keeper. In New York he 
made the acquaintance of a young girl, Ann 
Hamm, who was a native of the same county 
in which he had been born; and this chance 
acquaintance of the two young people from the 
I-'merald Isle resulted in a marriage, which 
was solemnized in 1831. The yowiig husband 
was time and book keeper in public works 
until 1835, when he moved from New York 
City to Java, coming hither by canal, and buy- 
ing a farm of one hundred acres of partially 
improved land lying a mile east of Java 
Centre, and for which he paid twelve dollars 
an acre. This farm was in a highly improved 



condition at the time of its owner's death, 
December 29, 1846. 

When Mr. and Mrs. McCormick came to 
Java, they had a capital of two thousand dol- 
lars, and with this financial basis they began 
farming. The citizens of Java were not slow 
to perceive that the new-comer was a man of 
character and judgment, and elected him to 
the office of Assessor, the duties of which he 
performed with conscientious care. Both hus- 
band and wife were Catholics in religion, and 
Mr. McCormick did much toward building the 
old church at Java. Mrs. McCormick was left 
a widow with seven children when her hus- 
band died. The following grew to maturity: 
Richard, who died February 7, 1886, at fifty 
years of age ; Ann, the widow of William Denny, 
who died September 29, 1894, aged fifty-three, 
leaving one son ; Margaret, the wife of Hugh 
Kerwin, a farmer in Java, who has one daughter 
and two sons; Chri.stopher, of this memoir; 
Thoma.s, who is living on the home farm, and has 
four sons and two daughters; Cornelius, a far- 
mer, who died January 20, 1895, leaving one .son 
and si.x daughters. The mother of this family 
died on November 2, 1881, aged seventy-three. 
Christopher McCormick received his educa- 
tion in the common .schools of Java, and re- 
mained under the paternal roof-tree until his 
marriage, April 25, 1865, to Miss Bridget 
Prescott, a daughter of Mary (Gibney) and 
John Prescott. Mns. McCormick's father was 
of English birth, and her mother of Irish. 
The Prescotts were large landholders, keeping 
from forty to fifty cows, and making cheese in 
large quantities for those days. Their family 
consisted of five daughters and two sons, of whom 
four are now living — Mrs. Christopher McCor- 
mick ; John and Catherine, the twin brother and 
sister; and Anna, who lives in Rochester. Mr. 
Prescott died from the effects of a fall from a 
wagon in 1854. He was fifty-four years of age. 
His widow, who .still retains much of the vigor 
and vivacity of youth, is living in Java Centre. 
The farm of eighty acres upon which the 
newly wedded pair began their married life 
was increa.sed to an estate of five hundred and 
si.xty-five acres. The domestic life of the Mc- 
Cormicks has been singularly free from the 
shadows of death and separation; for all of 



Z62 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



the thirteen children born of this union are 
living, and the parents are happy in the near 
presence of most of their sons and daughters. 
Thev are : Richard, who is unmarried and at 
lionie, though he manages his farm, which ad- 
joins that of his father; Edward W. , who is 
married and farms in the neighborhood; John, 
who is at homo still; Thomas, a farmer; 
Annie; Walter; Charles Hugh, a student at 
Alleghany College ; Cornelius, who is at school 
in Java; Mary A., a little maiden of thirteen; 
Sylvester; Catherine L. ; Frank, aged six; and 
Alice, who is just five years old. These chil- 
dren are all unusually bright and intelligent; 
and the parents are giving them the lighter 
accomplishments, as well as the more useful 
and practical knowledge of housewifery and 
outdoor occupations. As a result of this 
training, Annie is quite an accomplished pian- 
ist and a famous little cook and housekeeper. 
Mr. McCormick raises hay, oats, and pota- 
toes, of the latter crop some vears producing 
more than two thou.sand bushels. His dairy 
supplies the factory with milk, and the butter 
from McCormick' s farm is of wide reputation. 
The commodious barns on the three farms oc- 
cupied by father and sons were all built bv the 
former, and are models of what such buildings 
should be. Mr. and Mrs. McCormick have 
made but one move during their wedded life — 
from the old house into the new, handsome 
one, completed in 1892. The large barn, 
whose dimensions are one hundred by thirty- 
three feet, was finished in 1894. The old 
house was not, however, discarded, but was 
removed to the rear, to be used as a place of 
storage. The offices of Justice of the Peace 
and Assessor have both been filled by Mr. Mc- 
Cormick for many years, and he has the con- 
fidence and regard of the community. The suc- 
cess which has crowned his efforts is the just re- 
ward of patience and unremitting toil. In poli- 
tics Mr. McCormick is an unswerving Democrat. 



TT^HARLES SHEPARD, a prominent 
I Nr^ and respected citizen of Dansville, was 
^^Hs born in that place, March 15, 1818. 
His ancestor, Ralph Shepard, came 

n the year 



from England to Massachusetts 



1635, dying in Charlestown in 1693, at the 
age of ninety, and was buried in Maiden. 

Our subject's father, Joshua Shepard, was 
born in April. 1780, in Plainfield, Conn., 
where he passed his earlier years, and later 
came to Western New York and became a 
merchant in that section. He came to Dans- 
ville in 1 8 14, and engaged in mercantile busi- 
ness, also carrying on a large farm, and 
continued to conduct both successfully up to 
the time of his death, which occurred Septem- 
ber 12, 1829. In P"ebruary, 181 7, he married 
Elizabeth Hurlbut, whose ancestors emigrated 
to the State of Connecticut in the year 1637 
and settled in the town of .Saybrook. She 
was born in Hanover, Pa., in April, 1791. 
Her father, Christopher Hurlbut, was a soldier 
in the Revolutionary War. He moved with 
his family to Steuben County, New York, in 
1797, and was the founder of the village of 
Arkport. Mrs. Elizabeth Shepard died in 
Dansville, April 24, 1870, at the age of 
seventy-nine. She was a member of the Pres- 
byterian church. Her husband gave the site 
and one-third of the cost of building of the 
church here, which was destroyed by fire, 
March 31. 1834. 

Charles Shepard was educated at select 
schools and the Canandaigua Academy, an 
institution founded in 1795. After leaving 
school, at the age of eighteen, he engaged 
in farming and other pursuits. P'or several 
years he was a Trustee of the village, and of 
the Dansville seminary from its foundation in 
1S57 until it was merged in the union school 
.some years since. He has had many im- 
portant and expensive buildings erected in 
Dansville, and maintains a warm interest in 
local, State, and national affairs. 

On October 7, 1846, Mr. Shepard married 
Katherine R. Colman, daughter of Anson Col- 
man, an early and leading physician of 
Rochester, and Katherine K., daughter of 
Colonel Nathaniel Rochester, founder of the 
city of that name. Col. Rochester was promi- 
nent in the War of the Re\olution, and after 
its close lived many years in Hagerstown, Md. 
From 1810 to 181 5 he resided in Dansville, 
where he was a large land owner. In 18 1 5 
he removed to Rochester, engaging in bank- 




CHARLES SHEPARD. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



265 



X 



ing and other business. One of his sons 
became a leading banker of that city. Mr. 
and Mrs. Shepard have had five children, 
three of whom are living. Charles E. is a 
graduate of Yale College and a lawyer in good 
practice, living in Seattle, Wash. He mar- 
ried Alice M. Galloway, of Fond du Lac, 
Wis., in June, 1881. Thomas R. is also a 
lawyer in Seattle, and one of the firm of 
Burke, Shepard & Woods, counsel of the Great 
Northern Railway Company. In October, 
1879, he married Caroline E. McCartney, of 
Dansville, who died in December, 1893. He 
has one son, Arthur M. The daughter, Mary, 
resides with- her parents in the house built 
by Mr. Shepard's father in 1824. On an 
accompanying page may be found a pleasing 
portrait of Mr. Shepard. 



KE\T B. CALKINS, a retired hotel- 
keeper residing in the village of .Ar- 
^ cade, N. Y. , was born at St. Albans, 
Vt. , October 13, 1820. His father, 
Jonas C alkins, and his grandfather, whose 
name is unknown to the present writer, were 
both natives of the Green Mountain State, and 
were both farmers by vocation. Jonas Calkins 
came to Buffalo, N. Y. , in his early manhood, 
bringing with him his wife and child. He 
followed farming for a while in Aurora, Erie 
County, and later removed to Boston, origi- 
nally a part of Aurora, where he died at 
seventy-two years of age. Jonas Calkins mar- 
ried Miss Lucy Bently, of Vermont, whose 
father, a native of that State, died in this 
locality, having reached the advanced age of 
ninety-si.\. Mrs. Lucy Calkins bore her hus- 
band three children — George, who died in 
Michigan in 1890; Charlotte, who died when 
a young girl ; and Levi B. Calkins. Mrs. 
Calkins was married a second time to Seth 
Sprague, of Aurora, by which marriage one 
son, Charles Sprague, was born. 

Levi B. Calkins was sent to the district 
schools of the neighborhood in which he lived 
in his early years. He was a child of twelve 
when his father moved to Buffalo, which was 
at that time a very small village. Mr. Cal- 
kins adopted the miller's trade for his life 



work, and was successively engaged in this 
business in Aurora, Java, Wales, Warsaw, 
Pike, and Wethersfield. In Warsaw he re- 
mained for ten years, and was for shorter 
periods in the other places of his residence. 
Milling was after a time abandoned ; and Mr. 
Calkins made his first venture in hotel-keep- 
ing, pnrchasing the Arcade House, which was 
under his personal management for three years, 
■ and was then sold by him to a Mr. Reed. Mr. 
Calkins then purchased a piece of property in 
Lockport, and opened a small hotel, which he 
conducted for three years. At the expiration 
of this time he bought a farm of three hundred 
and fifty acres in Wethersfield. After three 
years of agricultural life he sold this property 
and returned to Arcade, where he repurchased 
the hotel property, which he remodelled and 
entirely renovated before opening to guests. 
This enterprise was successful and remunera- 
tive, and Mr. Calkins continued to entertain 
the travelling public until he felt justified in re- 
tiring from the somewhat arduous duties of host. 
The handsomely equipped establishment found 
a ready purchaser ; and he moved to his pleasant 
home in Arcade, where he has since remained. 
He was married to his first wife. Miss Ma- 
tilda Wiley, the daughter of Mr. Seth Wiley, 
a cabinet-maker in \'ermont, in 1840. The 
five children who were the offspring of this 
union were: Theodore, who married Miss 
Addie De Ronee, of Lockport, and who died 
at five-and-thirty ; Judson ; Ann D. ; Eddie; 
and one who died in infancy. Judson died 
aged eleven years, Ann D. died aged twelve 
years, and Eddie A. aged three years ; and the 
mother died in the August of 1855. The sec- 
ond wife of Mr. Calkins was Emily Farrington 
Reed, who died in 1888. The subject of this 
memoir is earnestly Democratic in political 
convictions. He has held for three terms both 
the offices of Village Trustee and Excise Com- 
missioner. 



G. PATTERSON, for many 
vears a very successful merchant tailor 
and dealer in gentlemen's furnish- 
ing goods, of Geneseo, Livingston 
County, N. Y., and now living in retirement, 




266 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



having by his business ability procured a hand- 
some competency, was born in St. Andrew's, 
Fifeshire, Scotland, July 15, 1809. The land 
of Wallace and Bruce, Scott and Burns, seems 
to have contributed largely to the honest and 
thrifty people of Western New York, either 
directly or through ancestral descent ; and well 
may she be proud of the record of her sturdy 
sons across the sea. Both the father and 
grandfather of Mr. Patterson (all three bearing 
the favorite Scotch name Robert) were natives 
and life-long residents of St. Andrews, where 
a paternal uncle, the Rev. John Patterson, was 
a well-known clergyman and instructor. The 
second Robert Patterson was a tailor, and fol- 
lowed that occupation through his entire life, 
which terminated in the month of April, 1809. 
The maiden name of his wife was Clementina 
Ratterry. She was a native of Edinburgh; 
and she lived to be eighty years of age, dying 
in St. Andrews. She reared two children — 
Clementina, who married John Patterson, and 
spent her entire life in the place of her birth; 
and Robert G., who is the only member of the 
family that ever came to America to reside. 

At the age of thirteen Robert G. Patterson 
began to learn the trade of a tailor, and, after 
serving a five years' apprenticeship, worked as 
a journeyman at Dundee. In 1842 he decided 
to go to America, and, embarking with his 
wife upon a sailing-vessel at Glasgow in June 
of that year, landed five weeks later at Mon- 
treal, where he remained two months, and then 
went to Burlington, Vt., and opened a tailor's 
shop. After .staying three years in that city, 
he came to Geneseo, and here engaged in his 
vocation, being successful from the very start. 
He soon augmented his tailoring business with 
a stock of ready-made clothing and gentle- 
men's furnishing goods. Mr. Patterson from 
this time forward enjoyed a substantial pros- 
perity in business, and in 1884 relinquished 
his interest in favor of his son, James F. , by 
whom it is now conducted. In 1888 Mr. Pat- 
terson erected his present home, which is a 
handsome and commodious house, delightfully 
situated at the corner of Elm and South 
Streets. It is tastefully furnished, and its sur- 
roundings are both desirable and healthful. 

Mr. Patterson was married August 20, 1834, 



to Miss Allison Fenwick, a nati\'e of Dundee, 
Scotland. Her father was an only son, and 
inherited his father's estate in Dundee, where 
he was a life-long resident. The maiden 
name of Mrs. Patterson's mother was Barbara 
Downie. She was a life-long resident of Scot- 
land. She reared six children — Peter, John, 
James, William, Belle, and Allison. John 
emigrated to America, and settled in Montreal, 
spending his last years there. His son, the 
Rev. Kenneth M. Fenwick, was for thirty 
years pastor of a church in Kingston, Canada, 
and now lives retired at Montreal. Another 
son, George S. Fenwick, an importer of goods, 
liv^es in Kingston, Ontario. The two daugh- 
ters of John Fenwick are Jessie and Isabel. 
Jessie is the wife of Ira Breck, and Isabel the 
wife of Malcomb Sutherland, also of Kingston. 
No other member of her family ever came to 
America, except to visit. 

Mr. and Mrs. Patterson have five children 
living — William, James F., Barbara, Clem- 
entina, and Alice F. Robert F. died in his 
thirty-second year, and Frank at the age of 
twenty-two years. James F. married Barron 
Rhoode ; and they have three sons — Robert, 
Jonas, and James. Barbara married John 
E. Landerdale; they have four children — 
Henry, Charles, Clarence, and Alice. The 
entire family are members of the Presbyterian 
church. An honor to the historic land that 
gave him birth, and a most acceptable addition 
to the citizens of worth who form a part of an 
intelligent community in the land of his adop- 
tion, Mr. Patterson can look with a just pride 
upon his successful career, and should enjoy 
his well-earned rest from the cares of business. 




1839. 



lOBERT BARNETT, a retired fanner 
in Warsaw, Wyoming County, N.Y. , 
was born near the Erie Railway 
station in this village, July 12, 
His grandparents, Jonathan and Ruth 
(Merrill) Barnett, came from New Hampshire 
to Orangeville, N. Y. , in 1820, bringing their 
family with them, the journey being made by 
slow stages with a team. Two of their elder 
sons, Amos M. and William D. Barnett, had 
come a few years previous, and were engaged 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



267 



here in the manufacture of fanning-milLs. 
Jonathan Barnett was a descendant of Scotch- 
Irish immigrants who settled in Londonderry, 
N. H. , in 1 720. He was born in that town 
September 13, 1767. He died August 27, 
1842. Mrs. Ruth Barnett survived her hus- 
band several years, and died March 29, 1855. 

Their son Robert, the father of the original 
of this sketch, was Ijorn in Londonderry, 
N. H., in 1798, and was twice married. His 
first wife, Sally Nevins, died, leaving one son, 
James Nevins Barnett, who was for some time 
a commercial traveller in the interests of the 
fanning-mills and Miller's blacking, but who 
later became a farmer. He died aged fifty- 
two years. Mr. Barnett 's second wife was 
Miss Hetty Foster, to whom he was married in 
1837. She was the daughter of Luther and 
Ruth (Hedges) Foster. Her father was from 
Eastern New York, and her mother was a na- 
tive of Long Island. Of Mrs. Hetty Barnett's 
brothers and sisters, Solon Foster, an octo- 
genarian in Salt Lake City, and Mrs. Ruth E. 
Cleveland, who is eighty-one years of age, and 
resides in Warsaw, survive. Robert Barnett, 
Sr. , was a farmer in comfortable circum- 
stances. He and his wife, Hetty Foster Bar- 
nett, were both members of the Congregational 
church. They had but one child, the present 
Robert Barnett, of Warsaw. The father died 
in May, 1870, the mother in March, 1875, 
at seventy-five years of age. 

Robert Barnett received a good, plain edu- 
cation in the schools in Warsaw, and was early 
trained to a practical knowledge of farming. 
He remained at home until 1862, when he 
enlisted in the One Hundred and Thirtieth 
New York Volunteer Infantry, Company D, 
but was transferred to the First New York 
Dragoons, in which he served three years. 
During the campaign in the Shenandoah 
valley he received a gunshot wound at Stras- 
burg, which resulted in many weeks of suf- 
fering in various hospitals, and finally in the 
amputation of his leg just above the knee 
joint. Mr. Barnett was seven weeks at the 
Brick Church Hospital in Winchester, Va. , a 
fortnight at the hospital in Frederick City, 
Md., and was finally sent to the Central Park 
Hospital, which was under Dr. Shrady's 



charge, and had for its nurses the Sisters of 
Charity, whose gentle ministry always brought 
comfort, and whose calm, sweet faces seemed 
to leave a benediction upon cot and ward. He 
was discharged August 22, 1865, when he 
returned to his parents, who while they lived 
were his principal care. Mr. Barnett has 
always been engaged in agriculture, and has 
owned three farms, all of which he has disposed 
of by sale or lease. In recognition of services 
rendered his country, he receives a monthly 
pension of thirty-six dollars. He is a member 
of Gibb's Post, No. 130, Grand Army of the 
Republic, of which he was Commander for a 
year, and is a member of Crystal Salt Lodge, 
No. 505, Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
Mr. Barnett cast his first vote for the mar- 
tyred President, Abraham Lincoln; and he has 
ever since been loyal to the Republican party, 
to which his early allegiance was plighted. 



OHN H. ADAMS, farmer, and some- 
time teacher, of Livonia, N. Y. , was 
born in Richmond, Ontario County, 
June 27, 1858. His grandfather, Isaac 
Adams, a native of Connecticut, was one of 
the first settlers of Ontario County. He came 
to this State with a family by the name of 
Reed, for whom he worked ; and the journey 
was made with an ox team. The young pio- 
neer worked faithfully, and was at last able to 
buy a small farm of improved land, upon 
which he built a log house. This was after 
some years replaced by a frame dwelling, 
under whose roof the remaining years of his 
life were passed. His wife was Miss Lucretia 
Holmes, by whom he had ten children — ■ 
Cyrus, Willis, John, Lydia, Susan, Timothy, 
Lucina, Esther, Isaac, and Chester. 

Isaac Adams, son of Isaac and Lucretia, 
obtained his education in the district schools 
of the village, and made himself useful about 
his father's farm until he was of age, when he 
bought a farm at Springwater. Here he lived 
five years, after which time he sold his prop- 
erty and moved to Richmond, his place of birth, 
where he remained until 1872. In that year he 
disposed of the Richmond farm, and came to 
Livonia, where he lived until the date of his 



268 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



death, January 26, 1887. He was married to 
Miss Hannah Becker, a daughter of John and 
Lurana Becker, to whom two children were 
born — a daughter, Helen, and a son, John H. 
Adams. Helen is now Mrs. Alden Adams, 
and has one daughter, who bears the name of 
Ella. She lives in Livonia. 

John H. Adams attended the district school 
near his home, and afterward pursued a course of 
study at the normal school in Geneseo. Having 
completed his education, he taught school for 
three years in Livonia and Richmond. In 
1883 he bought a small farm of seventy acres; 
and, finding the outdoor exercise and free, in- 
dependent life of the farmer more agreeable 
than the sedentary and patience-taxing exist- 
ence within the four walls of a school-room, 
he has since followed the former occupation, 
and has extended the boundaries of his prop- 
erty until his estate now covers two hundred 
and fifty acres. In 1880 he was married to 
Emma Wemett, a daughter of William and 
Hulda (Gaines) Wemett, of Livonia. The 
birth of three children has blessed this mar- 
riage — Clifford, Fannie, and Gladys. 

Mr. Adams has been Supervisor for four 
years, and is a member of the Masonic Lodge, 
No. 778, of Livonia Station. He always 
manifests interest in the political issues, and 
is a stanch Republican. His first Presidential 
vote was cast for James A. Garfield in 1880. 




RANK McELROV, School Commis- 
sioner of the Second District of Wy- 
oming County, was born in the town 
of Eagle, July 16, 1856, son of James and 
Serena (Beach) McElroy. His paternal 
grandfather, John McElroy, was a native of 
Greene County. Of his family of three sons 
and three daughters, James, born in Albany 
County, June 22, 1S20, was the third child. 
As a small boy, James IVIcElroy lived in a 
farmer's family, where he was brought up with 
a practical knowledge of agricultural life; and 
as a lad of fourteen years he came to this sec- 
tion, where his son now holds a prominent 
position, and began working out by the month. 
The accumulation of his patient earnings year 
by year steadily increased, until the young 



farm hand was a landholder near the village 
of Eagle, where his youthful labors had 
begun. This property was afterward sold, and 
a farm purchased in or near Bliss, in Wyoming 
County. Of the three hundred acres of land 
included in this tract two hundred were unim- 
proved, and had to be cleared. With an en- 
ergy that no obstacle daunted, he fell to work, 
and in a short time had it almost ready for the 
plough. The first four years of his life here 
were spent in an humble little log cabin ; but 
the occupants were not less happy, perhaps, 
than when in more ])rosperous times they lived 
in the more pretentious home he afterward 
built. 

Mr. James McElroy's wife, Serena, was a 
daughter of Daniel Beach, who came from 
Connecticut, and was one of the earliest set- 
tlers in these parts. Mr. Beach's log cabin 
was in the midst of a forest. The nearest 
mill was twelve miles distant, and the nearest 
village thirty-five miles away. Coming with 
the limited capital of one hundred and four 
dollars, an axe, a shovel, and a hoe, and an 
indomitable courage, the young pioneer began 
his career, and within eight years had paid for 
the farm, and was the possessor of a comfort- 
able home. Mr. Beach died not long after the 
accomplishment of his life work. His widow 
died at eighty-four years of age. Mr. and 
Mrs. McElroy reared four children — Ellen 
A. ; Frank, of whom this is written; Libbey 
C. ; and Fred B. She died in the sixty-sixth 
year of her age. 

Mr. Frank McElroy was educated in the 
district schools and the Pike Seminary, after 
which, at the age of twenty-two years, he 
began teaching — an avocation he continued 
for five years. On October 13, 1879, he was 
wedded to Miss Beulah E. Joiner, a daughter 
of Mr. Andrew Joiner, of Wethersfield. Her 
death, on the i6th of March, 1884, in the 
twenty-seventh year of her age, was a great 
and grievous bereavement to her husband, 
whose life has been since overshadowed by the 
sorrow. 

In 1 891 he was elected to the ofiice of 
School Commissioner of the Second District 
of the county, and proved himself so efificient 
in this capacity that in 1893 he was re-elected 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



269 



for three years. In political faith Mr. Mc- 
Elroy is a Republican, and in religious con- 
nections is a Free Will Baptist. He is a 
member of Blue Lodge, of Pike, in which 
organization he has officiated as Chaplain. 
Mr. McElroy is a man of uncommon intelli- 
gence, and has the entire confidence of the 
community in which his lot has been cast. 




LBERT G. BRISTOL, a successful 
farmer of Avon, Livingston County, 
N. Y. , was born in Canaan, Colum- 
bia County, January 6, 181 2. His 
grandfather, Eliphalet Bristol, who was born 
in Connecticut, April 7, 1751, removed to 
Canaan when a young man, making the jour- 
ney on foot, and bringing an a.\e. He secured 
land covered with a heavy growth of timber. 
He cleared a farm, and lived there with his 
wife, Sarah (Scovil) Bristol, until his death in 
1833. They had six children, one son and 
five daughters, all of whom married and 
settled in Lima, Livingston County, N. Y. 
The father of Albert G. Bristol, Eliphalet 
Bristol, Jr., was born in Canaan, January 5, 
1784, and, having inherited a part of the old 
homestead, afterward bought the rest from the 
heirs, and, adding more to it, made this place 
his home for life, dying in i86g, at the age of 
eighty-five years. His first wife was Lucy 
Crippen, of Columbia County, New York, 
daughter of Benjamin and Deborah (F"oote) 
Crippen. She died in 1826, at the age of 
forty-si.x years, leaving seven children; 
namely, Sarah, Albert G., Benjamin, Debo- 
rah, Lucy, Lydia, and Scovil. Mr. Bristol 
then married Laura Crocker, of Chatham, who 
had two sons — Horace and Abel. 

Albert G. Bristol was' educated in his native 
town, where he resided till February, 1836, 
when he came to Livingston County, making 
the eight days' journey in a sleigh. He had 
visited this section in the fall of the previous 
year, and bought one hundred acres of land in 
the town of Avon, which then consisted of only 
one uncompleted house, si.xteen by eighteen. 
This he finished, and, making it comforta- 
ble, commenced his career as an independent 
farmer. He soon built another house and 



frame barn, and otherwise improved the prop- 
erty, residing there until 1852, when he sold 
that farm and purchased the place on which he 
now resides. Here he erected a number of 
buildings, with modern improvements, which 
rank among the best in the town. The farm 
consists of one hundred and twenty-five acres, 
which he has managed very successfully. 

April 14, 1835, he married Miranda Lock- 
wood, who was born in Canaan, Columbia 
County, N. Y. , September 6, 1S13, daughter 
of Abijah and Talatha (Elmor) Lockwood. 
Mrs. Bristol died in 1890, leaving five chil- 
dren — George W. , Lucy L. , James L., Mar- 
tin H., and Albert M. George W. married 
Mary Stilson, February 14, 1866, and after 
her death, July 23, i866, was again married to 
Nellie Williams, December 25, 1867. The 
latter died July 26, 1879; and he was sub.se- 
quently married for the third time to Helen 
Burdette. He now resides at Grand Rapids, 
and ,has one son, Frank. Lucy L. lives at 
home with her father. James L. married 
March 3, 1864, Emma Huntington, who died 
July 30, 1876, leaving si.x children — Louis, 
Gertrude, Fred, Miranda, Harry, and Grace. 
James then married, November 2, 1881, Jessie 
Hallock. Martin H. married Helen Warner, 
June 8, 18S1, and has three children — Roie, 
Jay, and Harriet. Albert M. married Minnie 
Remington, June 7, 1888, and has one son, 
Benjamin Clifford. 

Mr. Bristol has been a Reiniblican for some 
years, and has done a great deal for the prog- 
ress of the town in which he lives. He is a 
man of broad views, and is well read, spending 
much of his spare time with his books and the 
papers, thereby being able to converse readily 
on all the affairs of the day. 




HARLES M. JOHNSON, a retired 
farmer and a highly respected citizen 
of Castile, Wyoming County, N.Y., 
was born in the town of Galway, 
Saratoga County, September 3, 1840. His 
father, Henry B., was the eldest son of Jacob 
and Nancy Johnson, who were of English and 
Scotch descent. Not very much is known 
of Jacob's career; but he was a progressive 



270 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



farmer, and was in the service of the country 
in the War of 18 12. His death occurred at 
Saratoga Springs in his eighty-fourth year. 
His wife, Nancy, died at about eighty. They 
were the parents of seven children — Henry, 
Alfred, William, Joseph, Guy, Rhoda, and 
Harriet. 

Henry B. Johnson was born in Saratoga 
County, June 19, 1S12, and when he was old 
enough began to look into the work of farm- 
ing and to put into practice the waking ideas 
of his young brain. In 1849 he removed with 
his family to Genesee Falls, Wyoming 
County, and later to the adjoining town of 
Castile, where he set to work in his chosen 
occupation, and was known in that region as 
one of the truly progressive farmers of the 
locality. His death took place in the course 
of time, at the age of seventy-seven. His 
wife's maiden name was Polly Shields. Her 
age at the close of her life was seventy years. 
She had been the mother of four children, the 
second of whom, Henry, named for his father, 
married Eliza Lee, and lives on the old home- 
stead in Castile. The only daughter, Martha 
J. Johnson, died in youth. The third son, 
Porter M., born July ig, 1857, and now mar- 
ried to Ellen Sowerby, is a miller by occupa- 
tion, in Castile; and they have five children. 

Charles M. Johnson, the eldest of the four, 
and the subject of this narrative, was in his 
ninth year when his father and mother left the 
eastern part of the State for the western town 
of Castile; and he was thus able to use the 
advantages which the well-developed schools 
of this neighborhood afforded. When he had 
finished his education, he began farming. In 
1862 Mr. Johnson enlisted in Company D, 
One Hundred and Thirty-sixth Regiment, New 
York Volunteers, under Captain Augustus 
Harrington, and soon found himself on the 
scene of action, such as his country had never 
before beheld nor his twenty-two years ever 
conceived of in his most ardent moments of 
school-boy patriotism. At length the cruel 
war was over, and his discharge took place. 
This was on June 20, 1865. He had been 
in many fierce battles, including the terrible 
encounter at Gettysburg; but in them all he 
escaped injury, and he returned in safety to 



his home. Soon after he went to New York 
City, taking a position as clerk in a dry-goods 
store, and remained in that capacity three 
years. He then came to Castile, and went 
into the business of cheese manufacture, which 
he carried on for seven years at West Perry 
with John Thomson. At the end of this 
period he took hold of a new branch of indus- 
try, with his kit of tools and a fresh spirit 
beginning work as a carpenter, shortly becom- 
ing a builder and jobber. In 1882 he went 
back to Castile, and continuing his same line 
of work became very successful. In 1884 he 
built the large and beautiful house which he 
now owns at No. 19 Liberty Street. Mr. 
Johnson also owns a fine summer cottage at 
Silver Lake. 

Charles M. Johnson was married in 1870 to 
Miss Martha Sowerby, who died July 17, 
1892. (See sketch of John Sowerby on an- 
other page.) Mrs. Martha S. Johnson was 
the mother of three children, who all survived 
her, namely: Clara M., born May 14, 1873, 
married to Frank Dunbar, a farmer in the 
town of Castile, and who has two children — 
M. Matilda and Bennett; Estella C, born 
September 14, 1872, who lives with her 
father; and William Elmer, born February 
10, 1882, also under the home roof. In 1894 
Mr. Johnson married for his second wife Miss 
Ella Johnson, who was born at Caledonia, 
Livingston County, May 15, 1867, daughter 
of Lewis and Clara (Beckwith) Johnson. 
Her father is of English descent, and was 
born in Wyoming County, January, 1836. He 
has been twice married, and Mrs. Charles M. 
Johnson is a daughter by the first marriage. 
Lewis Johnson is still living, and doing a 
prosperous business as a contractor and car- 
penter, living in the comfortable house which 
he built himself on Water Street. He be- 
lieves in Prohibition, and is a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. 

Charles M. Johnson is a member of the 
Baptist church. He is a Republican in poli- 
tics; and, as a man of probity and reliability 
in business affairs, he has been called to minor 
offices in the interests of the town. Now that 
the fever of ambition w-hich possesses the 
mind of all youth has given place to the cool- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



271 



ness of maturer years, Mr. Johnson has settled 
down to enjoy more fully than in previous 
days the well-earned serenity which results 
from a worthy and intelligent activity. 



(^rr-LLEN VV. PECK, a well-known and 
P\ esteemed resident of Arcade, Wyo- 
Jj\\ ming County, formerly a conductor 
^~^ on the Erie Railroad, was born in 
Java in the same county, January 26, 1852. 
His father was a native of Berlin, Hartford 
County, Conn., born December 19, 1821. 
He bore the name of Lucius, and was a son of 
James Peck, a native of the State of Vermont. 
The grandfather came to Steuben County, 
New York, in 1822, and settled on a farm, 
which he cleared, and on which he resided till 
his death, February 28, 1845. His wife, the 
grandmother, was Miss Franklin, with the 
good old-fashioned prefix of Sally. Her death 
occurred on the 19th of February, 1839, ?•"£" 
ceding that of her husband by six years. 

Lucius Peck, the father of Allen, early 
manifested an intellectual bent, being "fond 
of his book," and making such good use of 
his opportunities for study that he was quali- 
fied quite early for occupying the teacher's 
desk. He began to teach at the age of seven- 
teen, and kept at the work for nine years, 
when he passed on his wand of office to his 
successor, and entered the Geneva Medical 
College. He took the prescribed course, and 
was duly graduated in 1847, and then com- 
menced practice as a physician in good stand- 
ing in the town of Eagle, Wyoming County. 
After a time he went to a new field in Steu- 
ben County, where he remained a few years; 
and then he moved to Java, remaining there 
nineteen years, at the end of which time he 
changed again to Arcade, his home being in 
that place during the rest of his life. He 
died on the 5th of May, 1893. Dr. Lucius 
Peck was a man who deserves more than a 
mere passing mention, being widely known 
and appreciated both as a physician and a citi- 
zen. It was no small part of his business to 
look after the interests of the community. 
He was Supervisor of the town nine years, 
and was Chairman of the board five years, was 



a member of the State Assembly in 1863, also 
a Justice of the Peace, and filled the office of 
Postmaster of the town of Java eighteen suc- 
cessive years. He always cast a Republican 
vote. In the Masonic Order, to which he 
belonged for many years, he passed all the 
degrees. These records show the character of 
the man to have been of the happiest type, 
and noteworthy from its helpful activity. 
The wife of Lucius Peck was Miss Mary J. 
Day, daughter of Paul E. Day, a native of 
York. Her father was a clothier by occupa- 
tion, in the town of Haskinville, Steuben 
County, where he ended his days. 

Lucius and Mary Peck were the parents of 
two children — Lucien W., a regular physi- 
cian in the town of Arcade; and Allen, of 
this sketch. The parents were inclined to 
the Congregational belief, and promoted its 
cause in their neighborhood. Mrs. Peck 
lived to the age of eighty-two years, and died 
in Arcade. 

Allen W. Peck came to man's estate in the 
town of Arcade. He had been going through 
a school course, and now began his active 
career as an employee on the Erie Railroad. 
He remained on the line for three years; and 
after an interval of about two years he re- 
sumed that occupation, and was engaged in 
railroad service till the year 1891. At that 
time he made a change by going into the 
large establishment of A. J. Davis as clerk, 
a position which he occupies at the present 
time. 

Mr. Peck was married in 1873 to Miss 
Lucy Darling, one of four children of Kendall 
Darling, of Gaysville, Vt., where her father 
was a foreman in a woollen-mill. Her death 
occurred at the age of forty, December 10, 
1894. Her parents reside in the town of 
Pike. Mr. Peck is in politics a Democrat. 
He has passed all the degrees of Masonry, and 
is now a Master Mason. He is also a mem- 
ber of the Independent Order of Odd F"ellows 
of Arcade, is also a member of the Maccabees, 
and has held several of the minor offices. He 
is in addition to these a member of the Fra- 
ternity of Railway Conductors. The physical 
and mental strain which belongs to the life 
of the manager of a railroad train is hardly 



272 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



paralleled in any stationary employment, and 
Mr. Peck's fifteen years of personal risk and 
personal responsibility for the safety of others 
entitle him to the gratitude of the community 
at large. Mr. Peck has the regard of his 
many friends both for his own sake and for 
his father's sake, whom "to name is to 
praise." 



daughters. 

town of Portage. 



OSP:PfI VATES BENNETT, a native 

of the prosperous town of Portage, 
Livingston County, N. Y. , an influen- 
tial business man of great experience, 
was born November 30, 1822. His ancestors 
were a thrifty, industrious New England 
people, possessed of a high order of intelli- 
gence. Ephraim Bennett, the first emigrant 
of the family to this country, came from Eng- 
land and settled in Newtown, Conn., where 
he died in 1780. One of his three sons, 
our subject's grandfather, Thomas, was born 
in 1752, and died in the old home in New- 
town in 1836, aged eighty-four. 

Thomas Bennett had eight sons and three 
Seven of the sons settled in the 
Of the eight sons, Walter, 
the father of our subject, was the sixth son. 
He was the pioneer of the family to the town 
of Portage, then Nunda, in 1S17. His first 
settlement in New York State was made in 
1808, in Scipio, Cayuga County, where he 
married Huldah Coe in 1809. While travel- 
ling to his new home, he was obliged to cut 
his way for many miles through primeval for- 
ests. Besides attending to his farm, Mr. Ben- 
nett engaged extensivelv in lumber business, 
felling trees, and rafting the lumber to 
Rochester, on the Genesee River. His crops 
of grain were teamed to the same city for mar- 
ket, it requiring three days for one trip. But 
step by step, with the blessing of God, whom 
he devoutly worshipped, he was enabled to es- 
tablish a firm and agreeable foothold in his 
new home. His young wife, gifted in capabil- 
ity and management of affairs, was an unfail- 
ing assistant and support. All the wearing 
apparel was made by the family. The old 
spinning-wheel is still preserved in the home, 
a cherished relic. While living in Scijiio, Mr. 



Bennett, in company with his father-in-law, 
went to New England, and there purchased, at 
a cost of two thousand dollars, two merino 
sheep, for the purpose of introducing the fine 
wool into Western New York. Of the first 
shearing, Huldah and her step-mother, Mrs. 
Joel Coe, spun and wove fine cloth, of which 
her father, Joel Coe, presented a suit to the 
Governor of the State. The Governor in re- 
turn sent a large, richly chased silver bowl to 
Mr. Coe and two sets of silver teaspoons to 
the spinners. Mr. Coe lived to his ninetieth 
year. Late in life he had his silver bowl 
melted and made into sets of large tablespoons 
for his wife and three daughters. These 
spoons are held in deep veneration by the sev- 
eral families. 

Mr. and Mrs. Walter Bennett had eleven 
children — Emily Coe, Alma Jane, Thomas 
Ford, Walter, Flora, Joseph Yates, John 
Henry Hobart, Maria Louise, Mary Ellen, 
Heber Coe, and Heber Coe second, six of whom 
survive at this present. A seventh, Walter, 
Jr., lived past threescore and ten. Thomas 
F. is a retired farmer, residing in Missouri. 
He had nine children, seven of whom survive. 
Of quick intelligence, a close and deep 
thinker, he carries on continued correspond- 
ence with men of note on governmental sub- 
jects, giving his mind and pen busy work for 
his ripe old age. Walter, Jr., possessed keen 
perception of art and skill, and was an in- 
ventor. He practised medicine in Providence, 
R.L, and died in that city in 1892. His 
brother Yates was with him the last few days 
of his life, and brought his remains home, 
where his funeral was attended ; and his grave 
is beside his father's and mother's in the Hunt 
cemetery. 

Flora Bennett, born September 26, 1820, 
began teaching in 1841, and taught successively 
in Oakland, Hunt's Hollow, Nunda, Portage- 
ville, and Pike, Wyoming County. In 1845 
she was awarded a State certificate. Subse- 
quently she taught the village school of Ches- 
ter, Morris County, N.J., four years. She was 
for twenty-eight years a prominent teacher in 
institutions of note in the States of Tennessee 
and Mississippi. One of many souvenirs of 
this period is a beautiful sih'er water set and 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



273 



tray. Four of the concluding years she was 
principal of the Peabody public school of Sum- 
mit, Miss., which school had five departments. 
She resigned her position in the Peabody to 
assist in the care of her mother, then ninety 
years old. At her resignation the Board of 
Education presented her a gold medal, beauti- 
fully wrought, as a token of appreciation of 
faithful labor among them. J. H. Hobart is a 
dealer in musical instruments, and resides in 
Springfield, 111. He was born in 1825, and 
has never married. His first day in that city 
was the day of the funeral of the martyred 
President, Abraham Lincoln. He is a faithful 
and efficient worker in the Episcopal church, 
and it was through his labor and influence that 
the parish of Christ's Church was established. 
Two rich men (Ridgleys) built the church as 
a memorial to their sainted ]3arents. Maria 
Louise Bennett married John W. Johnson, of 
Baltimore, Md. , and resides in that city. She 
has no children. Mary Plllen was for many 
years a successful music teacher in the South, 
for the most part in the same institutions 
with her sister Flora. She was educated 
in music in Boston, under Professor J. C. 
Johnson. The father, Walter Bennett, Sn, 
died May 26, 1843, aged fifty-seven — just in 
waning manhood's prime. He was greatly 
lamented. 

The venerable mother's home was with her 
son, J. Yates Bennett. Centennial year the 
three sisters attended the E.xposition in Phila- 
delphia, and paid a visit to the homestead. 
Mrs. J. Yates Bennett died in May of that 
year; and, because of the increasing infirmi- 
ties of their mother, Mary E. remained at home 
to care for her. Mrs. Huldah Coe Bennett 
survived until her ninety-third year, dying 
P'ebruary 8, 1886. A few years she had im- 
perfect sight, a great regret ; but up to the close 
of her life she was an interested listener to 
reading, and kept the run of passing events. 
It was said of her: "She was happy in having 
lived through such an eventful era, happy in 
her family and friends, happy in a long and 
eventful life, happy in the decline that led to 
an almost painless, but conscious close, but 
above all happy in unfaltering faith of a future 
life of unending happiness." Among her last 



words were, "1 am nothing: Jesus is all in 
all." She raised four sons, all of whom sur- 
vived her. Their lots have been varied, as 
they have lived in different States, and much 
within the charmed circle of city attractions. 
She would remark with pride and congratula- 
tion : "Not one of my four sons is a drunkard, 
and not one of them uses tobacco. I can trust 
them wherever they may go. ' ' P'or nearly 
twenty years Mary ¥.. has been the manager of 
her brother's household, aided since 1883 by 
her sister Flora. 

Joseph Yates Bennett, the jirincipal subject 
of this sketch, received the rudiments of his 
education in the public school. His studies 
were completed in Le Roy and Nunda Acad- 
emies. When twenty-one, he went to Louis- 
iana for one winter's stay, but remained seven 
years, teaching private schools. He was ap- 
pointed Postmaster of the town of Thibo- 
deaux, and held the office five years. At this 
time he was engaged in the book and station- 
ery business. After resigning his office, in 
the years 1856-57 he passed some months in 
San Antonio, Tex., and on the frontier. On 
leaving Texas, he crossed that State and 
Louisiana alone on horseback. There were no 
hotels except in villages, which were far 
apart; but the traveller found a kind welcome 
at every house where he asked for entertain- 
ment. His pistol was an annoyance in his 
belt, so he carried it stored away in his saddle- 
bags. The next few years he divided the time 
between the North and South, spending two 
years in New Orleans, in business with his 
brother Walter. In i860 he returned to the 
North permanently, and has ever since resided 
in the town of Portage. 

In 1862 he married Mariette Galusha, of 
Wayne County. One son was born to them, 
whose death at seven months was soon followed 
by that of the mother. Mr. Bennett'^s sec- 
ond wife was Mrs. Elizabeth Branch Smith, 
a daughter of the late Dr. G. W. Branch. 
She had one son, George Branch Smith, two 
years old at the time she became Mrs. Ben- 
nett. Two sons were born of the second union 
— Arthur Yates and Guy Percy. The mother 
died in 1876, and the infant, Guy Percy, a 
few months later. George and Arthur grew 



274 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



up together, studying at home, George under 
the tuition of Mary E., until they entered 
classes in high schools, George in Mount Mor- 
ris, Arthur three years later in Nunda. The 
State Regent's report gave George the highest 
standard, in some respects, of any boy in the 
State. (^n leaving school, he worked in a 
machine-shop in Buffalo, where he mastered 
engineering, geometrical drawing, and draft- 
ing, and became experienced in the making of 
steam-engines. He is now, at twenty-four, 
sub-engineer on a lake steamboat. George 
has always cherished the warmest affection for 
his step-father and his brother Arthur. Ar- 
thur Yates graduated from the high school in 
Nunda after three years of study. He then 
took a commercial course in a business col- 
lege in Elmira, N.Y. At this present he 
is twenty-one, and is a partner in the grain 
and milling business with his father. 

Mr. Bennett's business experience in differ- 
ent parts of the country not only quickened his 
natural abilities, but has served to enable him 
to conduct either public or private affairs with 
care and precision. A life-long Democrat, he 
has been a Justice of the Peace for twelve 
years in a strong Republican town, and has 
recently been elected for four years more. He 
is a Mason, and is a member of St. Mark's 
Episcopal Church in Hunt's Hollow. He 
holds the office of Warden, and has been lay 
reader for twenty years. St. Mark's Church 
was built in 1828, mainly through the work 
and influence of Walter Bennett, Sr. , and 
Sanford Hunt, Sr. Together they held the 
office of Warden until their death. In the 
fifties a handsome triple memorial window was 
placed in the newly added recess chancel. In 
1 888, a general repairing being necessary, Mr. 
J. Yates Bennett, as committee of one, pro- 
ceeded to gather means for the work. The 
result was handsome, high, mullioned stained- 
glass windows, six of them being memorial, 
containing twelve names inscribed in panel 
scrolls of cathedral glass. Other repairs and 
ornamentation are in perfect keeping with such 
windows. In 1892 was completed the patient 
labor of love that had made St. Mark's Church 
one of the neatest country churches in the dio- 
cese of Western New York. 




FRANCIS SULLIVAN, pastor 
St. Joseph's Catholic Church at 
Perry, Wyoming County, N.Y., 
was born in Niagara County, De- 
cember 13, 1857. He is a son of Timothy 
Sullivan, a native of County Cork, Ireland, 
born in 1820, who came to America, and set- 
tled in Niagara County, New York, in 1847. 
The Sullivan family is an ancient race, and 
has won distinction in the Old World and the 
New. Timothy Sullivan had been trained to 
agricultural pursuits; and on coming to Niag- 
ara County he purchased about two hundred 
acres of land, and became a very prosperous 
farmer. He was progressive as well as indus- 
trious, and to-day owns several farms aside 
from the one upon which he now resides. He 
married Mary Maher, daughter of William 
Maher, who was also born in Ireland, but 
emigrated and settled in Middleport, N.Y., 
where he became a well-to-do farmer. 

Timothy and Mary Sullivan raised a family 
of five children, three sons and two daughters. 
John, who married Margaret Dacey, is a 
farmer residing in Niagara County, and has 
three children. The Rev. Francis Sullivan is 
the subject of this sketch. William, the third 
son, who resides in Hartland, Niagara County, 
married Catherine Khoe, and has one child. 
One daughter, Mrs. B. Gitty, of Lockport, 
has five children. The other, Mrs. P. J. Hal- 
Ion, of Hartland, has three children. Timothy 
Sullivan is still actively engaged in agricul- 
tural pursuits, and is considered one of the very 
best grain cultivators in Western New York. 

Francis Sullivan was educated at Niagara 
LTniversity, and received his bachelor's de- 
gree in 1879. In 1 88 1 he received the degree 
A.M., and his ordination to priesthood 
1S83. On January 19, 
charge of St. Joseph's 
Church, Perry, where his labors have been 
productive of very beneficial results. St. 
Joseph's Church was erected in 1871, the 
Rev. John Fitzpatrick being its first pastor. 
He was succeeded in 1873 by the Rev. M. 
Dwyer, who officiated for six years, and was 
followed by the Rev. P. Burkney, who re- 
mained until 1884, when the Rev. Father 
Sullivan was placed in charge of the parish. 



of 

occurred May 1 9, 

1884, he assumed 




FRANCIS SULLIVAN. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



277 



This gentleman is as progressive in church 
work as was his father in agriculture. He 
has laid a new foundation to the church, and 
in 1890 he erected a beautiful parochial resi- 
dence. He has also graded the grounds, set 
out shade trees, and purchased a new ceme- 
tery, besides making many other needed im- 
provements. 

Father Sullivan, besides attending to his 
duties at Perry, also officiates at St. Mary's 
Church at Silver Springs, and holds services 
in both of these churches every Sabbath. He 
administers to the spiritual needs of over 
seven hundred souls. He takes a live inter- 
est in all matters of importance relative to the 
general welfare of the community, and has 
twice been elected a Trustee of the union 
school at Perry, where he is held in the very 
highest esteem by all classes. The church 
and parochial residence are located at the cor- 
ner of Lester, Clark, and Park Streets, Grove 
Street being in the rear, one of the finest sites 
in the village. 

Father Sullivan takes a great interest in 
the schools, the library, and all educational 
improvements in Perry, Castile, and Silver 
Springs. He has always faithfully and zeal- 
ously performed his pastoral duties, and by 
his many kindly acts has endeared himself to 
the hearts of his parishioners. Although he 
is comparatively a young man. he occupies an 
influential position as the senior Catholic pas- 
tor in Wyoming County. A scholarly and 
eloquent speaker, he has delivered a number 
of public addresses on various subjects 
throughout Western New York. 

A lifelike portrait of the Rev. Francis 
Sullivan accompanies this brief sketch of his 
beneficent career. 



M 



A\'ID STEELE, a retired farmer liv- 
ing in the village of Arcade, Wyo- 
^?) J ming County, N.Y., a man who has 
held many important offices, and has 
won the respect and esteem of the community, 
was born in Yorkshire, Cattaraugus County, 
March 19, 1825. His grandfather, Thomas 
Steele, who was a native of Derry, N.H., 
made all preparations to move from that State 



to the western part of New York, and had 
started on the journey thither, when he was 
stricken with an illness, and died at Albany. 
His father, Hugh Steele, was fourteen years 
old when he first came from New Hampshire 
to New York, where he did not remain very 
long. He returned to New Hampshire, and a 
short time afterward went to Boston, where 
he secured work on one of the numerous piers. ' 
In 1 82 1 he came back to New York, and took 
possession of a tract of one hundred and fifty 
acres of timbered land in Cattaraugus County, 
which he cleared and improved, and upon 
which he erected a comfortable dwelling and 
out-buildings. He married Miss Lucinda 
Day, a native of Worcester, Mass., whose 
parents late in life moved to New York, liv- 
ing in Otsego and Steuben Counties, but 
afterward went West, where they both died. 
Hugh Steele was the father of eight children, 
who were born in the following order: David; 
Lovice; Lucinda, who died young; John: 
Elizabeth; Chauncey; Ira; and Hiram, who 
is now the popular and efficient Postmaster of 
Arcade. Both of the parents were conscien- 
tious members of the Baptist church, and the 
father held the offices of Assessor and Over- 
seer of the Poor. 

After the death of his parents David took 
possession of the farm where his life had 
been spent, he having been an infant of three 
months when his father moved on the place. 
Mr. Steele was a farmer by natural as well as 
inherited taste, and his youthful experience of 
tilling the soil and cattle-raising was of un- 
questionable worth to him when he became 
manager of the estate. This place he still 
owns, and would be reluctant to give up, for 
it has been in the possession of the Steele 
family for over seventy years, and many 
tender associations cling about it. In 1866 
Mr. Steele was married to Miss Augusta Pin- 
ne}', a native of Veteran, Chemung County, a 
daughter of Mr. Smith Pinney. Mrs. Steele's 
father died in Steuben County. Her mother, 
whose maiden name was Julia A. Van Hozer, 
was a native of Xorwalk, Conn., but died in 
Antrim County, Mich. 

The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. David Steele 
was crowned by the birth of a son and daugh- 



278 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ter. Ira Day Steele, the son, was educated in 
Arcade, and was a telegraph operator and 
later a clerk in the hotel in that village. At 
the age of twenty-seven he died in the youth- 
ful vigor of manly strength, April 6, 1894, 
leaving a void in the hearts and home of his 
parents which cannot be filled. The daugh- 
ter. Bertha, is still at home with her father 
and mother in Arcade, the family having re- 
moved to this village in 1893. Mr. Steele is 
a regular attendant of the Baptist church, of 
which his family are members, and in which 
his wife has been a devout communicant since 
her childhood. He is a Democrat, and has 
held the office of Inspector of Elections. 
He has also been an Assessor, and has five 
times filled the oflfice of Town Supervisor. 



Tm) /ILLIAM A. GREEN, a leading and 
Yte\/ distinguished citizen of West 

*^ '^ Sparta, Livingston County, X.Y., 
was born in the same town on the farm near 
his present residence, on October 26, 1837, in 
the very heat of the financial diflficulties 
which created distress throughout the nation, 
and made the administration of President \'an 
Buren exceedingly unpopular. 

His father, Bradford Green, was born in 
Mayfield, Fulton County, X.Y., where he 
lived till manhood, coming to West Sparta in 
1830, over sixty years ago, when he was 
twenty-two years old. Here he purchased a 
hundred and thirty-seven acres, and later he 
bought another tract near by of two hundred 
acres. Afterward he sold the first farm, but 
lived on the second till his death in 1849, at 
the age of forty-three, having been born in 
1806, just as Madison was elected President. 
His wife was Rebecca McMaster, daughter of 
Ebenezer McMaster, a pioneer settler in 
Sparta, where she was born, one of twelve 
children. Mrs. Bradford Green had two chil- 
dren. The eldest is William A., of West 
Sparta. His brother, Harlow B. Green, also 
lives in this town. Their mother was born in 
181 5, was married while very young, and 
lived. to be seventy-eight, dying in 1894, a 
faithful adherent of the Presbyterian church, 
though her husband was a Methodist. 



As we have already seen, William A. Green 
was a lad only a dozen years old when his 
father died. He continued to live with his 
widowed mother till he was twenty-four. Be- 
sides attending the district school, he went to 
the academy in Lima; but of course his time 
was mostly engrossed by the demands of the 
farm. In 1861 he came into possession of a 
portion of the home farm, where he still re- 
sides; and he also has the oversight of another 
farm, belonging to his wife, whom he married 
in 1861, at the age of twenty-four, just as the 
election of Abraham Lincoln was made an 
excuse for the secession of Southern States. 
Mrs. William A. Green's maiden name was 
Mary Van Doren. Her father, William Van 
Doren, was a native of West Sparta; but the 
Van Doren family removed to Xunda, and 
were there at the time of Mary's birth, she 
being one of their two children. Father Van 
Doren, however, returned to West Sparta, 
where he died in 1889. From this marriage 
have come four children. William B. Green, 
born in 1863, lives in the same town with his 
parents. He married Minnie Strivings, of 
Mount Morris, and has three children — May, 
Marion, and Chester Green. Cora May 
Green, born in 1865, became the wife of 
William Murphy, a West Spartan farmer, and 
has two children — Ethlyn and Eleanor. Don 
V. Green, the third child and second son, 
born in the year 1869, is unmarried, and lives 
with his parents, a very manly young man, 
respected very much by all who make his ac- 
quaintance. Leo Green, born in 1884, is the 
youngest of the family, and still remains on 
the farm. The three elder children were all 
normal school students at Geneseo, and were 
very successful teachers in district schools. 

Mr. Green has been Road Commissioner 
several years and a Justice of Peace. In 1886 
he was elected Supervisor, and again in 1894 
for a term of two years. He has always been 
a consistent supporter of the Republican 
party. In religion he, with his excellent com- 
panion, has followed his father's and her 
father's excellent Methodist footsteps; and 
since 1879 he has been the faithful and effi- 
cient superintendent of the Sunday-school, 
from which he has received many tokens of 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



279 



high regard. In both politics and the church 
Mr. Green is prominent and influential, and 
would indorse the declaration of the great 
essayist, Addison — 

"There is nothing which favors and falls in 
with the natural greatness and dignity of 
human nature so much as religion, which does 
not only promise the entire refinement of the 
mind, but the glorifying of the body and the 
immortality of both." 




ARTIX P. ANDREWS, an influ- 
ential and esteemed resident of 
Perry, Wyoming County, N.Y., 
was born in that town in August, 
1817. He is a son of Mark and Dolly (Mc- 
Intyre) Andrews, and grandson of I\Iajor 
Mark and Ruth (Parris) Andrews. His 
grandfather was born in Taunton, Mass., in 
1760, and when a young man removed to Au- 
gusta, Me., where he was a merchant for some 
years. While there he was united in mar- 
riage to Ruth Parris, a native of ]\Iaine, 
whose brother, Albion K. Parris, was Gov- 
ernor from 1822 to 1S27, and was the Comp- 
troller of the United States Treasury under 
President Jackson. Major Mark Andrews 
was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. In 
1816 he came to Wyoming County, New 
York, and purchased for his son Mark one 
hundred and twenty acres of land in the town 
of Perry, situated two miles west of Perry 
Centre. The farm is now owned by C. Wat- 
rous. Major Andrews with his wife went 
back to Maine, but after a number of years 
returned to Perry, bought thirty acres of land 
north of the village, and built a house, which 
he occupied till his death. May 16, 1S48. 
He reared six children. 

His son Mark was born in Turner, Me., 
November 13, 1786. He was a pioneer in 
Perry, where he improved his farm, and be- 
came a citizen of prominence. He and his 
wife reared a family of three children — Mar- 
tin P., Samuel M., and Joseph C. Mark 
Andrews died May 19, 1856, and his wife, 
Dolly, February 23, 1863. 

Martin P. Andrews received a limited edu- 
cation, but, being fond of reading, has be- 



come a well-informed man. He purchased 
sixty-two and one-half acres of improved land 
at West Perry, and on November 8, 1843, 
married Mary Hunt, who was born in Grove- 
land, Livingston County, April 28, 1824, 
daughter of Elijah and Mary (Ogden) Hunt. 
She died July 21, 1866, leaving one child, 
Parris, two others, Helen and Charles, having 
died previously. On March 21, 1867, Mr. 
Andrews was married for the second time to 
Mrs. Diana (Ogden) Norton, who was born 
April 21, 1816, and died February 27, 1888. 
On July II of the same year he married his 
present wife, Abigail Bathrick, born in Perry, 
June 9, 1839, daughter of Elias and Clarissa 
(Ward) Bathrick. Elias Bathrick was born 
in Litchfield, Herkimer County, N.Y., April 
26, 1800, and Clarissa Ward in New ^larl- 
boro, Mass., April 3, 1803. They were mar- 
ried on January 3, 1828, and reared six 
children — Charlotte, born August 25, 1829; 
Linus, born September 2, 1832, who married 
Sarah E. Fitch; Lorain, born July 7, 1834, 
who married for her first husband William 
Corner, now deceased ; Martha, who died at 
the age of four years; Abigail, born June 9, 
1S39; and William R., born June 9, 1842, 
who married Mancie Bratt. Martin P. An- 
drews moved to Perry in 1884, and now lives 
in retirement. He has been a member of the 
]\Iethodist church for sixty-two years, and 
takes an active interest in church affairs, also 
in schools and all matters relating to edu- 
cation. 

Parris Andrews, his only surviving child, 
was born in Perry, February 23, 1845, and 
educated in the schools of Perry and Lima 
Seminary. At the age of twenty-three years 
he married Elida A. Abell, a native of the 
same town, born August 23, 1843, daughter 
of Alfred and y\.bigail (Kent) Abell, and 
grand-daughter of Benjamin and Lydia 
(Thatcher) Abell, who came from Connecticut 
to Canandaigua County, New York, and from 
thence to Perrv, where they were among the 
early settlers. They passed through the usual 
vicissitudes of a pioneer's life, clearing their 
land and residing in a log house until cir- 
cumstances enabled them to provide a more 
comfortable home. They reared ten children 



28o 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



■ — Asa, Lindon, Maria, Elizabeth, Lorenzo, 
Alfred, Lydia, Mary A., Benjamin, and Eras- 
tus. Grandfather Abell died at the age of 
eighty-three, and the grandmother at eighty- 
five. 

Alfred Abell, father of Mrs. Parris An- 
drews, was born in Vermont, June 7, 1808, 
and came to New York State with his father. 
On coming into possession of the old home- 
stead, he renovated the buildings, and made 
many general improvements. At the age of 
thirty-two he married Abigail Kent, who was 
born in Boston, Mass., October 23, 1821. Of 
their seven children only two are now liv- 
ing — Fllida and Merrit. The latter married 
Myrtle B. Mason, and resides at Bliss, Wy- 
oming County. Alfred Abell died at the age 
of eighty-three. Mr. and Mrs. Parris An- 
drews have one daughter, Florence M., born 
December 28, 1874. He owns a farm of 
ninety-three acres at West Perry, with large 
and well-appointed barns and other buildings, 
and has twelve acres, upon which he culti- 
vates Niagara grapes. He is a Republican in 
politics, and both himself and wife are mem- 
bers of the Methodist church. 



of 



-OHN OTIS BAILEY, a farmer residing 
in the town of Leicester, Livingston 
County, N.Y., was born in Yorkshire, 
England, July 16, 1830, and was the 
John Bailey, and Mary Mays Bailey, 
both natives of England. Mr. John Bailey 
resided in his native land till 1832, when 
with his wife and only child he came to 
America, crossing the ocean in a small sail- 
ing-vessel, and landing in Canada. He lived 
in Toronto for one year, and then coming 
from there to Buffalo, N.Y., for a time fol- 
lowed his trade of bricklayer and stone-mason, 
and then formed a partnership with a plas- 
terer and paper-hanger. These two branches 
of business were conducted by the firm until 
1842, when Mr. Bailey's death occurred. 

John Otis Bailey was but seven years old 
when his mother died and but twelve when 
his father passed away, and so was left thus 
early in life to the care of strangers. He first 
made his home with Dr. Lee, with whom he 



went to Clay County, Illinois, making the 
journey with a wagon and two horses, as this 
was before railroads extended to the West. 
He remained with Dr. Lee one year, and then 
entered the employ of Mr. Virden at Hen- 
derson Cross-roads, Macoupin County, 111., 
where he remained until nineteen years of 
age, when he went to Ohio, and was employed 
on a farm at Middletown, afterward holding 
a position on the Toledo and Cincinnati 
Canal. He was in Ohio for about two years, 
at the end of which time he returned to Illi- 
nois, drove the stage for two years between 
Springfield, Peoria, and other points, and then 
entered the employ of the Chicago & Alton 
Railroad as fireman. Having remained in 
this capacity for two years, he resigned to 
accept the position of engineer on the Alton 
& Terre Haute Railroad, later known as the 
Indianapolis & St. Louis Railroad, and now 
as the "Big Four." He ran an engine on 
that road between St. Louis and Litchfield 
until i860, when he resigned his position, 
came to Leicester, N.Y., and settled on the 
farm upon which he has since resided. 

In December, 1859, Mr. Bailey married 
Cornelia S. Dunham, adopted daughter of 
Daniel and Jane McKee. They have si.x chil- 
dren—Frank, Henry, Mary, William, Cora, 
and Nettie. The varied experiences of Mr. 
Bailey have given him a wide knowledge of 
men, and he is all the more capable of enjoy- 
ing the rest and quiet afforded by life on a 
farm. 



/37e0RGE F. LUCAS, an enterprising 
V 'S I surveyor and civil engineer of the 
town of Castile, Wyoming County, 
N.Y., was born in that pleasant locality, 
April g, 1834. He is a son of Francis Lucas 
and Susan (Center) Lucas, grandson of Joseph 
and Hannah (Van Ness) Lucas, and great- 
grandson of Francis Lucas, a farmer who li\'ed 
and died at White Creek, Washington County. 
Joseph Lucas, son of Francis, grew up and 
married in his native town. At the close of 
the Revolutionary War he was the driver of a 
supply wagon. He was a Whig in politics, 
and both he and his wife were members of the 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



281 



Methodist church at its formation in Castile. 
In their later years they came to East Gaines- 
ville, Wyoming County, and purchased their 
son's farm, the family residence, now known as 
the Walker House. Joseph Lucas lived to be 
seventy-two years old, and his wife to the age 
of eighty years. Their children were twelve 
in number; and all grew to mature years, 
being named respectively Benjamin, f'rancis, 
Peter, Hamilton, Alexander, Almond D., 
James H., Alida M., Sophronia, Eliza, 
Evelyn, and Effie. 

Francis, the second son, and father of 
George F., the chief character of this narra- 
tive, was born at White Creek, Washington 
County, in December, 1801. He attended 
the district school, and later learned the trade 
of dressing cloth, carrying on this industry 
independently till the year 1827, when he left 
the north-eastern part of the State and came 
to East Gainesville, now known as Silver 
Springs, where he bought a farm of sixty 
acres, and built a house, barn, and store. In 
1829 he came to Castile, purchased a farm in 
this town, and took charge of the clothing 
business here one season, being associated 
with Mr. Hurd, who was one of the first two 
settlers of Castile village. Mr. Hurd built 
the Sayre House, which Francis Lucas and 
his wife opened, and carried on for a year 
as a hotel, in 1839. Mr. Lucas then returned 
to his farm, where he resided till 1853, when 
he retired from business altogether. He was 
a decided Whig in politics, and held the 
ofifice of Overseer of the Poor, and was also 
Highway Commissioner. He was married 
to Susan Center, who was born in the vicinity 
of White Creek, October 12, 1806, her par- 
ents having been early settlers of that section. 
Her father was a farmer of advanced ideas for 
those times, and was a sturdy patriot. He 
was in the battle of Bennington during the 
Revolutionary War, that famous field being 
not far distant from White Creek. Of course, 
it was inevitable that every true-hearted 
farmer in that neighborhood — Mr. Center 
among them — who could carry arms should 
take part in so memorable an engagement, and 
win a share of the glory of that day's victory. 
Both Mr. Center and his wife lived to ad- 



ranced age. The children of Francis and 
Susan Lucas were four in number, one daugh- 
ter and three sons — Mary E., born August 
23, 1826, whose marriage was to John M. 
Chace, who died June 27, 1851, leaving one 
child, J. Wilbur Chace, who died at Red 
Oak, la., in August, 1890, leaving three chil- 
dren; Henry S., born July 22, 1829, who 
married Jennie Onderdonk, and makes his 
home in Castile, they having no children; 
and George F., of whom this account is given. 
Having been educated at Macedon Academy 
and at the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, Mr. 
George F. Lucas on attaining his majority 
bought ninety acres of land in the town of 
Genesee Falls, and began the life of a farmer. 
He lived on the farm five years, remodelled 
the entire buildings connected with it, then 
sold out and bought two farms of one hundred 
and forty acres, adjoining the Castile station. 
The house and barns on this place he im- 
proved in like manner, and erected on the 
land a blacksmith-shop and a wagon-shop, 
both of which he rented. Besides these he 
built a warehouse, and he was the first resi- 
dent of the locality to open a general market 
for the sale of produce in the town. Mr. 
Lucas continued in his various undertakings 
for the improvement of the place till 1867, 
when he bought the home he at present occu- 
pies, and at the same time engaged in the 
hardware business in Castile, which he con- 
tinued for thirteen years. Since then he has 
been mainly occupied as a civil engineer and 
surveyor, and for the past five years has been 
manufacturing surveyors" steel tapes, an in- 
vention of his own. He is much interested in 
the growth and development of the country, 
and has a large collection of maps of different 
villages. 

Mr. Lucas was married March i, 1855, to 
Miss Amanda Wallace, who was born May 25, 
1839, in the town of Pike, daughter of Noah 
and Mary (Grimes) Wallace. They have two 
children — Minnie E., born F"ebruary 6, i860, 
who resides with her parents, and is a teacher 
in the Castile Union School; and Thomas W., 
born February 22, 1870, now married to Mer- 
tie M. Dreutlien, and living at Meadville, 
Pa. Mr. Lucas, as a man of progressive 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ideas, good executive ability, and of enerijetic 
character, has a strong influence in the town 
which he has sought to benefit, and where his 
qualifications have not been overlooked. He 
has held the office of Overseer of the Toor 
four different terms. Mr. Lucas is a member 
of Oakland Lodge, No. 379, A. F. & A. M., 
Steuben Chapter, No. loi, and DeMolay 
Conimanderv, No. 22. 




NUKEW IIOLLKXBECK., an enter- 
prising Livingston County farmer, 
noted for breeding fine carriage 
horses, was born in Caledonia, 
April 15, .1S34. and has resided from his 
birth on the old homestead estate, which is 
one of the finest and best-equipped farms in 
a famous farming region. He was named 
after his father, who was also a native of New- 
York. His grandfather, John HoUenbeck, 
who was a native of Holland, was one of the 
earliest settlers in the interior of the Empire 
State. He did his full sh.are toward clear- 
ing the vast tracts covered by virgin forests, 
and died in Montgomery County. 

The onlv child reared by him was Andrew 
HoUenbeck. Sr., who was born in Mont- 
gomer}- County, and resided there until he 
reached the age of fourteen years, when he 
removed to Genesee County. He made the 
journev in wagons, accompanied by an uncle: 
and at that time the journey from ^Iontgomer^- 
to Livingston County was really more of an 
undertaking than a trip from New York to 
San Francisco is to-day. The so-called 
"roads" were roads in little more than name. 
The countn.- was infested with wild animals, 
some of which were as sa\-age as they were 
wild; and it was dangerous as well as de- 
cidedlv inconvenient to take a long journey. 
But our ancestors accepted as a matter of 
course many things that would seem to us to 
be quite unbearable; and by combining cour- 
age, strength, and fixed determination they 
made the wilderness "blossom like a rose," 
and prepared the way for their fortunate 
descendants. 

When the father of our subject arrived in 
Livingston County, he was just "even with 



the world " ; that is to say, he owed nothing, 
and he owned nothing excepting a pair of 
strong arms, a knowledge of farming and of 
woodcraft, an industrious and enterprising 
spirit, and a strong fund of common sense. 
For a number of years he "worked out," be- 
coming acquainted with the country and sav- 
ing money at the same time. Then he bought 
a very slightly improved farm, lived on it a 
few years, improved it further, and at length 
sold out at a decided ad\'ance on the original 
cost. This practice he continued, buying 
wild tracts of land, improving them, and sell- 
ing out at an advance, until finally he bought 
the farm upon which his son Andrew resides, 
where he remained until his death in 1854. 
The maiden name of his wife, mother of our 
subject, was Prudence Lusher. She was a 
Connecticut girl by birth, but her parents 
were early settlers in the vicinity of Scotts- 
ville. Monroe County, N.Y., where they re- 
mained the rest of their lives. Mrs. Prudence 
Lusher HoUenbeck died in 18S0. She reared 
eleven children, their names being Lewis, 
John, Aaron, Moses, Jane, Walter, Andrew, 
Henry, Ellen, Homer, Roxanna. Otis, the 
eighth child, died young. 

Andrew HoUenbeck, who was twenty years 
old when his father died, worked on the farm 
from the beginning, and finally succeeded to 
its ownership. He was married in 1870 to 
Miss Mary N. Moore: and two children have 
been bom to the couple — Hattie Chase 
(^Chase being the maiden name of Mrs. Hol- 
lenbeck's mother) and Harr}- Bell. Hattie 
Chase HoUenbeck is now the wife of Dr. Mc- 
Clellan. of Canandaigua. 

The HoUenbeck farm is one of the finest in 
the county, and the buildings are worthy of 
the farm. In 1893 Mr. HoUenbeck erected a 
bam eighty feet in length, thirty-six feet in 
breadth, and twenty-four feet in height, ex- 
clusive of a nine-foot basement. In arrange- 
ment and in equipment this structure leaves 
practically nothing to be desired; for it com- 
bines "all the modern improvements," and 
ever)thing in and about it is strictly first 
class. Mr. HoUenbeck inherited a taste for 
fine horses, and as a horse breeder has found 
both pleasure and profit, for such animals as 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



283 



he raises find a ready market when there is 
any demand whatever for good horses. 




|AJOR WALTER B. TALLMAX, 
an esteemed resident of Perry, 
N.Y., and a veteran of the Civil 
War, was born in the adjoining 
town of Castile, Februarj' 27, 1844. He is 
the son of Captain Elias and Cynthia (Matt- 
son) Tallman, and grandson of Giles and Bet- 
sey Tallman, who began their married life on 
a farm in Dutchess County in 18 16. 

Giles Tallman subsequently moved with his 
family and household goods to Castile, mak- 
ing the journey in a wagon over a rough coun- 
tr)'. He purchased one hundred and twenty 
acres of wild land, situated on the west side 
of Silver Lake: and here they dwelt for a 
time in a log house. 

Grandfather Tallman cleared and improved 
his farm, upon which he resided the remain- 
der of his life, dying at the age of fifty. His 
wife, who sur^'ived him, reached the advanced 
age of ninety-five, and reared a family of six 
children — -Elias, Amon, Marj- A., Harriet, 
Clarinda, and Charles. 

Elias, his first son, was bom in Delhi, 
Delaware County, in 1816. At an earl)- age 
he commenced farming, and followed it dur- 
ing his entire life. He married Cynthia, 
daughter of Jeremiah Mattson, who came from 
Vermont in 1828, and settled in the town of 
Castile, where he became a ver)' prosperous 
farmer. He died at the age of seventy-four; 
and his wife at seventy-five. He was a 
Whig and later a Republican in politics. He 
was Captain of a local artillerj' company and 
always interested in town affairs, having held 
several offices. Both himself and wife were 
members of the Baptist church in Castile. 
F"our children sur\'ived them — Albert W'., 
Walter B., Laveme ^deceased), and Ellen. 
Albert W. married Cynthia Howard, and re- 
sides in Osage, la., where he is engaged in 
mercantile business. He has one child, Mar- 
jorie. He has been Inspector-general and 
Postmaster a number of years, and was Ser- 
geant-major of the First New York Dragoons, 
receiving a Captain's commission at the close 



of the war. Laveme married Milo B. Welds, 
of Arcade. She died at the age of forty- 
three, leaving five children — Gertie, Ernest 
T., Clinton, Albert, Lowell. Ellen, who 
married George Morse, resides at Perry, hav- 
ing two children — Clara and Walter. 

Walter B. Tallman, the subject of this 
sketch, was educated in the common schools, 
and at the age of nineteen discarded his school 
books for the cartridge box, and enlisted in 
Company H, Eighth New York Heavy Artil- 
lery, but in 1864 was transferred to Company 
G, Fourth Heavy Artillery. He was dis- 
charged September 16, 1865, as non-commis- 
sioned officer, having been engaged in a 
number of prominent battles, as Spottsyl- 
vania, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, Crow"s Nest, 
Five Forks, Ream's Station, Hatch's Run, 
and several others, up to Lee's surrender. 
Returning home, he assumed charge of his 
father's farm, which he carried on until 1884. 
In 1867 he married Harriet A. Sowerby, who 
was born August 13, 1848, daughter of John 
and Jane Sowerby, a sketch of whom appears 
elsewhere in this work. 

Mr. and Mrs. Tallman have two children — 
Albert W., bom Februar)' 17, 1871 ; and 
Harry Elias, bom June 18, 1890. The for- 
mer received his education at the Aurora 
Militar)- School and the Buffalo Business Col- 
lege. After completing his studies, he en- 
tered the hardware business at Perry. On 
September 5, 1894, he was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Nellie Bartholomy. 

In 1884 Mr. and Mrs. Tallman purchased a 
house and lot in Perr)-, which was a part of 
the old Bailey estate. They made many addi- 
tions and improvements to this, and now have 
a very fine residence situated on Main Street. 
In 1886 he and his family visited the Pacific 
Coast, making an extensive tour in Califomia; 
and later Mr. Tallman engaged in the fruit 
business, spending a year in California. Mrs. 
Tallman is a member of the Baptist church. 
Mr. Tallman is one of the original founders 
of the John P. Robinson Post, No. loi. Grand 
Army of the Republic, of Peny. He was Post 
Commander three years, and is now Adjutant. 
He has held several town offices while in Cas- 
tile, and manifests a great interest in all 



284 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



affairs relative to the welfare of the commu- 
nity in which he resides. Mr. Tallman has 
been a Notary Public for eighteen years, and 
has also been honored with the appointment 
of Aide-de-camp on the Department staff, 
holding the position at the present time, with 
the rank of Colonel. He has likewise been 
Village Trustee, and is at present member of 
the Board of Health. Mr. Tallman is a thor- 
ough military man, having sprung from a mil- 
itary family. 



/^K 



KORGE K. WHITNEY, a retired 
t l^jT farmer residing in Geneseo, N.Y., 
^ — '" was born in the town of Pavilion, 
Genesee County, April 8, 1838. His father, 
George W. Whitney, was a native of Pitts- 
field, Mass. His grandfather, Joshua Whit- 
ney, was for many years a resident of that 
old town, where he carried on a foundry and 
the making of guns and anchors. In time he 
moved with his son, George W. Whitney, to 
Pavilion, and went from there to Toledo, 
Ohio, where he remained until his death. 

George W. Whitney was brought up to the 
trade of farrier and blacksmith. He gave up 
that employment after a time, and went to 
York, Livingston County, where he purchased 
a farm, and carried on its cultivation for a 
long period, but finally disposed of it, to set- 
tle in the village, where his death occurred 
after he had reached the age of eighty-two 
years. His second wife was the mother of 
George K. Whitney. Her maiden name was 
Mary Keyes, and she was a native of Genesee 
County. Their children were three in num- 
ber — George K., Edward F., and Caroline, 
who married John E. Gilmore, of Howell, 
Mich. Mrs. Mary Keyes Whitney spent her 
last years at the old homestead, and died there 
at the age of fifty-four years. Both parents 
were members of the Congregational church. 

George K. Whitney spent his early years 
on the farm at York. He attended the dis- 
trict school, and in time was advanced to a 
school in Geneseo, and later to the Wyoming 
Academy. When twenty-six years of age, he 
purchased a farm in York, on which he re- 
mained one year. Then having an opportunity 



of purchasing the Geneseo River Mill, he took 
possession, and carried on the business con- 
nected with it for some time; but later he 
bought a farm in York, and settled down in a 
pleasant home there, conducting the various 
interests which belong to the cultivation of a 
prosperous farm. Mr. Whitney was married 
in 1864 to Miss Jane R. Stewart, a daughter 
of Neil Stewart, a well-known farmer of York, 
and a member of one of the old families of 
that town. Mrs. Whitney is one of a family 
of ten children, of whom nine are still living. 
Mr. and Mrs. Whitney have three children, 
namely: Mary S., who married Myron Bow, 
son of Lysander Bow, of the town of York; 
Jennie N., who married James Gilmore, son 
of Thomas Gilmore, of Geneseo; and Walter 
W., who married Olive Sherwood, daughter of 
Ora Sherwood. Mr. George K. Whitney is a 
Republican in political principles. He is a 
Trustee of the village, a Highway Commis- 
sioner of the town and of York also. 



/©> 



i:ORGE W. FARMAN, a lumber 
\ '*) I dealer and farmer of Gainesville, was 
born in the western part of this town, 
April 7, 1845. His father, Charles D. Far- 
man, was born November 20, 1820, in New 
Haven, Oswego County, N.Y. , where his 
grandfather, Zadock Farman, who was born in 
1791, spent the later years of a life of useful 
activity. He was a farmer. Zadock F'arman 
was married in 1814 to Martha Di.x, a native 
of Wethersfield, Conn., daughter of Charles 
Dix, a descendant in the fourth generation of 
Leonard Dix, an early settler of that town. 
She was the mother of six children — Saman- 
tha, deceased; Charles D. ; Henry; ¥.. E. 
P'arman, a judge of Warsaw; Samuel A. ; and 
one who died an infant. For further facts in 
relation to this family see "Biographical 
Commentary of American Biography," pub- 
lished in 1893. 

Charles D. P'arman was reared to agricult- 
ural pursuits upon his father's farm. He 
received his education at the district schools, 
and, having learned the trade of rope-making 
by hand in a rope-walk, established himself in 
that business at Gainesville, where he died in 




S. TRUMAN SHORT. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



287 



1889, January 7, at sixty-eight years of age, 
having moved there in 1844. At one time he 
was Super\isor of the town. His wife was 
Lydia Wright, daughter of Peter Wright, of 
Oswego, who was captain of a tug-boat. She 
had four children — -George W. , the subject of 
this sketch ; Phoebe Samantha, who married 
Frank Page, of Wethersfield, now deceased ; 
Elbert H. ; and Charles W. Farman. The 
mother died in Gainesville, May 7, i888, at 
si.xty-three years of age. 

George W. Farman passed his early years 
in Gainesville, where he was reared by his 
father to agricultural pursuits. After passing 
through the district schools, he attended the 
Warsaw Academy and Pike Seminary. On at- 
taining his majority, he left home and engaged 
in the manufacture of cheese, which he con- 
tinued for some years. After leaving this 
business, he settled at his present home in 
Gainesville, a very pleasant and comfortable 
residence, situated upon a hill overlooking the 
village. In 1879 he engaged in the lumber 
business, which he has conducted ever since. 
In 1 867 Mr. Farman was united in marriage to 
Carrie M. Shaver, daughter of Jabez Shaver, 
of Oneida County, town of Western, where her 
father was a farmer and cheese-maker. She 
was an only daughter. Her father died at the 
age of sixty-five, at her home in Gainesville, 
where her mother also died at the age of fifty- 
seven. Her parents were highly estimable 
people, and were members of the Universalist 
church. 

Mr. Farman is a member of the Ancient 
Order of United Workmen. He is a Repub- 
lican in politics, and has been Collector and 
Town Clerk several terms. Both himself and 
wife are attendants of the Pre.sbyterian church. 
Mr. Farman 's ancestors were always prominent 
in the community where they resided, his 
father having been an influential citizen, and a 
man of much worth. He himself has ser\'ed 
the community in many ways. He has been 
a very active and successful business man, 
with a reputation for honesty and fair dealing. 
He enjoys the blessings and comforts of a 
home situated in a most healthful locality 
and furnished with modern improvements and 
luxuries. 




ENECA TRUMAX SHORT was 
born in the town of Richmond, On- 
tario County, N. Y., on the 19th of 
November, 1 829. He is a grandson 
of Manasseh Short, and a son of Josiah Short, 
who, in connection with his cousin Daniel, 
bought of Sylvester Wheeler a tract of land 
containing two hundred and five acres in close 
proximity to a village known on the old maps 
as Jacksonville. This little town was at that 
time very prosperous. It contained a large 
flour-mill, the product of which at a later 
period was conveyed to market by canal, a 
woollen factory, where wool was carded and 
cloth was dressed, a whiskey distiller}', a 
cooper's shop, blacksmith- shop, and a store 
kept by Mr. Ichabod A. Holden, besides a 
number of residences. Propert)' in the vicin- 
ity of so thriving a village was, of course, val- 
uable ; and the owners of such property found 
ready market for whatever farm produce they 
had to offer to the public. (For further infor- 
mation of Josiah Short, see sketch of J. C. 
Short. ) 

The estate of S. Truman Short, covering an 
area of one hundred and ninety acres, occupies 
the site of the once flourishing village of Jack- 
sonville, which is a commentary on the 
changes consequent to traffic and commerce. 
Mr. Short was educated in the district schools 
of Livonia, Living.ston County, and was a 
teacher in the vicinity for eight winters. He 
taught also for a year in Michigan. He owned 
a farm at Honeoye Lake, which he sold after 
five years, returning then to Livonia. When 
the Civil War broke out, and almost tvtry 
able-bodied man accustomed to work in the 
fields had shouldered a musket and enlisted as 
a soldier, he remained at home to care for his 
father and manage the farm. He finally 
bought his father's estate, which he greatly 
improved by new buildings and by handsome 
additions to the dwelling. 

Mr. S. Truman Short married Miss Delia 
M. Stevens, the daughter of Jesse and Delia 
(Kellogg) Stevens, of Sheffield, Mass. Mr. 
Stevens's family was one of the earliest who 
settled this section from Massachusetts. His 
father kept an inn at Honeoye Flats, and the 
farm he owned there is still in possession of 



288 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



the Stevens family. Mr. and Mrs. Short have 
four children — Jane C, Delia S. , Mary A., 
and Ernest T. Jane is the wife of Mr. Ellis 
Stone, and is the mother of two sons — How- 
ard and Truman. Delia, now Mrs. Orael Ma- 
comber, lives in Lima, and has two children 
— Hazel and Lee. Mary married Dr. F. A. 
Wicker, of Hemlock Lake. Ernest married 
Bernice Smith, and lives on the father's farm, 
which he assists in managing. 

Mr. Short has held for three years the office 
of Assessor in Livonia. He cast his first 
Presidential vote for John C. Fremont in 
1856, and since that time has been a faithful 
adherent of the Republican party. 

On another page of this volume is a portrait 
which will be recognized as a very good like- 
ness of Seneca Truman Short, of the foregoing 
biography. 



'\ ir 



HEODORE W". LAWRENCE, a dealer 
in ready-made clothing, boots, shoes, 
and gentlemen's furnishings, in the 
village of Bliss, Wyoming County, N. Y. , was 
born in Athens, Medford County, Pa., on 
March 6, 1849. His grandfather and father 
were both natives of that State. His father, 
John Lawrence, was married to Miss Amelia 
Hulett, of Athens, Pa., a daughter of Samuel 
Hulett. Her father was a farmer, who had a 
family of thirteen children, only four of whom 
are now living. There were three children 
born to Mr. and Mrs. John Lawrence — Peter; 
Mary, who married Mr. David Hadlock ; and 
Theodore. Their mother died in W'arsaw, 
aged fifty-seven years. 

Theodore Lawrence, who was bereft of his 
father's protection when he was an infant, 
lived on his grandfather's farm until he was 
fifteen years old. He then began working on 
the neighboring farms, attending meanwhile 
the district schools when farm work was dull. 
In 1870 he secured employment for a season in 
a cheese factory, after which he again came 
back to the old routine of agricultural life. 
In 1874 he took a farm on shares; and a year 
later he purchased a farm of one hundred acres 
situated in the town of Eagle, two miles south 
of the village of Bliss. Four years of steady 



work and close economy had its reward, and 
found Mr. Lawrence free of the debt incurred 
by the purchase of his estate and possessing 
besides fifty additional acres. Here he re- 
mained until 1887, when he came to Bliss, 
where he entered into a partnership with Mr. 
J. J. Bliss, who kept a large store of general 
merchandise. This partnership continued for 
two years, when Mr. Lawrence set up the com- 
plete gentlemen's furnishing establishment he 
has since so successfully conducted. 

Mr. Lawrence was married November 18, 
1870, to Miss Emma Hurlburt. The lady's 
father was a farmer in Eagle, and was a repre- 
sentative of one of the families who settled in 
this locality in the early days of its history. 
She was one of nine children, only one of 
whom has died. One child, a daughter Myr- 
tle, crowned and sanctified the union of Mr. 
and Mrs. Lawrence. This daughter is the 
wife of ]\Ir. Lynn Hanks, a cheese-maker in 
Centreville, so that the parents are in the after- 
math of their married life, living over their 
' ' honeymoon. 

Mr. Lawrence belongs to the Masonic Lodge 
of Pike, the chaplain of which performed his 
marriage ceremony the Tuesday following his 
initiation into the order. He has for three 
terms been Master of the Ancient Order of 
L^nited Workmen, and has been a representa- 
tive to the Grand Lodge as many times. He 
has been Constable and Assessor in Eagle, and 
has filled both oflFices satisfactorily. In relig- 
ion Mr. Lawrence inclines to the Baptist faith, 
but is liberal in his interpretation of doctrines. 
As to politics he is a loyal Democrat. 




AMUEL A. HOWE, a retired farmer 
of Livingston County, residing in 
the village of Springwater, has been 
intimately identified with the agri- 
cultural and business interests of this part of 
the Empire State for upward of half a century, 
and has been an able assistant in elevating its 
educational, financial, and religious status. A 
man of broad and generous impulses, progres- 
sive and public-spirited, with a heart overflow- 
ing with kindness and sympathy, he has well 
been called one of Nature's noblemen, and is 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



289 



entitled to the esteem and respect universally 
accorded him. A son of New England, he 
claims Boston, the Athens of America, as the 
place of his birth, which occurred July i, 
1807. The following narrative is all the 
more interesting from being largely autobio- 
giaphical. 

John Howe, tradition says, was a son of a 
relative of Lord Howe, of War\vickshire, 
England. He lived in Sudbury, Mass., in 
1638, and was Selectman for several years. 
He removed to Marlborough with his family 
in 1657. He had almost unlimited influence 
over the Indians near whom he lived, and was 
a chosen umpire in their quarrels. He re- 
ceived frequent appointments on important 
commissions by the Colonial government. Of 
his twelve children, nine were married; and 
their posterity spread throughout the United 
States. Abraham Howe settled in Ro.xbur}', 
Mass., in 1638, and died in 1676. James 
Howe .settled in Ro.xburj- in 1637, and died in 
1702. Daniel Howe settled in Lynn in 1634, 
and removed to Long Island in 1641. Edward 
Howe, of Lynn, came over in the "Truelove, " 
and died in 1637. Some of his children went 
to New Haven, Conn., and had large families. 
My grandfather, Isaac Howe, with his two 
brothers, owned adjoining farms in Dorchester, 
Mass., and were farmers. He was born June 
26, 1755, married Sarah Wiswall, November 
7, 1776, was the father of si.x sons and three 
daughters, and died September i, 1830. His 
wife died December 3, 1840. Samuel Howe, 
son of Isaac and father of .Samuel A., was 
reared to man's estate on the farm of his par- 
ents, remaining at home until he became of 
age. Then, filled with the same ambitious 
spirit that leads the fanner lads of the present 
day to change their country homes for a city 
life, he went to Boston, where he subsequently 
engaged for many years with his brother Jacob 
in the shoe and leather business, under the 
firm name of S. &. J. Howe. His last years 
were .spent in the suburban town of Dorches- 
ter, which is now included within the city 
limits of Boston. On October 23, 1803, he 
married Eunice, daughter of Edward Withing- 
ton, whose ancestry is traced to the Duke of 
Norfolk in England. His father and grand- 



father settled in Massachusetts, and had large 
families. Edward Withington had six sons 
and four daughters. Some of their children 
are now living — three in Springwater, N.Y., 
and one in Saginaw, Mich. He died August 
14, 1826. My father had two sons and seven 
daughters, three of whom are now living — 
Samuel A., Jonathan, and Martha L. In 
1830 he was appointed Inspector General of 
sole leather for the State of Massachusetts, 
which office he held until his death. A few 
years previous he had removed with his family 
to Dorchester, where he died December 27, 
1848, aged seventy years. His wife died Feb- 
Tuary 9, 1843. Here follows an extract from 
the record of St. Anthony's Lodge: — 

"He joined the chapter September 24, 
1 806 ; became honorary member Februarj' 3, 
1830; was Trea.surer from 1812 to 181 8, in- 
clusive; Secretar}', 1819 and 1820. He suc- 
ceeded Companion John J. Loring as Grand 
Secretary of the Grand Royal Arch Chapter in 
September, 1824, which office he held fifteen 
years. Companion Howe was an honest, up- 
right, consistent, faithful, true-,hearted Mason, 
always held in esteem and respect. . . . He, 
as Captain, with his company was stationed on 
Castle Island, Boston Harbor, several months 
during the War of 181 2." 

Samuel A. Howe went to private schools 
J till twelve years of age, when he entered the 
first high school, then just built, in Boston in 
1820. "After attending that three years, " to 
go on now in his own words, "I went into a 
mercantile house, where I stayed four years, 
until my employer failed and sold out. In 
1827 I left for the island of Cuba, where I was 
clerk six months. I then returned to Boston, 
and made several trips to Cuba and Hayti as 
supercargo; was Captain of brig 'Lucern, ' 
and made several voyages to United States of 
Colombia and to Hayti. In November, 1834, 
I went to Santa Marta, New Granada, as clerk 
in a mercantile house for one year. I then 
returned to Boston; and on Januar)' 26, 1836, 
I married Miss Emeline C. Nichols, daughter 
of Horace E. Nichols, of Middlebury, V't. 
My wife was one of eleven children, two of 
whom are now living — J. J. Nichols, of De- 
troit; and E. A. Nichols, of New York City. 



290 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Her grandfather, Dr. Daniel Howard, of Ben- 
son, Rutland County, Vt. , had a large fam- 
ily. We sailed from Boston, March 7, 1836, 
in the brig 'Robert' for Santa Marta ; and 
there I went into partnership with the house 
in which I was employed in 1834. On March 
26, 1S37, Harriet E. , our eldest daughter, was 
born. Signs of revolution, together with 
e.xisting English blockade, led to our return to 
Boston in June, 1837. 

"In November, 1838, we arrived in this town 
(Springwater), meeting uncles Edward With- 
ington and Parker H. Pierce (whose wife was 
Mr. Withington's sister Hannah), who with 
their families were settled on large farms in 
this valley, having come in from Massachu- 
setts a few years previous. In December I 
bought a farm of one hundred acres, and settled 
thereon in March, 1839. We had si.x children 
— Harriet E. , Mary Elizabeth, Samuel W. , 
Jonathan, Jacob, and Martha L. , two of whom 
are now. living. Harriet E. was married to 
A. B. Purdy, a highly respected flour merchant 
of New York City, September 2, 1867. They 
left soon after for their home in New York. 
He died in 1873, and was brought to this 
place for burial. Mary R. married Professor 
Ballard, of Poultney, Vt., July 21, 1861. She 
died May 9, 1864. Samuel W. died Eebru- 
ary 27, 1868, aged twenty-five years. He had 
a graded-school education, was a church mem- 
ber, and always full of zeal for his own and 
others' good. Jonathan married an accom- 
plished )oung lady of excellent family, Sabra, 
daughter of Daniel Wilco.x, of this town, De- 
cember 21, 1 87 1. She died August 21, 1875, 
leaving a son, Albert W. Martha L. married 
Horace Knowles, of Canadice, December 7, 
1875. Horace died June 20, 1879. Martha 
L. died July 31, 1881, leaving one daughter, 
Hattie Emma, who was born May 11, 1878. 
Jacob died May 27, 1865, aged sixteen years. 
My wife died October 26, 1891. She was a 
devoted Christian, a faithful witness for her 
Saviour for sixty-two years of her life." 

Since 1870 Mr. Howe has been one of the 
Elders and Trustees of the Presbyterian 
church. Through his influence and that of 
other friends of temperance, for the last twenty 
years Springwater has been a no-license town. 



On his partially improved farm Mr. Howe 
worked with the same vim that had charac- 
terized his previous labors, carrying on general 
farming until his retirement from active busi- 
ness in 1889. He placed his farm in a tillable 
and good yielding condition, rendering it one 
of the finest and best-equipped properties in 
the locality. It is now under the capable 
supervision of his son Jonathan, who possesses 
the same qualities of sterling manhood that 
characterized the elder son. The estimable 
Mrs. Purdy ably presides over the household 
affairs. The three families — Howe, With- 
ington, and Nichols — above named may be 
said to have each belonged to a hardy, diligent, 
religious, intelligent, liberal-minded, and 
brave race. All were good citizens, mostly 
church members, and promoters of the best 
interests of society, the present representatives 
being no e.xception. 




"ORACE C. GILBERT, bank President 
if Lima, Livingston County, was 
born in Richmond, Ontario County, 
N. Y. , July 6, 1838, a point of 
time which will be remembered by some of the 
older generation now living as just before the 
banks of the country resinned specie payment. 
Elias Gilbert, grandfather of our subject, was 
a native of Connecticut, but came to Rich- 
mond, N. Y. , among the first settlers in 1799. 
He carried on a successful business there many 
years, being a farmer, tanner, and shoemaker, 
dying at the advanced age of ninety-six, prov- 
ing that the secret of a happy old age is in not 
allowing one's faculties to stagnate. 

His son, Horace Gilbert, the first of the 
family to receive this classic name, was born 
at Richmond, Ontario County, in 1802. He 
bought a farm about a mile from the old 
homestead, upon which he did a great deal of 
hard work, as the land was uncleared. The 
lady whose hand he successfully sought in mar- 
riage, Ann Eliza Carpenter, daughter of Na- 
thaniel Carpenter, was a native of Herkimer 
County, New York, born in 18 10. I\Ir. and 
Mrs. Horace Gilbert had a family of six chil- 
dren — Mary, deceased; Nathaniel; Curtis, de- 
ceased; Horace C. ; Elon, deceased; and 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



2gi 



Elizabeth. The family moved to Lima in 
1857, and remained there until 1859, when 
thev returned to the farm, where the father 
died in 1862. His daughter, Mary Gilbert, 
married Randolph Hopkins, and resided at 
Livonia Station. Her daughter, Llla Hop- 
kins, is the wife of Clarence Alvord, of 
Livonia, and has one son. 

Gilbert Hopkins, Mrs. Randolph Hopkins's 
son, lives in Rochester. Nathaniel Gilbert 
married Francelia Amsden, of Geneseo, 111. ; 
and they have three children — May, Mark, 
and Lora. Curtis Gilbert married Horinda 
Beach, and has three children living — Elon 
B. , Horace S., and Laura. Elizabeth Gilbert 
married Gilbert W. Peck, and resides at Rich- 
mond with three children — Onnolee, Horace 
G. , and George D. The mother, Mrs. Ann E. 
Carpenter Gilbert, aged eighty-four, is still 
living at the home of her daughter Elizabeth. 

Horace C. was educated at Richmond and 
at Lima Seminary, after which he taught one 
term, and then returned to the home farm, 
which he bought of the other heirs after his 
father's death. He remained on the place, 
occupied with its management, until 1875. 
Selling the property, he then came to Lima, 
where he has since resided. He has always 
been prominent in town affairs, serving as vil- 
lage Trustee, Treasurer, and Supervisor, and 
has now been President of the bank for ten 
years. He married, in 1861, Annette Briggs, 
who died in 1863. His second wife was 
P'ranc E. Longyor, the daughter of Henry 
Longyor, of Richmond. Mr. Gilbert has 
always been a Republican, and he and his 
wife are members of the Presbyterian church. 



tLBERT A. ALLEN, who is extensively 
engaged in the lumber business at 
Mount Morris, is a wide-awake and 
^" — ' enterprising representative of the 
industrial interests of this section of Living- 
ston County, of which he is a native, Geneseo 
being the place of his birth, which occurred 
January 22, 1855. His father, William P. 
Allen, a son of Daniel Allen, was born and 
reared to manhood in Saratoga County. In 
1843 he removed to Livingston County, set- 



tling in the town of Portage, where he lived 
for five years. Going thence to Geneseo, he 
embarked in the lumber business there, build- 
ing a saw-mill, where he did custom work for 
some thirteen years. He then formed a co- 
partnership with a Mr. Kindall ; and, removing 
to Piffard, in the same county, they there 
erected a saw-mill, operating it for four years. 
Coming then to Mount Morris, Mr. Allen 
built the mill now owned by his son Albert, 
and, buying a share in the power, carried on a 
large and prosperous business until the time of 
his decease, in 1889, at the age of sixty-eight 
\ears. His wife was Harriet Jones, a daugh- 
ter of Reuben and Sarah A. (Taylor) Jones, of 
Cayuga County. Two children were born of 
their marriage — Oscar and Albert A. The 
former married Miss Ella Williams; and they 
are the parents of three children — Arthur, 
Burton, and Cora. 

Albert A. Allen completed his education in 
the schools of Mount Morris, and subsequently 
entered the employment of his father, from 
whom he acquired a practical knowledge of the 
details of the lumber business, and from whom 
he inherited in a marked degree the business 
ability and tact that have been such potent fac- 
tors in placing him in his present prosperous 
financial condition. On the death of his 
father, Mr. Allen was made executor, and at 
the final settlement of the estate bought out the 
interest of the other heirs in the mill property, 
and has since carried it on with most excellent 
results. He is recognized as being among 
the most active, intelligent, and clear-headed 
business men of the town, and takes a deep 
interest in local affairs. 

Politically, Mr. Allen is a man of decided 
opinions, and casts his vote for the man he 
deems best fitted for the office, irrespective of 
party. His first Presidential vote, cast in 
1876, was for Samuel J. Tilden. Socially, 
he is a member of the Co-operative Insurance 
Company. The pleasant wedded life of Mr. 
Allen and Miss tllla S. Wisner, the daughter 
of Stephen and Hannah (Dalrymple) Wisner, 
began in 1878, and has been blessed by the 
birth of one daughter, Ada. Mrs. Allen is a 
conscientious member of and acti\e worker in 
the Methodist church. 



292 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 




:RY p. GARDNER, Postmaster of 
Attica, Wyoming County, N. Y. , was 
born in Middlebury, in the same 
county, August 15, 1S51, and is of 
patriotic New England ancestry, his great- 
grandfather, Major Gardner, having been an 
officer in the Revolutionary War. He was a 
man of substance as well as a man of marked 
intelligence and great strength of character. 
About the year 1808 Major Gardner, who was 
a farmer in good circumstances in that day, 
removed from Massachusetts to Western New 
York, and became a sturdy pioneer in Attica. 
He was accompanied by his wife and their son 
Asher and family. Major Gardner died at the 
home of his grandson, Patrick R. Gardner, in 
1840, having passed his ninetieth year. 

Asher Gardner was born in Brimfield, 
Mass., in 1780. Having made the journey to 
Attica, transporting his effects by ox team, 
he settled in what was then a wilderness ; and 
here his wife, whose maiden name was Patrick, 
gave birth to the very first white child born in 
this section, whom they named Patrick R. 
Although at first much care and watchfulness 
were necessary, as the woods abounded with 
wild animals, bears and wolves being particu- 
larly numerous and bold, Mr. Gardner suffer- 
ing the loss of a pig which Bruin carried 
away from its pen, in time he became a pros- 
perous farmer. Asher Gardner's brothers, of 
whom there were three, all settled in Attica, 
where they raised families and passed the re- 
mainder of their days. They were : Adolphus, 
a farmer; Roswell, one of the early Sheriffs of 
the county ; and Parley, also a farmer. 

Patrick R. Gardner, who was born in Attica 
in 181 1, married Janette PL. Munger, daughter 
of Hiram and Elsie (Ballon) Munger, who 
came to this region from New England, and 
were among the early settlers. Mrs. Janette 
H Gardner became the mother of eight chil- 
dren, of whom three sons and three daughters 
are still living, namely: Philinda, widow of 
Charles Kriegelstein, of Attica ; Charles Gard- 
ner, of W'arsaw, a sketch of whom appears 
elsewhere in this work; George M. Gardner, 
now a mining superintendent of Great P"alls, 
Mont. ; Ellen, wife of Eugene Hart, a farmer 
of Attica; Henry P., the subject of this 



sketch ; and Mary, who married Ward Griffith, 
of Middlebury. Two daughters died while 
young. The father, Patrick R. Gardner, died 
June 15, 1870. He was a Justice of the Peace 
for many years, and a Republican in politics, 
who never sought for political honors, although 
they were often placed before him. He and 
his wife were members of the Baptist church, 
and were sturdy Christian people. -She died 
in June, 1894, in her seventy-fifth year. 
Their graves are in Brainard Cemeterx', in the 
east part of Attica. 

Henry P. Gardner received but a limited 
education, owing to the meagre school facili- 
ties in the neighborhood of the place of his 
birth. He commenced to assist his father in 
farm work at a very early age ; and at his 
father's death, he being then but seventeen 
years of age, he assumed full charge of the 
one hundred and forty acres which comprised 
the farm. At the age of twenty-one he mar- 
ried Miss Cora Perry, of the town of Bethany, 
Genesee County, the ceremony taking place on 
December 4, 1872. Mrs. Gardner's parents 
were A. G. and Alice (Wait) Perry, her father 
being a very prominent citizen of that county, 
who died in 1893, at the age of eighty-one 
years, leaving a widow and three children. 
Her brothers, George and Milford Perry, are 
millers in the hamlet of Linden. 

Mr. Gardner at twenty-three years of age 
relinquished farm labor and came to Attica 
village, where he served as Deputy Sheriff for 
six years. He then entered the railway postal 
service, running from Syracuse to New York 
City, and later from Cleveland, Ohio, to Syra- 
cuse, continuing in this branch of service for 
ten years. He was appointed Postmaster of 
Attica, April 11, 1891, and is now serving 
his fourth year. Attica being a junction, 
and the distributing point of a large amount of 
mail, the office here is one requiring a good 
deal of business ability; and Mr. Gardner has 
met its demands in every particular, having 
become an expert through long experience, 
proving to be the right man in the right place. 
Personally, he is exceedingly popular with all 
classes. He is a Master Mason, and a Past 
Grand of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows. Both himself and wife attend the 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



293 



Presbyterian church, ]\Irs. Gardner being 
an intellectual and cultivated lady, and high- 
ly esteemed. They reside in a very com- 
fortable home on Main Street, having no 
children. 




H., Sally H. 

Julia A., and 

resides in Lima, 

X member of the 



ATHANIEL H. FOWLER, a retired 
farmer and much respected citizen of 
Livonia, is a native of that place, 
his birth occurring April 23, 1814. 
His father, Stephen Fowler, came from Massa- 
chusetts to Livonia, which at that time was 
known as Pittstown, in iSoo, riding all the 
way on horseback. He bought one hundred 
and forty acres of land, which he cleared, and 
upon which he built a log house. Even to the 
latter part of his life this remained an isolated 
section, the nearest market at that date being 
Rochester. He married Miss Altie Harmon, 
a daughter of Nathaniel Harmon; and eight 
children were born of their union; namely, 
William F., Rhoda, Altie 
Meigs C, Nathaniel H., 
Stephen B. The last named 
and is the only other surviving 
family. 

Nathaniel H. Fowler, of whom this sketch 
is written, received a preliminary education in 
the district schools, after which he was a stu- 
dent at jMiddlebur}-, Wyoming County, and at 
the Lima Academy. He devoted himself to 
agricultural pursuits, and has been a farmer all 
of his life, passing seventy three years on the 
old homestead. In 1887 he sold the farm upon 
which so many years of his life had been spent, 
and moved into the village, where he now 
resides, retired from the active duties of life. 
His marriage to Mrs. Clarissa (Paddock) Dix- 
son, daughter of Jacob and Clarissa (Priest) 
Paddock, of Frankfort, Herkimer County, was 
solemnized May 6, 1847. 

Mr. Fowler has always been an advocate of 
temperance and sobriety, and throws his entire 
influence in support of the Prohibition party. 
He cast his first Presidential vote for the Whig 
candidate in 1836. Both he and his wife are 
members of the Presbyterian church of Livonia 
Centre, and are among the most honored resi- 
dents of their locality. 



ARED DANIEL TURRET, a late 
w!ell-known resident of Attica, N. Y., 
was born in the town of Mendon, Mon- 
roe County, July 18, 18 10. His father 
served as a soldier in the War of 1812 under 
General Winfield Scott, but died of fever con- 
tracted during the service, leaving a wife with 
a large family to care for, Jared then being but 
tw-o years old. The boy was thus born to ad- 
versity, and early became inured to the hard- 
ships of life. He was placed under the care of 
an uncle in childhood, and rerrtained under his 
roof till the age of fourteen, working most of 
the time, and getting but few school advan- 
tages. In his fourteenth year he was taken as 
clerk in a store at Castile, in the northern part 
of the same county, W'yoming, and also served 
at Perr}' in the same capacity, getting his 
meagre board and the miserly remuneration of 
one dollar and fifty cents a month. But dur- 
ing the five years of this kind of discipline he 
was able to attend school in connection with 
his duties, and used every opportunity to ac- 
quire book knowledge which came in his way. 
When he was twenty-four years of age, he 
married Miss Jane Schuyler, who was a daugh- 
ter of John B. and Eliza (Turner) Schuyler, 
and was born and grew up in Baltimore, Md. 
Her grandfather was the Rev. Thomas Turner, 
a Baptist preacher, formerly of England. Mrs. 
Turrel's father, who was a farmer, was a na- 
tive of Burlington, N.J., and a relative of 
General Schuyler. He and his wife brought 
up a family of ten children, five sons and five 
daughters, briefly mentioned below : Josephus 
Schuyler, a farmer in Castile, and in Seneca 
County, Ohio, died in California at the age of 
eighty-two. Marcus, now nearly eighty-five, 
resides in Mercer County, Ohio, and is still 
active in the practice of his profession of sur- 
veying. Mary R., widow of William Hoyt, 
of Cayuga County, New York, resides in Iowa, 
and is still active, at the age of eighty-tw-o. 
Jane S. is the widow of Jared D. Turrel, of 
this sketch. Eliza, wife of David Searles, re- 
sides at Monmouth, 111., and is now seventy- 
seven years of age. Sarah A., wife of Abel 
Vannetta, resides near Tiffin, Ohio. Susan is 
the widow of the Rev. Manna Thompson. 
John Fletcher Schuyler died in his forty-fifth 



294 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



year. Dr. Aaron Schuyler, Professor of Math- 
ematics, and a long successful teacher, is now 
President of the university at Salina, Kan. 
Dr. P. L. Schuyler is the tenth child. It will 
be seen that Mrs. Turrel belongs to a long- 
lived race. 

The parents of Mrs. Turrel mo\ed to Seneca 
County, Ohio; and Mrs. Turrel went with 
them while her newly married husband went 
on to New York to purchase merchandise for 
the store they soon after opened, and over 
which they had their residence. At the end 
of a year, however, they came back to Perry in 
New York State. This was in 1835. Mr. 
Turrel then engaged in a commercial enter- 
prise with Judge Smith, in which he continued 
for twenty-six years. I3uring this period he 
became identified with the State militia, and 
was made a Major. His health was, however, 
affected by the close application his work in- 
volved ; and, being obliged to make a change, 
he accepted the position of conductor on the 
Western Division of the New York Central 
Railroad, and after four years he succeeded to 
the superintendency of the Attica Branch, 
which position he held for thirty-seven years. 
His whole service on the road covered a period 
of forty-two years. Mr. and Mrs. Turrel had 
four children. A son, Rufus J., died in in- 
fancy. Jared Henry, who at the early age of 
nineteen years began his career as .second con- 
ductor on the Buffalo Branch of the Erie Rail- 
road, died in Hannibal, Mo., in 1879, at forty- 
two years of age, leaving three children. John 
L. , the second child, is a lawyer by profes- 
sion, and also an arti.st and engraver, highly 
esteemed for his attainments in superior work. 
He studied at the Michigan University, is a 
man of culture, and an able lawyer. He has 
been living in Chicago for the past seven 
years. He has a wife and daughter and son. 
Eliza J. Turrel is the wife of F"rederick Wil- 
kie, a farmer near Attica. They have three 
sons, one of whom is a lawyer in Buffalo, 
and one daughter. 

Jared D. Turrel, the chief character of this 
sketch, belonged to a long-lived family. His 
age at the time of his death, July 28, 1894, 
was eighty-four years. His mother lived to 
be over one hundred years old, his maternal 



grandfather to one hundred and one, and his 
great-grandfather to the age of one hundred 
and four years. 

Mr. Turrel's duties brought him in daily 
contact with people living in that section of 
the country, and his kind and courteous bear- 
ing toward all made him numerous friends. 
He was a charter member of the Masonic 
Order, a man popular among his neighbors and 
townsmen, a friend with ready sympathy to 
those who were in need of a helping hand or 
words of encouragement. Such a personality 
is not soon forgotten in any community. 

Mr. Turrel was a Democrat in his political 
preferences, and served for seven successive 
years as Supervisor of the town. No youth 
need despair at the limitations of life with the 
example of Mr. Turrel to imitate, who, mak- 
ing the most of his few advantages, was able 
to spend a useful and respected life in the 
community, and to set forward a large family 
of children in careers of advantage and honor. 
Mr. Turrel followed the creed of the "Sermon 
on the Mount," believing in the revelation of 
Jesus Christ, and trusting in the love and ac- 
ceptance of the heavenly P'ather, so finishing 
his long career in the confidence of a simple, 
child-like hope. Mrs. Turrel continues to 
occupy the pleasant residence on Main Street, 
the home where they spent about thirty-seven 
of their sixty years of married life, solaced 
by pleasant memories and the attentions of 
children and grandchildren. 




ENRY H. LORD, who by energetic 
industry, shrewd foresight, and saga- 
cious wisdom in the management of 
his financial affairs, has gained a 
competence, and is now spending the sunset of 
his life in retirement and pleasure in his beau- 
tiful home in Geneseo, is well known through- 
out this section of Livingston County as a 
successful business man and a valued citizen. 
Mr. Lord is of New England birth and 
breeding, and first opened his eyes to the 
light April 30, 1820, in the town of Bloom- 
field, Conn. His father, James L. Lord, was 
also born in Connecticut, his native town 



beinc 



Torringford. 



The grandfather, Elisha 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



29s 



Lord, was a life-long resident of the same 
State. James L. Lord was a blacksmith by 
trade, and followed that occupation in the 
place of his nativity until his death, which 
occurred at the early age of thirty-five years. 
He married Rhoda Loomis, a native of Wind- 
sor, Conn. She spent her declining years in 
this county, dying at the advanced age of 
eighty-four years. She reared seven children ; 
namely, Julia, F"anny, Eliza, Haynes, Henry 
H., Susan, and PLrasmus. 

Henry H. Lord, to whom we refer in this 
brief personal history, was educated in New 
England, attending first the district .school and 
then the village academ}' of his native town. 
He was but seven years old when he was left 
fatherless ; and as soon as he was able he 
began to assist his mother, working by the day 
until of age. He early learned the trade of 
blacksmithing, and, thinking to find better 
wages for his work in a newer country, came 
to this State, and followed his trade for two 
years in Canandaigua. Returning to Connect- 
icut, Mr. Lord remained with his mother and 
friends a year, and then resumed blacksmith- 
ing in Canandaigua. Two years later he set- 
tled in Cuylerville, Livingston County, and, 
opening a blacksmith-shop, carried on a large 
and profitable business, to which he subse- 
quently added that of a carriage and wagon 
maker, continuing it for nearly fifteen years. 
Then, selling his shop and business, Mr. Lord 
rented a hotel property in Cuylerville, and for 
a year kept a public house. He then engaged 
in a commission business, buying and shipping 
fruit to New York City, gradually enlarging 
and extending his operations until he had one 
of the largest and most lucrative trades of the 
county. Since retiring from active life, he 
has made his home in Geneseo, where he is 
the owner of a fine residence, and is numbered 
among the influential and esteemed citizens of 
the village. 

In 1845 Mr. Lord was united in marriage 
with Miss Fanny Buell, a native of Manches- 
ter, Conn., and a daughter of Frederick Buell. 
Of this union there were two children, one of 
whom, a son, died in infancy. A daughter, 
Augusta S. , is the wife of William Coverdale, 
who was formerly engaged in agricultural pur- 



suits in Geneseo, and also carried on a lucra- 
tive meat business in the village. In 1887 
the pleasant household circle was broken, 
the devoted and faithful wife passing to the 
better land, at the age of threescore years. 
This severe affliction was a great blow to 
Mr. Lord, and is ever remembered by him 
with grief. 



■AMES G. MORRIS, a well-known mer- 
chant of the town of Springwater, is a 
nati\e of this town, where his birth 
took place on the 9th of February, 
1 83 1. His grandfather, Samuel Morris, 
moved from Rochester, N.Y. , to Cazenovia, 
Madison County, where he carried on a farm 
during the remainder of his life. He and his 
wife Sally were blessed with a large family, 
Lyman, the father of James G., being the 
fourth in order of birth. 

Lyman Morris was born in Cazenovia, and 
grew up on his father's farm, attending the 
district school, and growing up with a knowl- 
edge of agricultural matters of all kinds. He 
also learned something of the machinist's 
trade, and worked at this in connection with 
farm work. In 1833 he commenced business 
for himself in Springwater, and took some 
farm lands there, which he cleared, making a 
home, and therein e.stablishing his family. 
There he passed the remainder of his days, 
departing this life at the age of sixty-three 
years. It is interesting to notice how the 
greater enterprises of the present time owe 
their beginnings to smaller ones incepted by 
early residents of a town. They endured the 
first hardships connected with the settling of a 
community, and to them is due the honor 
which belongs to the foundation builder. 
Lyman Morris was one of these, and his name 
will ever bring with it a tribute of respect. 
His wife, mother of James G., was before 
marriage Miss Anna Millett. She was a 
daughter of Samuel Millett, an early settler 
of Wayne County. The children in the pa- 
rental home were ten in number, of whom the 
following-named are still living: Charles A.; 
James G. ; Harriet A., Mrs. John Warner; 
Emma N. ; Benjamin F. ; and John J. The 



296 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



mother, after a long and useful life, closed her 
career in the town of Springwater. 

James G. IMorris was very young when his 
father moved to Springwater; and ho therefore 
grew up with the village^ and had a share in 
all its features of growth and prosperity. He 
was a student at the district school, and made 
such good use of his advantages that he became 
an instructor himself, and taught school dur- 
ing seven winter seasons, farming the remain- 
der of the vear. Relinquishing the profession, 
he turned his attention entirely to farming, 
carrving it on for a time, but in 186S began 
business for himself, opening a small store. 
This he conducted alone for about a year, then 
formed a partnership with his father-in-law, so 
continuing for several years. He then went 
into business with S. H. Worthington, but at 
the expiration of four years dissolved partner- 
ship, and started in business with his present 
partner, opening a large general store, and 
keeping a line of drv goods, groceries, boots 
and shoes, hardware, clothing, hats and caps, 
carpets, oil cloths, coal and wood. 

Mr. Morris \\-as united in marriage in 1857 
witli Miss Eliza Grover, a native of Spring- 
water, and a daughter of David H. Grover, a 
representative of one of the old families in the 
town. Mr. Grover was a furniture dealer and 
a cabinet-maker, and also understood and car- 
ried on the carpenter's trade. Mr. and Mrs. 
Morris have one child, a daughter, Carrie G. 
She was graduated from the normal school in 
1 88 1, and for ten years taught in Bradford. 
Pa., one vear being principal. Later she was 
a teacher in Victor, Ontario County, and for 
three vears was head of a school in Spencer- 
port, Monroe County. Mr. Morris is a Repub- 
lican, and has always voted that ticket. He 
has been Town Clerk two years, but is not an 
office-seeker. He belongs to the Advent 
church, of which he has been a Trustee, and 
for fifteen years was superintendent of the 
Sundav-school, but has now resigned. 

The Morris family, being an old and suc- 
cessful one, takes a prominent place in the 
society of Springwater. He who builds up so 
successful a business as Mr. Morris has done 
naturallv receives the honors of his fellow- 
townsmen. Such men are looked up to in all 



local and general matters affecting the pros- 
perity of the community, and also concerning 
the town's influence over neighboring towns 
and its position among other such factors of 
the State. Every man of intelligence has a 
part to fulfil in his day and generation ; and 
such as Mr. Morris, who have special business 
cjualifications, are the ones to whom the g«n-- 
ernment looks for support in the ebb and flow 
of mercantile prosperity. 




KS. RUTH K. CI.EVETAXD, an 
esteemed and venerated resident of 
Warsaw, Wyoming County, widow 
of Oliver Cleveland, was born in 
Danby, Tompkins County, X. V., May 23, 
I Si 3, daughter of Luther and Ruth (Hedges) 
Foster, both natives of Southampton, Long 
Island. Mr. Foster was born September i, 
1770; and his marriage to Ruth Hedges took 
place in 1791. With the design of improving 
their circumstances they moved from South- 
ampton to Montague, Susse.v County, N.J., 
and later to Owego, Tioga County, N.Y., 
where Mr. Foster was for six years engaged in 
the business of tanning. In 1823 they re- 
moved to Warsaw and settled in the west part 
of the town, where their grandson, Herbert, 
now resides. Mr. and Mrs. Foster were the 
parents of nine children whom they reared to 
maturity, three other children having died in 
infancy. They were Presbyterians in religion, 
and brought up their family in that belief. 
Mr. Foster died November 16, 1846, his 
widow surviving him until March 7, i860, 
dying at the age of ninety-three years. The 
father of Luther Foster was Christopher Fos- 
ter, a farmer on Long Island, where he passed 
his entire life, never having left its shores. 

Ruth E. was ne.xt to the youngest child of 
her parents in order of birth ; and, on attaining 
womanhood, she was first married to Zera Tan- 
ner, this marriage occurring July 23, 1833, 
when she was in her twenty-first year. Mr. 
Tanner died November 27, 1836. He was 
the son of an early settler, Zera Tanner, Sr. , 
who came to Warsaw from New England in 
1808, and settled in the woods about two miles 
from the present village. His wife was Ja- 




Z. L. TANNER. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



299 



nette McWhorter; and she accompanied him 
from New England, where their marriage had 
taken place. By her marriage to Mr. Tanner 
Mrs. Cleveland has one son, her only child, 
Zera Luther Tanner, born December 5, 1835, 
who has risen to distinction in the naval ser- 
vice. A separate sketch of his life is pre- 
sented in this connection, and may be found 
succeeding this brief notice of Mrs. Cleveland. 




KRA LUTHER TANNER, Comman- 
der L^nited States navy, whose mother 
is Mrs. Ruth E. (Foster) Cleveland, 
the subject of the preceding sketch, 
was born at Warsaw, Wyoming County, N. Y. , 
December 5, 1835, son of Zera and Ruth E. 
(Foster) Tanner, as elsewhere stated. Young 
Tanner was educated in Warsaw, where he 
remained until his twenty-first year, with the 
exception of two years spent in Towanda, Pa. 
In 1855 he went to England, where he .secured 
a patent upon an invention, the plans and 
model of which he had taken with him. In 
October of the following year he entered upon 
a seafaring life with the object of recruiting 
his health, and prior to the Civil War in 
America he made three voyages to the Elast 
Indies. He was at sea when the war broke 
out, en route from China to San Francisco; 
and, returning to the Atlantic coast, he en- 
tered the transport service. He entered the 
L^nited States navy as Acting Ensign, Augu.st 
18, 1862, and was in active service on the At- 
lantic and Gulf coasts until the war closed. 
His first command was the captured British 
steamer "Vi.xen, '" a blockade runner whose 
chief officer subsequently attained distinction 
in the Turkish navy under the name of Hobart 
Pasha. Early in the spring of 1866, while 
attached to the L^^nited States ship "Augusta," 
he convoyed the monitor "]\Iiantonomoh " on 
a special mission to Russia, conveying the 
Hon. G. V. Fox, bearer of the congratulations 
of the United States Congress to the emperor 
Alexander II. on his escape from assassination. 
He spent the following winter in the Mediter- 
ranean, and, returning to the United States in 
June, 1867, sailed immediately for Chinese 
waters on board of the United States ship 



"Onward," and ser\-ed successively on the 
United States ships "Maumee " and "Idaho," 
remaining at the Asiatic station until the 
spring of 1870. 

After the loss of the United States ship 
"Oneida," Lieutenant Tanner took command 
of the "Aroo-stook, " and conducted the search 
for the remains of victims of the wreck. He 
was attached to the United States ship "Nar- 
ragansett " from 1871 to 1873. Sailing from 
New York to the Pacific station, he visited the 
west coast of South America, Mexico, Cali- 
fornia, the Sandwich Islands, Samoa, Aus- 
tralia, and made an extensive cruise among the 
South Sea Islands. The final year of the 
cruise was occupied on a sur\'ey of the Lower 
California and Gulf coasts. He was attached 
to the Philadelphia Navy Yard during the win- 
ter of 1873-74, obtained a leave of absence 
from the Navy Department, and commanded 
the Pacific mail steamer "Colon," sailing be- 
tween New York and the Isthmus of Panama, 
from 1874 to 1876, and the "City of Peking," 
the largest mail steamer of the day, from 1876 
to 1878, sailing between California and China. 

He was on duty at the Navy Department in 
Washington during the winter of 1878-79, took 
command of the L'nited States ship "Speed- 
well " the following spring, and was employed 
on the New England coast during the summer 
in deep-sea exploration under direction of the 
L'nited States Commissioner of Fish and 
Fisheries. He superintended the construction 
of the LTnited States Fish Commission steamer 
"Fish Hawk," and commanded her from 1880 
to 1882. While still in command of the 
"Fish Hawk," he made general plans for the 
steamer "Albatross," superintended her con- 
struction, and upon her completion in Novem- 
ber, 1882, took command of her. The vessel 
was specially designed for scientific work, and 
was actively employed in deep-sea exploration 
on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts until 1887, 
when she was transferred to the Pacific, where 
her field of operation extended from the Gulf 
of Panama to Bering Sea, and even to the 
coast of Kamtchatka. She made an extensive 
e.xploration of the fishing grounds of Alaska, 
Washington, Oregon, and California, surveying 
a route for a submarine cable from the coast 



300 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



of California to the Hawaiian Islands, and took 
an active part in the fur seal investigation and 
patrol duty in Bering Sea. Commander Tan- 
ner severed his connection with the "Alba- 
tross" in May, 1S94, and was ordered to 
special duty in Washington, January i, 1895. 

His advance in the naval service is indi- 
cated by the dates of his appointments and 
commissions, as follows: Acting Ensign, Au- 
trust 18. 1862, orisrinal entrv in the volunteer 
service; Acting Master, September 29, 1864, 
promoted in the volunteer service; Ensign, 
March 12, 1868, transferred to regular navy; 
Master, December 18, 1868, promoted, regular 
navy; Lieutenant, March 21, 1870, promoted, 
regular navy ; Lieutenant Commander, Febru- 
ary 22, 1883, promoted, regular navy; Com- 
mander, February 7, 1893, promoted, regular 
navy. 

A portrait of Commander Zera L. Tanner 
accompanies this meagre outline of his honora- 
ble career to date. Vigorous, well poised, 
resolute, he gives promise of much further ser- 
vice to the good ship "Union." 



'AMES SPITTAL, a well-known farmer 
of the town of York, was born here 
February 18, 1824. His father, John 
Spittal, one of the early settlers of the 
place, was a Scotchman, who came on a long, 
nine weeks' journey across the water, and 
reached the city of New York with but fifty 
cents in his pocket. He found his way, how- 
ever, to Livingston County, and went to work 
at first for the Montgomery Company, with 
which he remained a year, and then found em- 
ployment with one and another of his friends 
and acquaintances. He worked by the month 
a long time, but by patience and frugality ac- 
cumulated enough money to buy a tract of land 
owned by a squatter, consisting of about 
seventy acres. This land was very wild; and 
he set to work to redeem it, and put it under 
cultivation. This was a severe and laborious 
undertaking, as in those days the appliances 
for reducing such labor were not known, the 
woodsman having to depend on his bill-hook, 
his axe, and his own strong arm. 

John Spittal built a rough log cabin for him- 



self against an embankment, the cabin being 
.so low that he could, if he wished, jump from 
the hillside to the roof. Later he built a 
small but convenient frame house, where he 
lived until his death, which occurred while he 
was still a young man. His wife was before 
her marriage Miss Catherine Sinclair. She 
was a daughter of Hugh and Ann (Campbell) 
Sinclair, the former of whom was one of the 
verv first settlers in the county, coming from 
Johnstown, Fulton County, with his family of 
nine children and all his personal effects, in a 
two-horse sleigh. When they arrived at their 
destination, they found only a very small clear- 
ing in the dense woods, with two or three log 
houses at most. But the backbone of the 
Scotch people is strong, and meets well the 
vicissitudes and hardships of life; and it is to 
be remembered in their praise that they and 
their neighbors laid the foundations of the 
present prosperity of the town. 

The children of John and Catherine (Sin- 
clair) Spittal were three — Hugh, David, and 
James. Hugh married Miss Matilda Hall, 
and at his death, in 1880, left two children — 
William and Carrie. Carrie is now the wife 
of Richard White, of the town of Groveland, 
Livingston County. David married Miss 
Susan Hall, a daughter of William Hall, and 
has two sons — George and Myron. John 
Spittal died in 1841, while his widow survived 
him nearly forty years, dying in 1880. 

James Spittal received his early education 
in the district school, and later attended Tem- 
ple Hill Academy in Geneseo. He taught 
school in York after finishing his studies, but 
after the death of his father took the farm 
under his supervision, and in time bought out 
the other heirs. He then added fifty acres to 
the land, but ten years ago rented the farm, 
and moved to a residence in the village. He 
took for his wife Miss Ann Sinclair, a native 
of ^Michigan ; and to them were given three 
children. John, the eldest, is in a planing- 
mill in LeRoy; he married Miss Sarah 
Simpson, a daughter of Hugh Simpson, of 
York, and has four children — Mary E., Don- 
ald R., Edward J., and Hugh. Catherine re- 
mains at home, and keeps house for her father. 
The other sister, Martha, is a stenographer 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



301 



and t)'pevvriter, and is in the employ of Sage 
& Co., bicycle manufacturers of Rochester, 
N.Y. Mrs. Spittal departed this life on the 
4th of October, 1S88. 



[OHN ANGIER, who occupies an influ- 
ential and prominent position among 
the agricultural population of the town 
of Portage, is the owner of a pleasant 
homestead in District No. i, where he has 
lived for nearly half a century. Upon this he 
has made some excellent improvements ; and 
here he resides, surrounded with a goodly 
share of the comforts of life. He is a native 
of good old New England, his birth occurring 
in the State of New Hampshire, December 18, 
1815. 

His father, Elisha Angier, was a life-long 
resident of the Granite State, and a substantial 
farmer of Cheshire County. He was acciden- 
tally killed by driving off the side of a bridge, 
at the time being a strong and able man of 
forty-five years. He married Harriet Russell, 
a daughter of Amos Russell, of New Hamp- 
shire, and they reared a family of nine chil- 
dren, as follows: Silas; Amanda; John; 
Emily; Mary; Sophia; George and Hattie, 
twins; and Andrew. The latter was a volun- 
teer soldier in the late Rebellion, enlisting in 
a Wisconsin regiment. He was wounded at 
the battle of Antietam, dying from the inju- 
ries there received. 

The subject of this sketch was reared and 
educated in the State of his nativity, and after 
the death of his father, which occurred when 
he was cjuite young, went to reside with his 
grandparents, Silas and Priscilla Angier, who 
were then living on a farm in Massachusetts. 
They subsequently removed to Livingston 
County, New York, locating in the town of 
Xunda, where the grandfather bought seventy 
acres of land. This farm was partly improved, 
and a good house had been erected on it ; and 
into this he moved with his family, living 
there until his death, which occurred about 
three years later, he having attained the age of 
seventy-nine years. 

In 1847 John Angier, who had previously 
managed- his grandfather's farm, bought his 



present place of residence, and at once began 
its cultivation. He has employed his time 
most profitably, and has continually added to 
the improvement and value of his property, 
being now numbered among the representative 
farmers of this section of the county, who by 
their shrewd foresight and determined energy 
have been active in developing its varied re- 
sources and advancing its industrial interests. 
In addition to his agricultural labors, Mr. An- 
gier was for si.x years engaged in mercantile 
trade, owning a shoe-store in the village of 
Nunda. In politics he is a stanch advocate of 
the Democratic party, and has acted as Path- 
master and as Assessor, serving faithfully in 
both offices. Mr. Angier is a Deacon in the 
Baptist church, both he and his wife, who 
was a woman of sincere religious convictions, 
having joined that church many years ago. 

In 1842 Mr. Angier wedded Miss Mary 
Rockefeller, a daughter of Samuel Rockefel- 
ler, of Nunda; and their union was made 
brighter and happier by the birth of five chil- 
dren ; namely, Althea, Ella, Hattie, Carrie, 
and Frank. Althea married Jackson Knight, 
of Arcade, Wyoming County. Ella is the 
wife of Oscar Chittenden, of Batavia. Hattie 
became the wife of Joseph Fraley, of Geneseo. 
Carrie, who is the wife of Frank Carter, lives 
on the paternal homestead. F"rank died at the 
age of nine years. Mrs. Angier, who was held 
in high esteem as a woman of e.xemplary char- 
acter, possessing in an eminent degree traits 
of heart and mind that endeared her to all with 
whom she was brought in contact, passed to 
the higher life in the autumn of 1892, having 
reached the advanced age of seventy-three 
years. 



fRANK FIELDER, the subject of this 
sketch, was born at Brighton, England, 
in July, 1834. When a lad of thirteen 
summers, he came to the United States with 
his father, Charles Lawrence Fielder, and the 
other members of his father's family, consist- 
ing at that time of Eliza Hooker Fielder, his' 
father's wife by a second marriage, his 
brothers, Charles Sydney Fielder and Alfred 
Fielder, then aged respectively eighteen and 



302 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ten years, and his sister, Rovvena Fielder, 
then a child in arms. The paternal grand- 
father of Frank Fielder was Richard Fielder, 
of Tcnterden, Kent, England, owner of the 
noted old Woolpack Inn, of that borough, 
where the county assizes were long held. 
His paternal grandmother was Catherine 
Cage, of Milgate, near Maidstone, England. 
Upon coming to this country, the family first 
located at Islip, Long Island, afterward re- 
moving to Fowlcrvillc, Livingston County, 
N.Y. ^ 

Mr. Fielder's first experience in a business 
life which has proven so successful was as 
clerk in a store at the village last named. 
Subsequently he was employed in a respon- 
sible capacity by the firm of H. C. Blodgett 
& Co., at Rochester, N.Y.. in the years 1857, 
1858, and 1859. 

Returning to Islip in the latter year, he 
conducted a profitable mercantile business 
there for two years upon his own account. In 
1862 he came with his family to Dansville, 
Livingston County, N.Y., where he has since 
resided and still resides. Prior to 1887 Mr. 
Fielder was for some years in co-partnership 
with his brother, C. S. Fielder (until the lat- 
ter's death), and thereafter' carried on a large 
and flourishing retail dry-goods business at 
Dansville. Upon the failure of the old First 
National Bank, an event perhaps more notable 
and important in its consequences and results 
than any other in the history of the place, 
preceded as it had been by the downfall of the 
Dansville Bank shortly before, Dansville was 
left without banking facilities of any sort; 
and the business interests of the town seemed 
to be menaced by prostration, if not complete 
disaster. The establishment of a new bank 
on secure foundations, owned and officered by 
men whose names would at once inspire confi- 
dence, became an imperative necessity. 

That Frank Fielder should be looked to in 
that emergency and that he should respond to 
the requirement of the hour was natural, al- 
most instinctive in view of the circumstances 
and of his peculiar fitness for the duty and 
responsibility, that called for prompt and wise 
action, personal integrity, and undoubted 
financial standing and ability. With the 



hearty co-operation of several of the leading 
business men of the town, Mr. Fielder suc- 
ceeded also in enlisting valuable aid from an- 
other town in the county: and the result was 
the establishment in 1887 of the Citizens' 
Bank of Dansville, organized under the bank- 
ing laws of the State, with a capital of fifty 
thousand dollars. At the first meeting of the 
Board of Directors, Mr. Fielder was selected 
as Cashier, which position he still holds. 
From its inception the management and up- 
building of the enterprise, under a state of 
public confidence in banking operations natu- 
rally weakened and distrustful, has largely 
devolved on Mr. Fielder; and the success of 
the bank has been marked to a degree unusual 
with new institutions of this character, and 
to-day the Citizens' Bank is in a most flour- 
ishing condition, well justifying its name in 
the confidence reposed in its security and 
strength of management by the entire com- 
munity. 

For many years past Mr. I-'ielder has been 
prominently identified with the educational 
interests of Dansville. Before the establish- 
ment of the union free school in the year 
1883, he was a Trustee of the Dansville Semi- 
nary; and in the long and somewhat bitter 
contest which finally culminated in the adop- 
tion of the free school system in the village, 
an account of which would afford an interest- 
ing chapter in Dansville's history, he took an 
active and leading part. Ever since the adop- 
tion of the system he has been a member of 
the Board of Education, and at present holds 
the office of President of the Board. In 1874 
he was largely instrumental in the establish- 
ment of the Livingston Circulating Library at 
Dansville, and for a number of years held the 
position of President of its Board of Trustees. 
In 1894 he with other citizens succeeded in 
bringing about a very desirable change, which 
made a free librar)' of what was before a pri- 
vate institution. During the year 1894 Mr. 
Fielder was the President of the Livingston 
County Historical Society, an organization 
which includes in its membership very many 
of the most influential residents of the county. 
In village affairs his influence has always 
been arrayed on the side of good government, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



3°3 



moral and material improvement ; and, 
though never belonging to the party which 
has so long dominated the politics of the 
town and village, he has twice been elected 
to office on a people's ticket. 

In church relations he is prominently con- 
nected with the Presbyterian Society, and has 
always taken an active interest in the welfare 
of the local organization as well as in the 
society at large. 

Mr. Fielder has been twice married, first in 
i860 to Ortha O. Beach, who died in May, 
1879, leaving three children, all of whom are 
yet living, namely: Ortha Belle, now at Stan- 
ford University, California; Frank Sydney, 
M.D., of New York City; and Josephine, 
now Mrs. Burroughs Edsall, of Colorado 
Springs, Col. His second marriage was in 
1886, to his present wife, Mrs. Adelaide 
Swift Carpenter, of Falmouth, Mass. In con- 
cluding this sketch it need only be said that 
Mr. Fielder is a man of culture, refinement, 
and ability both natural and acquired; that 
his many sterling and amiable qualities of 
mind and heart are best understood and appre- 
ciated by those who know him best; genial, 
courteous, and obliging to all, in nature as 
well as in demeanor he is agreeably modest, 
gentle, and unobtrusive. 




"ARVEY ARNOLD, of Arcade, whose 
death on the 23d of August, 1892, 
caused such universal and profound 
regret throujihout the town and 
county, was born on his father's farm on the 
banks of the Cattaraugus River, in 1826. His 
parents, Gideon and Lavina (Williams) Ar- 
nold, were of good old Yankee blood, and 
came from Connecticut to the western wilds 
of New York to make a new home for them- 
selves and children. The family consisted of 
two sons and two daughters, of wh(jm Mrs. 
George Williams, of Yorkshire, and Mr. 
Charles Arnold, of Nickerson, Kan., are the 
surviving members. 

The village of Arcade was a sort of educa- 
tional centre in the early days, and at its sem- 
inary Harvey Arnold received his education. 
After leaving school he embarked in a mercan- 



tile enterprise, conducting a country store for 
several years. He then devoted himself to 
farming, in which he was actively engaged 
until he moved into the village a year previous 
to his death. His judgment, experience, and 
industry made him a typical New York farmer, 
and fitted him to fill the offices he held in the 
Farmers' Alliance order, in which he was for 
so long a distinguished figure. He was not 
only the first President of the Arcade Alli- 
ance, and twice re-elected to the Presidency of 
the County Alliance, but had the honor of 
being the first State President of the order, to 
which office he might have been re-elected had 
he not absolutely declined it, as he did various 
other distinctions which were tendered him. 
Mr. Arnold was, from its organization thirty 
years ago until his resignation in 1891, a 
member of the Board of liducation, and among 
other positions of tru.st held that of President 
of the local Savings and Loan Association, 
and was Trustee of the Congregational church. 
In early life Mr. Arnold was a Whig, after- 
ward becoming a Republican, but for some 
years past had been entirely independent, vot- 
ing for such candidates and such principles as 
appealed to his better judgment. In 1891 he 
received the Democratic nomination of Senator 
of the district; and, though throughout the en- 
tire campaign he scorned to spend a penny in 
political traffic, and did not solicit a single 
vote, his nominal defeat was only caused by 
the fraudulent manipulations of the opposition. 
During the period of his candidacy he visited 
various parts of the district and addressed the 
people, making new and warm friends wher- 
ever he went. The people of Arcade feel that 
in the death of Mr. Harvey Arnold the village, 
county, and State have lost a citizen whose 
place cannot be filled, and that society has lo.st 
a worthy example and a noble influence. 

On October 19, 1854, Mr. Arnold was mar- 
ried to -Susan Maria Stearns, who was born in 
Cambridge, Vt. , May 18, 1827, only daughter 
of Phineas E. and Miriam (Arm.strong) 
Stearns. Her parents were of New England 
ancestry, and moved to New York in 1837. 
They had three sons. Two daughters com- 
pleted the household circle of Mr. and Mrs. 
Arnold, whose union of nearly thirty-eight 



3°4 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



years was in many ways an ideally happy one. 
Now two have departed, and with them how 
much of light and joy! and two are left in the 
home to cheer and comfort each other, and 
still bravely bear their part in the world of 
work — the mother and her younger child. 
Miss Mary Arnold, born May 8, 1857, who 
has much artistic talent, and devotes herself to 
painting. 

The other daughter, Ella Miriam Arnold, 
born March 15, 1S55, was endowed with 
unusual intellectual powers, as well as the 
womanly graces which made her the centre of 
attraction in every circle in which she moved; 
and Arcade was justly proud of the distin- 
guished scholar and teacher whose early edu- 
cation was acquired at its academy. Miss 
Arnold was graduated from Vassar in 1879, in 
the full classical course, receiving second 
honors, and delivering the Latin salutatory of 
her class. Being peculiarly fitted by her gifts, 
qualifications, and disposition for her chosen 
vocation, she was thoroughly successful. Her 
first work in her profession was in the Wyo- 
mannock Ladies' Seminary at New Lebanon, 
N.Y. , where she was teacher of Greek and 
Latin ; and while here she received the first 
warning of the malady which was to terminate 
her life and cut short a work of usefulness and 
beauty. In 1884, at Ingham University, 
LeRoy, she was given the chair of Greek and 
Latin, which she held until August, 1891, 
during which year she was the principal of that 
institution. Again the indomitable will force 
which had given her the mastery over her phys- 
ical being was warned that the disease which 
had taken full hold of her vitality was making 
deep inroads ; but, though she consulted Dr. 
Walker, the eminent specialist of Phila- 
delphia, who pronounced her case aneurism of 
the heart, she denied the demands of health, 
and continued her work. Yielding at last to 
the entreaties of friends and the counsel of 
physicians, she returned home for a year of 
rest and that happy family communion which 
death was so soon to end. After her father's 
death she sought to solace her grief in re- 
newed devotion to her profession, and accord- 
ingly accepted the position of instructor of 
classics in the Ladies' Seminary at Jackson- 



ville, 111. In a few short weeks, but not be- 
fore her influence had made itself felt, she was 
prostrated by an attack of illness which neces- 
sitated her return home at once. Accom- 
panied by a woman physician, her faithful 
friend, Dr. Balantine, she was brought to Ar- 
cade, apparently needing only rest to restore 
her to health. She herself was hopeful, and 
only a few hours before her death was planning 
a visit to a classmate at Wellsville, N.Y. A 
sudden spasm at eight o'clock on Friday night, 
February 24, 1893, ended the earthly life of 
one who seemed peculiarly fitted to live. 
Qldema of the lungs was the cause. At the 
Congregational church the funeral services 
were conducted by the Rev. Dr. Totheroh, of 
Chicago, under whose ministration she had 
become connected with the church, and by her 
pastor, the Rev. M. M. Hughes, of Arcade. 
Numerous floral offerings were the sweet, 
silent testimonies to the general grief ; and 
there were many letters of sympathy to the 
bereaved mother and sister from distant 
friends, among them one from the Rev. Dr. 
Bullard, who wrote: "She completely won the 
confidence, esteem, and affectionate regard of 
our pupils and all with whom she was asso- 
ciated. It is, indeed, a mysterious Providence 
that removes one so eminently qualified for 
usefulness in the home, the school, and soci- 
ety. We were loath to part with her; and, 
while mourning their loss, her friends may 
well rejoice in the gift of so beautiful a life. 
Though it seemed short, it still seemed com- 
plete. She has left with us a memory that 
will not soon be lost. " 




iRS. ELIZABETH A. BRAD- 
BURY, formerly Elizabeth A. 
Mills, now a resident of Mount 
Morris, N.Y., is a daughter of 
William and Mary (Neaher) Mills, and was 
born in Saratoga County, New York. She 
received her education at a select school in 
Pittsfield, Mass., and at Utica Seminary. 
Her first marriage took place when she was 
twenty years of age, she becoming the wife of 
Lucius F. Tiffany. Mr. Tiffany was a native 
of Vermont, but in his childhood was brought 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



3°S 



by his parents to Erie County, New York, 
where he attained maturity. He received a 
business education, and, on reachini^ years of 
discretion, engaged in the brokerage business 
for a time, shortly, however, entering into 
a banking enterprise, which he carried on suc- 
cessfully until his death, which occurred five 
years after his marriage. 

Two years later Mrs. Tiffany was united in 
marriage with Captain George H. Bradbury, a 
native of Buxton, York County, Me. The an- 
cestry of the Bradbury family is a notable one, 
and may be traced back in England to the year 
800, when some members of it were proprie- 
tors of the Wicken Bonant estate, which is 
located forty miles from London, in the county 
of Esse.x. The first English ancestor who came 
to America and remained among the early 
colonists was Sir Thomas Bradbury. He chose 
for his location the town of Salem, Mass., a 
town afterward celebrated for the many start- 
ling events which were enacted there during 
the early days of the commonwealth. Ac- 
counts of these may be found in the works of 
one of the eminent writers of recent times, 
Nathaniel Hawthorne, who for some years was 
connected with the custom-house in Salem, 
and had his residence there. 

At the age of fourteen George H. Bradbury 
commenced the career of a .sailor. His natural 
inclination being for the sea, he soon became 
an adept in the service; and, having a bright 
and keen comprehension of his duties, and 
being faithful in the performance of them, he 
was steadily ]3romoted from one grade to an- 
other, until at the age of twenty-two he was 
put in command of a vessel sailing in the East 
India Oriental service. Captain Bradbury fol- 
lowed the sea for a number of years, and then, 
having a longing to once more visit the woods 
and streams of his early home, gave up his 
naval life. He spent some time in New York 
State, first in Avon, and later in the city of 
Buffalo, and while there was appointed super- 
intendent of the Corning & Buffalo Division 
of the Erie Railroad, continuing in this posi- 
tion until the breaking out of the Civil War, 
when he resigned, in order to enter the naval 
service of the United States. 

As master of the steamship "Susquehanna," 



Captain Bradbury was ordered to the port of 
Charleston, S. C, to sink vessels in the mouth 
of the harbor, for the purpose of obstructing 
blockade runners. After fulfilling his orders 
there, he went to Philadelphia, where he was 
commended for his services, and then ordered 
to the flagship of Admiral Farragut, and had 
the honor of managing that \'essel in connec- 
tion with that noted commander during the 
laborious and fierce battle of Port Royal. 
After its capture Captain Bradbury was pro- 
moted to the regular service, and went to New 
York to take charge of a government gunboat 
then lying in the harbor. Before assuming 
command, however, he was tendered a position 
of greater importance with the Pacific Mail 
Steamship Company, and after a brief delib- 
eration concluded to accept the latter offer, 
and accordingly entered upon the enterprising 
work laid out by the steamship company, being 
detailed to take a large steamer through the 
Strait of Magellan. 

These waters, just west of the Falkland 
Islands, are a tortuous passage from the At- 
lantic Ocean on the east to the Pacific on the 
west, making the strait which divides the 
island of Tierra del Fuego from the southern 
extremity of Patagonia, South America. The 
strait leads, before reaching the open Pacific, 
through the mazes of an archipelago. It was a 
very hazardous enterprise ; and Captain Brad- 
bury concluded to try an inner passage, which, 
however, proved to be narrower still, and one 
involving great risk to vessels — a passage 
which had hitherto been attempted only by 
small sea-craft. A more desolate and awe- 
inspiring locality than Cape Horn cannot else- 
where, perhaps, find a parallel in the known 
watery universe. Masses of rock, simulating 
islands, spread closely along the shore, one of 
which is called Desolation Island ; these form 
reefs, on which the angry waters dash with 
deafening, tumultuous roar. The two oceans, 
struggling to meet in deadly combat, make a 
great, heaving stretch of wind-lashed, mad- 
dened deeps of waters — a place where man 
must acknowledge his powerlessness to control 
the mighty forces which are the expression of 
the Infinite. 

By anchoring at night and proceeding with 



3o6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



great caution by day, Captain Bradbury made a 
successful trip, and on the next voyage found a 
vessel chartered by the government waiting to 
follow his own ship, and obtain, if possible, a 
clear understanding of the route. Such suc- 
cess was the result of his bold venture that he 
was soon after empowered by the government 
to furnish a correct standard of maps, charts, 
and such nautical directions as could hereafter 
be applied by any sailing-craft which might 
desire to make use of them. To have been 
able to provide a conduit for ships and naviga- 
tors in this track through the Strait of Magel- 
lan to the South Pacific makes the discoverer 
famous in the annals of modern history, and 
such an achievement should be perpetuated in 
Captain Bradbury's honor in the archives of 
his country. The man who discovers a dia- 
mond field or a gold mine becomes renowned. 
Much more eminent should he be deemed who 
has penetrated the secrets of the untrodden and 
perilous seas for the safety of the traveller, as 
well as in the interests of maritime commerce; 
for this is the result of a long and patient 
study of the science of navigation and the 
endowment of a fearless, courageous spirit. 
Such eminence, it is safe to declare, belongs 
to Captain George H. Bradbury. 

Soon after this exploit he took command of 
the "Colorado," which was the first American 
vessel to enlist in trade with Japan. It was 
an event of no little interest to both countries, 
particularly as one belonged to an empire 
hitherto barred to advancement by prejudice 
and the restrictions of centuries. The com- 
mander of the steamship which should first 
carry the ensign of the American flag had to 
be chosen with great delicacy and discrimina- 
tion. The choice fell upon Captain Bradbury ; 
and, as the commander of the "Colorado," he 
sailed away to the Orient, and had the honor 
of being Plenipotentiary, representing the com- 
mercial interests of the American republic to 
the refined and intelligent Japanese people. 

This notable event in an already notable 
career was followed by an election to the 
Presidency of the Pacific Wail Steamship Com- 
pany ; but in less than a year he resigned, and 
was elected President of the Occidental and 
Oriental Steamship Company, of which Mrs. 



Bradbury was the originator. He then went 
to Liverpool and, after a period of two 
months, to London, making a stay in that city 
of six months, in the interests of the company, 
during this period chartering three steamers of 
the White Star line. His connection with the 
company continued three years, while he 
worked in its behalf, and succeeded in putting 
it on a substantial moneyed basis. On ac- 
count of ill health he was obliged to resign 
the cares connected with the position, how- 
ever, and, although he carried on a quiet bro- 
kerage business in New York for two years, 
was obliged to give up the sterner activities 
of life. After a visit to his native State he 
journeyed to Southern California, and in that 
sunny clime passed from earthly scenes in the 
year 1892. 

Since the death of her husband Mrs. Brad- 
bury has made her home at Mount Morris the 
greater portion of the time. She has had ad- 
vantages which do not fall to the common lot, 
having accompanied her husband on most of 
his sea travels. She has twice been around 
the world, has crossed the Atlantic a number 
of times, and has visited the principal coun- 
tries of the world. On one notable occasion, 
when at Rio Janeiro, Brazil, she and her hus- 
band had the honor of being the guests at a 
luncheon given by that very interesting per- 
sonage whom America not many years since 
delighted to honor, and whose untimely death 
the American people joined in lamenting — 
the most excellent Dom Pedro, late PLmperor 
of Brazil. 

It was a privilege such as does not fall to 
the lot of many women to share in so many 
of her husband's honorable enterprises and 
achievements ; but it must also be remembered 
that Mrs. Bradbury had to undergo the mani- 
fold hardships and dangers which characterized 
so many of his undertakings — the perils by 
storm and wave, the restrictions incident to 
sea life, the separation from kindred, friends, 
and the varied attractions which belong to a 
life on land. These should not be overlooked. 
As the cheerful companion of her husband on 
his numerous voyages and the sharer of all his 
perplexities and anxieties, Mrs. Bradbury de- 
serves a portion of her husband's glory, and 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



3°7 



the respect which is due to one who by her 
presence assisted her husband to accomplish 
the exceptionally hazardous undertakings of 
his career. 



R" 



HARD W. KENNEDY, of Dans- 
;ille, who is a well-known and very 
successful nurseryman, doing a large 
and lucrative business, is a native 
of Ireland, and was born July 25, 1858. Both 
his father Thomas and his grandfather William 
were also natives of the Emerald Isle, and 
were farmers. William Kennedy left his na- 
tive land, and, crossing the ocean, settled in 
Canada. He purchased a farm, and resided 
there the rest of his life. He reared three 
sons and five daughters, of whom two sons and 
four daughters are still living. 

Thomas Kennedy, the father of Richard W. , 
received a fair education, and was reared to 
agricultural pursuits. After his marriage, 
which was solemnized when he was about 
thirty-three years old, he came to America, ac- 
companied by his wife and three children. 
They landed at New York, and thence pro- 
ceeded directly to Dansville, where he com- 
menced work in the nursery business for O. B. 
Maxwell, continuing with him several years. 
He then entered the employ of Sweet & Morey, 
in the same business, remaining with them a 
considerable length of time. In 1876 he 
began business for himself on a very small 
scale by planting two acres of trees upon 
ground situated at the foot of Van Canthor 
Street. He succeeded in this venture, and 
added to his original plant, later taking in his 
sons as partners. His business increased 
rapidly, and he attained a well-earned compe- 
tence. At the time of his decease, March 27, 
1894, the firm, which was known as Thomas 
Kennedy & Sons, had under cultivation from 
sixty to seventy acres of trees. Mr. Kennedy 
was a prominent member of the Episcopal 
church, and a Republican in politics. The 
maiden name of his wife was Ann Moore. 
She is a native of Ireland, and a daughter of 
Richard Moore, a farmer and collector of rents. 
She has reared four children — Richard W., 
James M., Mary J., and Eliza A. She is still 



living, and occupies a beautiful residence on 
the main street of Dansville, one of her daugh- 
ters making her home with her. They are 
members of the Episcopal church. 

Richard W. Kennedy was but four years old 
when his parents came to America. He re- 
ceived his education in the district schools and 
at Dansville Seminary, and assisted his father 
in the nursery until 1880, when he became a 
partner. His brother entered the firm in 
1882, and they are now carrying on the largest 
and most extensive nursery business in this 
part of the State. Their specialty is fruit- 
trees; and the business which the father 
started upon two acres now embraces from 
sixty to seventy acres, with an average crop of 
three hundred thousand trees per annum, which 
is certainly a most gratifying result for such a 
small commencement. 

On the 31st of August, 1892, Mr. Kennedy 
was united in marriage with Miss Mary A. 
Moore, a daughter of John Moore, of Mayville, 
Chautauqua County, an extensive grape grower. 
Mrs. Kennedy is one of seven children. She 
is the mother of one child, Richard W. , Jr. 
Mr. Kennedy is a member of Maccabee Lodge, 
and of the Protectus Eire Company. He was 
foreman of this company three years, and has 
also been Assistant Chief Engineer of the 
entire department. Although a Republican in 
politics, he has served as Village Trustee, 
which plainly shows the high degree of confi- 
dence bestowed upon him by all, as the village 
is Democratic. Both he and his wife are 
members of St. Peter's Church, of which he is 
a Vestryman and also Clerk. 

Mr. Kennedy is one of the most highly re- 
spected young men in Dansville, and a lousi- 
ness man of wide reputation. He is an honor 
to his ancestors and the community in which 
he lives. 




URLEY SMITH, a well-known busi- 
ness man of the village of Attica, 
N.Y. , was born in Manchester, 
Mass., December 29, 1843. His 
father, Augustus W. Smith, was a native of 
the same town, born April 6, 1806; and his 
grandfather. Major Burley Smith, was born at 



3o8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Tamvvortli, N. H., about the year 1782, of 
Scotch and Irish descent. He was a man of 
wealth, and aside from his farming interests 
was extensively engaged in fisheries, owning 
several vessels which were employed in that 
industry. He was an officer in the War of 
1 81 2. The maiden name of his wife was Mary 
Proctor ; and they reared two sons and two 
daughters, all of whom became heads of fam- 
ilies except one daughter, and lived to an ad- 
vanced age. Major Smith died in 1857, at 
the age of seventy-five years. 

Augustus W. Smith followed the sea in his 
younger days, and later became a land owner 
and lumber dealer in Manchester. In 1849 
he freighted a schooner with materials sawed 
and fitted for the erection of small houses, in 
which he made a voyage to California, going 
around Cape Horn. Captain Smith arrived in 
San Francisco with his cargo; but the venture 
proved unprofitable, and he opened a hotel in 
that city, which he conducted until it was de- 
stroyed in the great fire of 185 i, and he then 
worked at mining for a year, and in 1853 re- 
turned East. He died in Manchester, Mass., 
January 6, 1881, leaving a widow, two sons, 
and three daughters, of whom Burley, named 
for his grandfather, is the youngest. The 
others are as follows: Mary P. Stevens, of At- 
tica; Harriet, wife of David B. Kimball, an 
attorney at Salem, Mass. ; Lydia Lee Smith, 
of Manchester, Mass. ; and Augustus A. , of 
Attica. 

Captain Augustus W. Smith's landed estate 
at Manchester-by-the-Sea increased in value 
until it made him one of the wealthiest men in 
his locality. It may be truthfully said of him 
that he was both morally and physically strong, 
being a man of large stature and of unimpeach- 
able character and positive convictions. He 
was of the Orthodox Congregational faith, and 
freely gave a good share of his worldly goods 
to the poor and needy. He never aspired to 
prominence in public affairs, but served as one 
of the Selectmen of Manchester. His death, 
following a long, painful illness, was a wel- 
come release; and his entire family, though 
scattered, were all able to be present at his 
last moments. He and his wife lived over 
fifty years in wedlock, and her parents fifty- 



seven years, while her grandparents lived fifty- 
six years as man and wife, which is indeed a 
rare record for three generations. 

Burley Smith, after attending the public 
school in Manchester, remained at home until 
twenty-two years of age, and then went to Can- 
ada, where he engaged in the oil business. In 
the spring of 1866 he and his brother Augustus 
assumed charge of the New York Central 
freight office in Attica, also becoming express 
agents, and doing a large business in forward- 
ing produce to New York City. In 1869 Mr. 
Smith became engaged in railroad contracting 
in the West, returning to Attica three years 
later. 

On January 4, 1870, he was united in mar- 
riage to Mary Caroline Shepard, daughter of 
the Hon. James G. and Mary (Cogswell) Shep- 
ard, her mother being the daughter of William 
and Mary A. (Dudley) Cogswell, early settlers 
at Pittsford, N. Y. , and her grandfather having 
been an officer in the War of 181 2. James G. 
Shepard was born in New London, N. H., in 
1816, son of Ebenezer Shepard, a native of the 
same place, who followed agricultural pursuits 
and died in an adjoining town, about the year 
1849. James G. Shepard's mother, whose 
maiden name was Sarah Burpee, bore eleven 
children, two daughters and nine sons, all of 
whom are dead except James G. and his 
brother, George Shepard, of Franklin, N. H. 
In 1868 Mr. Shepard was a Presidential elec- 
tor. After marriage in 1844, Mr. James G. 
Shepard and wife went to Nashville, Tenn., 
where Mr. Shepard became proprietor and 
editor of the Nashville Union; and in that 
city their one daughter was born in the year 
1845. In 1850 Mr. Shepard went to Cali- 
fornia, and engaged in mining for about two 
years, after which he returned P2ast, as he went 
West, by way of the Isthmus. He then pur- 
chased a farm of two hundred and twenty-five 
acres in the town of Alexander, upon which he 
resided for thirty-five years. He now lives at 
the home of his daughter, Mrs. Smith, in At- 
tica. Mr. Shepard has been a life-long Demo- 
crat, a strong factor in the party, and a 
political power through his pen and his 
speeches upon the stump, though a defeated 
candidate for Congress. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



309 



Mr. and Mrs. Burley Smith have four chil- 
dren, two sons and two daughters — Florence, 
a graduate of Houghton Seminary, at Clinton, 
N. Y., and now the wife of J. H. Rudd ; Eliza- 
beth Bartol Smith, a graduate of Temple 
Grove Seminary in 1893; Burley Smith, Jr., 
a student at Exeter Academy ; and James Au- 
gustus, a youth of fourteen years. Mr. Smith 
is a Democrat in politics, and a Master Mason. 
The family are pleasantly situated at their 
beautiful home on East Avenue, the fine, 
large brick residence having been erected by 
him in 1874. 




^ATHANIEL DANN, an experienced 
farmer of East Avon, N.Y., a man of 
means and of good repute, was born 
at Mendon, N.Y., October 7, 1832, 
has resided in Avon for nearly half a century, 
and during this period has always lived on the 
old homestead, which was bought by his 
father in 1848. He is of English descent, 
his grandfather having been a native of what 
we Americans fittingly call the "Mother 
Country " ; for, although Old England has not 
always manifested the greatest possible friend- 
ship for the child which has long outgrown 
the need of her care, there is no use in trying 
to disguise the fact that it was to England 
that the birth of this nation was due. 

Grandsir Dann, or, to be more exact, 
Grandsir John Dann, came to America at a 
comparatively early age, and settled in Dutch- 
ess County, New York, where he passed the 
rest of his days. The son of his who was to 
be the father of the subject of our sketch was 
named Floyd, and was born a few years after 
John Dann had taken up his residence in 
Dutchess County. Floyd got his education 
in the district schools of that region, and 
having grown to manhood was by occupation a 
farmer. He owned a farm of two hundred 
and thirty-seven acres, located in ]\Iendon, 
and remained on it urtil sixteen years after 
the birth of his son Nathaniel, his youngest 
child, when he sold out and removed to Avon, 
where he bought a farm of two hundred and 
twenty-four acres, and six years later built a 
house. 



He married Miss Mary Brown, of New Jer- 
sey, and reared five children, of whom the 
first-born was named Elizabeth, the second 
Malvina M., the third Sarah, the fourth Brad- 
ley, and the fifth Nathaniel. They had an- 
other son. Underbill, who died in infancy. 

Nathaniel Dann was educated at the district 
schools of Mendon, at Lima Seminary, and at 
Henrietta. He has always given his atten- 
tion exclusively to farming; and, whether it 
be because "practice makes perfect" or be- 
cause Mr. Dann has exceptional ability for 
tilling the soil, it is an undeniable fact that 
he has been and is a very successful farmer, 
one who never "trusts to luck," but is guided 
by long experience and close observation, and 
believes in following defined methods, and 
not being influenced one way or the other by 
every "new fad" that may come up. He be- 
lieves that farming is a trade, just as clearly 
as blacksmithing or carpentering or any other 
occupation requiring the skilful use of tools 
is, the main difference being that the farmer 
has to find a market for what he produces, 
while the average mechanic simply has to pro- 
duce, without bothering about where the 
market is to be found. When his father died, 
Mr. Nathaniel Dann bought the interest of 
his brothers in the homestead farm, and has 
since made it his residence. 

He married Miss Mary L. Sheldon in 1866, 
but no children have blessed the union. Mrs. 
Dann is the daughter of Benjamin and Mary 
Sheldon, and comes from one of the oldest 
and best-known families in this part of the 
State. Mr. Dann has had neither the incli- 
nation nor the time to hold public oflfice to 
any extent, but has shirked none of his duties 
as a citizen, and at the present writing is a 
member of the Excise Board. In politics he 
is a Republican; and he cast his first Presi- 
dential vote for John C. Fremont in 1856. 

There are doubtless some residents of Avon 
that have more friends than the subject of this 
brief record, for he has not been so active as 
some in public affairs, and has not carried on 
a business which brought him in contact with 
a great many people; but it is safe to say that 
there is not a man who has fewer enemies, for 
the disposition shown by Mr. Dann to deal 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



justly by all and the kindly spirit which has 
actuated him in his intercourse with his fel- 
low-men have combined to prevent the forma- 
tion of bitter or revengeful feelings on the part 
of those with whom he has had anything to do. 




kRS. CORNELIA C. REACH, 
widow of the late Charles O. 
Beach, a deservedly esteemed 
lady residing at Geneseo, N.Y., 
was born in Groveland, being the daughter of 
William Doty and grand-daughter of William 
A. Doty, a native of New Jersey, who came 
to Groveland as a pioneer during the early 
settlement of the county, and cleared a tract 
of land, upon which he resided for many 
years, or until his decease, having been a 
very prominent man in his locality. The 
paternal grandmother of Mrs. Beach was also 
well known for her kind and charitable dis- 
position and her active benevolence. She 
reared eleven children, only two of whom are 
now living. 

William Doty was the fourth child of the 
family. He was trained to agricultural pur- 
suits, remaining with his parents until his 
marriage, at which time he rented a farm, and 
began life for himself. He later relinquished 
agriculture, and came to Geneseo, where he 
served efficiently for a number of years as 
Constable and Collector, gaining the unquali- 
fied respect and esteem of his fellow-towns- 
people, and faithfully performing the duties 
of his offices up to the time of his decease, at 
fifty-nine years of age. 

The maiden name of his wife, who was 
a native of Groveland, was Mary Harrison. 
Her family was distantly related to that of 
President Harrison. Mrs. Mary Doty became 
the mother of nine children, as follows: 
Lockwood L. ; John O. ; Charles F. ; Cornelia 
C. (Mrs. Beach); Elizabeth; William Harri- 
son; Nancy C, who married a Mr. Crook, of 
Bath; Helen Augusta, who married William 
A. Steavens, a hardware dealer in Geneseo; 
and Edward Eugene Doty. The mother died 
in Geneseo at the age of sixty-two years, both 
she and her husband having been members of 
the Presbyterian church. 



Cornelia C. Doty received her early educa- 
tion in the district schools, after graduating 
from which she attended Temple Hill Acad- 
emy. On September 5, 1853, she married 
Mr. Charles O. Beach, a son of John M. 
Beach, of South Dansville. Mr. Beach had 
received a college education, and after com- 
pleting his studies had entered mercantile 
life. He conducted a successful business as 
a dry-goods merchant in Geneseo for a period 
of forty-four years, after which he retired. 
He died at the age of seventy, on December 
25, 1893. As a business man he was well 
and favorably known throughout the county, 
and as a citizen occupied a prominent posi- 
tion. He was a member of the Presbyterian 
church, of which he was for som.e time a 
Trustee. 

Mr. and Mrs. Beach became the parents of 
four children, three of whom are now living. 
Ella M. Beach married David Pearson, of 
New Castle, and has one daughter, Cornelia, 
a girl of fifteen years; Charles, who was edu- 
cated at the normal school, died at the age of 
nineteen, loved and respected by all; Cornelia 
married David Boyles, of New Castle; Louise 
is the wife of Edward H. Chapin, a builder of 
engines, of Rochester, and they have one 
child, Elizabeth M. Chapin. 

Mrs. Cornelia C. Beach is a lady of much 
worth to the community, being of superior 
intelligence, with a thoroughly Christian 
character. Her daughters are highly accom- 
plished, the result of a mother's careful fore- 
thought, and possess much of the amiability, 
genial courtesy, and noble-mindedness of 
their late father, together with the highly- 
developed womanly qualities of their mother. 

Mrs. Beach and daughters are members o( 
the Presbyterian church. 



'AMES B. FRAZER, a well-known 
farmer and carriage dealer in Living- 
ston County, New York, was born in 
Springwater, the same county, Febru- 
ary 26, 1849. His grandfather, David 
Frazer, a farmer, was a resident of .Spring- 
water for many years, coming there from 
Pennsylvania among the first settlers. He 




JAMES B. FRAZER. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



3'3 



had a large family, and died in the town of 
West Sparta at the house of his son David, 
our subject's father. 

David Frazer, Jr., was also a farmer, re- 
maining at home until twenty-one years of 
age, then going to Sparta, where he purchased 
a farm, which he carried on successfully for 
many years, being a prominent Republican 
toward the' end of his life, and dying in 
1876, at the age of fifty-three. His wife was 
Maria Reamer, a daughter of John Reamer, a 
blacksmith, who came from Connecticut, and 
settled in Cayuga County, where she was 
born. David and Maria (Reamer) F"razer had 
six children — Warren B., of Wayland ; James 
B., of this sketch; Mary, married to Byron 
Blank, of Michigan, and deceased; Alice, 
who was married to Dr. Green, of Geneseo, 
and is now deceased ; John, deceased ; and 
Erwin D. Mrs. Frazer died at the age of 
sixty-nine, in May, 1892. She was a member 
of the Methodist church. 

James B. Frazer was brought by his [jarents 
to West Sparta when he was four months old, 
and resided here until 1895. After the death 
of his father, in the centennial year, he took 
possession of the old homestead. Twelve 
years later he purchased another farm, near 
by, successfully managing both. He has also 
been engaged in selling farming implements 
and wagons since 1888. In 1893 he formed a 
mercantile partnership with his brother, and 
cf)nducted the implement and wagon business 
in Dansville. He married August 20, 1874, 
Sarah Van Middlesworth, a daughter of John 
Van Middlesworth, of Cayuga County, New 
York, who settled in West Sparta among the 
pioneers. Sarah Van Middlesworth was one 
of her parents' three children. Her father 
spent his declining years in West Sparta and 
her mother is still living in that town. Mr. 
Frazer has seven children — Nellie, Mary, 
Julia, Ethel, John, Grace, and Mabel. He is 
a Republican in politics, and is an Odd Fel- 
low, belonging to Canaseraga Lodge, No. 
123, in Dansville. 

From the fact that Mr. Frazer has twice 
held the ofifices of Collector, and for ten years 
was Supervisor of the town of West Sparta, it 
is evident that he possesses the confidence of 



the people. He is a leader in political mat- 
ters in his town and county. In the fall of 
1894 he was nominated for the ofifice of Su- 
perintendent of the Poor, was elected, and 
was inducted into the ofifice January i, 1895, 
the term expiring December 31, 1897. He 
and his family attend the Presbyterian church 
at West Sparta. Perhaps Mr. Frazer' s suc- 
cess in political and social life is largely due 
to the fact that he is a great reader and 
thinker, and keeps abreast of his age and 
time. Says Lord Bacon — 

"Reading maketh a full man, conference a 
ready man, and writing an exact man." 

Mr. James B. Frazer is further represented 
in this volume by his portrait, which the 
reader will be pleased to turn his attention to 
on another page. 




RS. CORDELIA W. MORRILL, 
of Java, N.Y., is the widow of 
Henry E. Morrill, M.D., who 
was born in the city of Boston, 
and was educated at Phillips Academy and 
Amherst College. At the latter institution 
he was a fellow-student of Henry Ward 
Beecher; and between the two young colle- 
gians a warm and close friendship developed, 
which was in later years cemented by inti- 
mate association in Cincinnati and in Brook- 
lyn, where, soon after Mr. Beecher took the 
pastorate of Plymouth Church, Dr. Morrill 
was Deacon and Sunday-school superintend- 
ent. Dr. Morrill was an allopathic practi- 
tioner for some years, but latterly adopted the 
homoeopathic theory. He practised his pro- 
fession for seventeen years in Cincinnati, and 
removed in 1846 to Brooklyn, where he re- 
mained until his death. He was three times 
married. His first wife died of yellow fever 
in the first month of her married life, and he 
came very near death also by the very same 
dread disease. His second wife was Miss 
Cynthia Langdon before her marriage. She 
died in 1861 in the city of I^rooklyn, leaving 
one daughter and a foster-daughter. 

His third wife was Miss Cordelia Warner, 
who is the original of this biographical me- 
moir. Her parents, Milo and Lucina (Sykes) 



314 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Warner, were both of Vermont, where they 
were married in November, 1812. The father 
wa's born June 11, 1791, the mother on Jan- 
uary 4, 1790, in Pawlet, Rutland County, Vt. 
They came to Java, then known as Sheldon, 
in the winter of 1813-14, having just buried 
their first-born infant. The journey to Wyo- 
ming County was made on a sled drawn by 
two yokes of oxen: and the travelling party 
consisted of a family by the name of Paul, a 
maiden aunt of Mrs. Morrill, and the young 
married couple. The wayfarers were well 
provided with a chest of provisions, household 
goods, and clothing, and upon their arrival at 
their intended goal purchased a "claim " from 
a man named Cisco, who had built a log cabin 
in the depths of the virgin forest. Mr. 
Warner was one of the minute-men of the 
Revolutionary War, and in the later years of 
his life was a sufferer from rheumatism, which 
was the result of the exposure endured at that 
time. There were then only two or three 
houses this side of Strykersville, and the set- 
tlers suffered many hardships. Mr. Warner 
made potash, and 'carried it to market in Troy 
and New York by team. He cleared of its 
forest growth the farm, which at one time 
consisted of two hundred and fifty acres. 
Mrs. Morrill now owns one hundred acres of 
the original tract, having purchased it from 
her brother Myron in 1884; and in 1885 she 
built a handsome dwelling on the ancestral 
estate. 

Mr. Warner and his wife had twelve chil- 
dren. One son, Hiram Warner, died in his 
eighteenth year, January 1.4, 1843: and an 
infant made but a brief tarrying of nine 
months between the dates of birth and death. 
All the rest reached maturity. Philetus 
Warner died in 1881, aged sixty-one; he 
left a family, of whom the eldest son, Wen- 
dell Chapin Warner, is United States Consul 
to Burslem, England. The eldest son of Mr. 
and Mrs. Milo Warner, Adnah, who was a 
volunteer in the Civil War, died in Salisbury 
Prison, and fills an unknown grave; the only 
souvenir the parents have of him is a battered, 
old, worn tin cup, which with tender affection 
they have had mounted on a handsome silver 
memorial plate, engraved with an inscription 



that tells the story of the boy soldier. Myron 
Warner is a widower of eighty years, living 
on the old farm. Mary, the widow of Carson 
Bryant, in Java, is in her eightieth year. 
Cordelia, Mrs. Morrill, though seventy-seven, 
is in appearance many years younger. Phile- 
mon Warner, in Springville, Erie County, 
aged seventy-two. Pliny F. is a retired pub- 
lisher and minister in Havana, 111. Jacob 
Warner died on the shores of Seneca Lake in 
1885, at sixty-two years of age. Orpha, the 
wife of Philo Potter, died July 2, 1890. 
Frances T., the wife of A. U. Thompson, 
died in Connecticut, January 5, 1893, aged 
sixty-four. The mother of this family died 
on July 20, 1843, at fifty-three years of age; 
and Mr. Warner married again. The second 
wife was a widow, a Mrs. Patterson. 

Cordelia Warner was educated in the public 
schools of Java and at Strykersville and at 
LeRoy Seminary. She was a teacher for 
many years, beginning the career in which 
she was so successful at the early age of six- 
teen, first teaching in district schools and 
boarding around. She taught a select school 
in Ellicottsville two years, and then going to 
Brooklyn taught for eleven years in Packer 
Institute. She was married July 30, 1863, in 
Brooklyn by her brother, the Rev. Pliny F. 
Warner, to Dr. Morrill, of that city; and 
there they lived for eleven years, until her 
husband's death, March 6, 1874. Mrs. Mor- 
rill, in company with her step-daughter, 
Anna, now wife of Hugh M. Smith, M.D., an 
eminent physician of Brooklyn, made an ex- 
tended European trip in 1878 and 1879. They 
saw London, Naples, and Sorrento, not to 
mention many other places of interest; and 
they were in the "Eternal City" during the 
time that Pius IX. 's dead body lay in state, 
and witnessed the legal pomp of Leo XIII. 's 
coronation. From thence they came to Flor- 
ence, the "city of lilies," and up by the lakes 
to the famous Brenner Pass, Munich, Vienna, 
Lcipsic, Berlin, with a trip up the Rhine to 
Switzerland. Six months were spent in Paris 
on the return journey, and Holland and the 
field of Waterloo were also visited. Mrs. 
Morrill belongs to a family noted for physical 
strength as well as intellectual vigor; and she 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



3'S 



bears the burden of years as few women do, 
showing that it is possible to "grow old 
gracefully." 




\JOR HENRY V. COLT, a law- 
yer and an efficient officer in the 



Civil War, now living in retire- 
ment at his pleasantly situated 
home in Geneseo, Livingston County, N.Y., 
was born in this town, May i6, 1826. Major 
Colt's grandfather, James Donaldson Colt, 
was a native of Connecticut, but removed from 
there to I'ittsfield, Mass., while a young man. 
He married for his second wife Sylvia Will- 
iams, of that place; and they continued to 
reside in Pittsfield for the remainder of their 
lives, their son Charles, Major Colt's father, 
being born January 23, 1792. 

Charles Colt, after receiving his education 
in the town of his birth, turned his face west- 
ward for the purpose of commencing life for 
himself, and came to Geneseo in 1814, mak- 
ing the long journey on horseback. At that 
time the present thriving village was but a 
mere hamlet, and the surrounding country a 
dense wilderness. 

Upon his arrival in Geneseo Mr. Colt imme- 
diately engaged in mercantile business, which 
he was necessarily obliged to carrry on under 
great disadvantage, owing to the long distance 
from the source of supply and the meagre 
facilities then afforded for transportation. 
His goods were purchased in New York, car- 
ried up the Hudson River in sloops to Al- 
bany, and thence hauled to Geneseo by team. 
He conducted a general mercantile trade for 
a few years, after which he engaged very ex- 
tensively in the produce business, continuing 
the same for more than forty years. He 
resided in Geneseo until his death, which oc- 
curred at the age of seventy-four years. His 
wife, whose maiden name was Ann Smith, 
was a native of Pittsfield, Mass. She died at 
the age of sixty-one, having reared three chil- 
dren. The only daughter, Mrs. Mary Ann 
Walker, now a widow, resides with her sur- 
viving brother, Henry V. The other son, 
Charles Colt, Jr., died in i860. 

Henry \'. Colt received his education at 



Temple Hill Academy, and at the age of 
seventeen began the study of law with the 
Hon. John Young. He was admitted to the 
bar at the age of twenty-two, but did not 
enter at once into practice. He went to 
Ohio, where he became interested in railway 
construction, and also forwarded the introduc- 
tion of a patent excavator, which was operated 
by horse power. In 1857 he began the prac- 
tice of law in Geneseo, and was actively 
engaged in his professional duties until i86r, 
when the great national crisis and impending 
struggle called him to duty in another direc- 
tion; and he joined the One Hundred and 
Fourth Infantry, New York Volunteers, as 
Quartermaster. In 1863 he was promoted to 
the rank of Major, and subsequently was 
placed in command of the Elmira Prison, con- 
tinuing in service until 1865, when he became 
connected with the Elmira Advertiser^ and 
was engaged in journalism until 1873. He 
then returned to Geneseo, where he now lives 
in the enjoyment of a well-earned retirement. 
In 1849 Major Colt married Miss Sarah 
Shepard, a native of Geneseo, born in 1826. 
She was the daughter of David Shepard, a na- 
tive of Connecticut, whose father, Cornelius 
Shepard, was born in East Haddam, in the 
same State. Mrs. Colt's grandfather Shepard 
was a blacksmith by trade, and also kept a 
public house in Hebron. He came to Liv- 
ingston County in 1832, and settled in Grove- 
land, where he purchased a farm. He married 
Sarah Skinner, a native of Marlboro, Conn., 
and they reared thirteen children. Their son 
David, father of Mrs. Colt, was bred to agri- 
cultural pursuits, and resided in Connecticut 
until 1817, when, accompanied by his bride, 
he emigrated to Western New York, journey- 
ing by team, and settling in the town of Gen- 
eseo. David Shepard was a man of more than 
ordinary intelligence, and possessed an ad- 
vanced education. He divided his time be- 
tween farming and teaching school. He also 
dealt largely in real estate, being very suc- 
cessful in all his ventures, and at one time 
owned extensive tracts of land in Michigan. 
He resided in Geneseo until his death, in 
185 1, at the age of fifty-nine years. The 
maiden name of his wife, Mrs. Colt's mother. 



3i6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



was Sally Olmstead Foote. She was a native 
of Marlboro, Conn., and daughter of Roger and 
Elmira (Bulkly) Foote. She died in 1889, 
aged eighty-nine years. 

Mr. and Mrs. Henry V. Colt have two sons 
— James V. and Henry V., Jr. Major Colt 
is a representative of that highly intelligent 
and progressive class of Americans who are 
an honor to the nation, the State, and the 
community in which they reside. Possessed 
of a strong and upright character, embracing 
many sterling qualities, he unhesitatingly 
laid aside all his ambitions and possibilities 
to respond to his country's call in her press- 
ing need, prepared, if necessary, to sacrifice 
his life in defence of those humane and patri- 
otic principles which the true American citi- 
zen considers it his paramount duty to support. 

Major Colt is and always has been a Repub- 
lican in politics, and both himself and wife 
are communicants of the Episcopal church. 



/m-c 



EORGE S. ELLICOTT, editor and 
% '•) I proprietor of the Mount Morris 
^ — ^ Union, was born in Lockport, Niag- 
ara County, N.Y., November 3, 1857, and 
was the son of George M. Ellicott, born in 
Batavia, Genesee County, N.Y. His grand- 
father, who was for a number of years a resi- 
dent of Batavia, was a brother of Joseph 
Ellicott, surveyor in chief and local agent for 
nearly a quarter of a century of the Holland 
Land Company, a man of unusual ability and 
powerful influence. 

George M. Ellicott was a young boy when 
he lost his father. He continued to reside 
with his widowed mother, and obtained a good 
education in the schools of the town. A few 
years after his marriage he enlisted in the 
Civil War, and for gallant conduct was pro- 
moted tn the rank of Major. He was with the 
Army of the Potomac, and participated in its 
many engagements, remaining in the service 
till the close of the conflict. Resuming then 
the pursuits of peace, he purchased a farm in 
Middletown, Montgomery County, Mo., but 
later engaged in the mercantile business in 
Middletown, removing from that place to 
Wellsville, where he resided until his death, 



in 1892. He was twice married, his first 
wife, the mother of the subject of this sketch, 
being Maria T. Sears. She was born in Mas- 
sachusetts, the daughter of Simon and Hannah 
Sears, and died in Missouri. Four of her 
children grew up — Loverne, George, Annie, 
and Edward. Mrs. Ellicott was a member nf 
the Episcopal church, and her children were 
reared in that faith. In young manhood Mr. 
Ellicott was an extensive traveller on the 
Western continent, visiting South America 
and the Pacific coast of North America. 

George S. Ellicott, being a mere child when 
his mother died, came East, and went to live 
with his maternal grandparents in Batavia. 
He was there educated, and there resided until 
July 21, 1875, when he went to Mount Mor- 
ris, and learned the printer's trade in the 
office of the Mount Morris Enterprise. He 
remained here for a period of two years, and 
then went to Dansville to accept the position 
of foreman in the ofiice of the Dansville Ex- 
press., but at the end of eleven months i-e- 
turned to the office of the Enterprise. In 
1 88 1 he bought out the business and the 
good will of the Mount Morris Union and 
Constitution., and had for a partner John C. 
Dickey. The paper was Democratic; but 
they changed the politics, and named the 
paper the Mount Morris Union. Mr. Dickey 
was associated with Mr. Ellicott until the fall 
of 1893, when Mr. Ellicott purchased the 
entire business ; and has since conducted the 
paper alone. In connection with this he runs 
a job office, and is also interested in the in- 
surance business, representing a number of 
the leading companies, including Springfield, 
Hartford, Lancashire, German American, and 
others. 

In June, 1880, Mr. Ellicott married Jennie 
E. Sargent, who was born in Mount Morris, 
daughter of George and Aurelia Sargent. 
They have two children — Harry and Ralph. 
Mr. and Mrs. Ellicott are communicants of 
the Episcopal church; and he is a stanch 
Republican, as his paper most forcibly indi- 
cates. He is a member of the Mount Morris 
Lodge, No. 122, A. F. & A. M., of the An- 
cient Order of United Workmen of Mount 
Morris, and of the Active Hose Company. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



317 



He holds the office of Loan Commissioner for 
Livingston County, having been appointed by 
Governor Morton. Unswerving in his alle- 
giance to principle, an earnest champion of 
the cause that he deems just and right, he 
commands the respect of the community at 
large. 



ll^^OYAL WHITNEY is a leading farmer 
I '■-^ 'I'l*^! lumberman in the town of Ossian, 
JJd\ Livingston County, N.Y., having a 

^^""^ large estate about six miles from 
Dansville, on the main road to Canaseraga. 
He was born in the town of Burns, Allegany 
County, on the 22d of March, 1S47. H's 
grandfather, Ezra Whitney, was a Vermont 
farmer, who came to Allegany County, accom- 
panied by his wife and children, with an ox 
team. They brought with them four cows, 
the milk being placed in receptacles in the 
wagon, and, as they drove along, the cream was 
churned by the motion of the wagon into ex- 
cellent butter, which was sold as opportunity 
offered. They settled in a locality which 
later was named Whitney's Valley, a title it 
still bears. Everywhere stretched the forest, 
which soon furnished logs for a cabin and 
saw-mill, his sons conducting the mill. As 
fast as the land was cleared, the lumber was 
sold. This led to an extensive trade and the 
purchase of additional land, so that at his 
death, at an advanced age, he left a large es- 
tate. His wife was a Vermont woman, and 
belonged to a family of Hookers, who settled 
that section of Allegany County which has 
since been known as Angelica, and is the 
county seat. At their decease Mrs. Whit- 
ney's parents owned a large amount of land. 
By her marriage with Mr. Whitney she be- 
came the mother of nine children — Horace, 
Esau, Jacob, Erastus, Seva, Royal, Andrew, 
Patty, and Sally. The mother died on the 
homestead. 

Their sixth child and fifth son. Royal Whit- 
ney, Sr., was born in Rutland, Vt., but early 
came with his parents to York State, where 
he grew up a lumberman and farmer, staying 
on the home place, which he aided in clear- 
ing, till he was thirty years old. Having an 



intense love of books, he read whatever came 
in his way, and was a diligent pupil in the 
log school-house, so that he became a man of 
more than usual intelligence. He followed 
the profession of teaching for many years. 
For fifteen years he kept a store in Canase- 
raga, and was very prominent in village 
affairs. At the time of his marriage he went 
West, but after a short time returned, and 
settled in Livingston (then Allegany County), 
where he bought the tract of land still occu- 
pied by his widow and three of their sons, one 
of the latter being Royal Whitney of this 
sketch. In all, Mr. Whitney came to be the 
owner of nearly twelve hundred acres, whereof 
a thousand were in a single piece. Thereon 
he owned grist, flour, and saw mills, but did 
not confine himself to either agriculture or 
mill work, and for eight or ten years had a 
store in connection with the late Robert 
Faulkner, at Dansville. He died on his farm 
at the age of eighty-four. His wife was Mary 
Elsie Boylan, a daughter of Samuel and Betsy 
Boylan, who were among the earliest pioneers 
of the county, and owned a tract of a thousand 
acres. They settled in this region when it 
was fifteen miles from the nearest mill; and 
Mr. Boylan at one time carried a bushel of 
wheat on his shoulder to Canandaigua, to have 
it ground into flour. Mrs. Whitney was the 
youngest of the Boylan children, the others 
being Harris, John, Firman, Isaac, Christo- 
pher, Samuel, and Fanny. 

Mr. and Mrs. Whitney became the parents 
of ten children, six of whom are living. 
They were as follows: Annduane married 
John K. Barrager, who was killed in the battle 
of Cold Harbor during the Rebellion; Emma 
Jane is the wife of O. J. Deane, of Rockford, 
la. ; Angelica J. was named for the county 
seat; the next daughter was Sarah Elizabeth; 
then came Seva; Samuel and Ezra were twins; 
Royal is our subject; the next boy, born in 
1852, was named after General Winfield Scott, 
whose fame was uppermost in the American 
mind; the youngest was born in 1857, and 
named Charles Sumner, after that distin- 
guished son of Massachusetts, who was then" 
suffering on account of his adherence to the 
principles of freedom. Their mother is still 



3x8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



with her children, a brisk old lady of eighty- 
five, having been born in 1810; and her home 
is chiefly with her son Charles, who occupies 
a farm adjoining the home place, though all 
her children are glad to have her in their 
households. The Whitney family attend the 
Methodist church. 

Royal Whitney, Jr., resided on the parental 
farm until 1877, in which year he went West, 
as his father before him had done, and took a 
subcontract on the Seattle Division of the 
Northern Pacific Railroad. This task com- 
pleted, he returned Kast, summoned by his 
father's failing health, and ultimately came 
into possession of the parental estate. He 
has had enough to do in carrying on his land, 
but also has a saw-mill, and is actively en- 
gaged in the lumber traffic. In politics he is 
a Democrat. He is a true patriot, and served 
in Company G of the Two Hundred and 
Eleventh Pennsylvania Regiment for fifteen 
months, part of his time being passed in the 
hospital on account of sickness, he at the 
time being only a boy of sixteen. 

It has been said by a great preacher, " In- 
dustry has annexed thereto the fairest fruits 
and the richest rewards." In pondering the 
lessons of such lives as are here commemo- 
rated, one cannot help being impressed with 
the workful habit which has led at least three 
generations into similar lines of successful 
life. 



JECKLEY HOWES, whose ancestors 
were among the very earliest settlers 
in Wyoming, is a retired farmer re- 
siding at Bliss, in the town of Eagle, 
and is descended from the sturdy New Eng- 
land race, which has been mainly instrumen- 
tal in developing the unlimited agricultural 
resources of Western New York. 

Mr. Howes was born in the town in which 
he resides, August 14, 1827, and is a son of 
Norman Howes, a native of Richfield, Otsego 
County, whose father, Alvin Howes, was born 
in the town of Dennis, Barnstable County, 
Mass., where he was reared to agricultural 
life. Coming to the Empire State among the 
early pioneers, he settled at Richfield, Otsego 



County, upon a tract of wild land, from which 
he cleared a valuable farm, and upon it resided 
for many years, moving thence to Covington, 
Wyoming County, where he again accepted 
cheerfully the not altogether agreeable lot of 
a pioneer. 

Many of these old settlers, civilizers though 
they were, seemed to prefer Nature in all her 
grandeur, and were happier when reclaiming 
savage life than while reaping the results of 
their labor, and of such was Mr. Howe's 
grandfather; for, not content with bringing 
two farms to a state of cultivation, he again 
penetrated the wilderness, purchasing fifty 
acres of untouched land in the town of Eagle, 
upon which he erected his primitive log shel- 
ter, and proceeded to repeat that which he 
had already twice accomplished. Wolves and 
bears were plentiful, both being exceedingly 
troublesome; but deer, with which the forests 
abounded, were very welcome. He toiled on 
unceasingly, and ere long had the satisfaction 
of seeing the giant forests again bow before 
his mighty and unshakable will, the result of 
his hardy efforts being a 
cultivated. Here he lived 
of his life, having labored 
the advancement of civilization. 

He reared a family of seven children, two 
sons and five daughters. At an early age 
Norman Howes entered into the spirit of his 
father's calling. He completed what little 
education it was possible for him to procure, 
in the mean time assisting his father in the 
farm duties, and then acquired and cleared a 
farm of his own, which he gradually added to 
as circumstances permitted, and upon it re- 
sided for many years, later removing to Bliss, 
where he passed the remainder of his life, 
dying at the advanced age of eighty-three 
years and ten months. His wife, whose 
maiden name was Cornelia Hurlburt, was born 
in Connecticut, and was a daughter of Barzilla 
Hurlburt. She became the mother of five 
children, three of whom attained their major- 
ity, as follows: Beckley, Norman R., and 
Wealthy. The latter is the wife of Leverett 
S. Baker, who is now living retired in this 
town, and a short record of whom appears 
elsewhere in this work. The mother spent 



third farm, well 
for the remainder 
long and well for 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



319 



her declining years in Bliss, and passed from 
earth at the age of seventy-three years. 

Beckley Howes, like his father, inherited 
from his ancestors a love and inclination for 
Nature's sovereign labor, the cultivation of 
the soil; and this admirable characteristic 
was carefully trained by his father, who im- 
parted to his son a thorough and complete 
knowledge of agriculture in all its many 
branches. He received the best possible edu- 
cation to be obtained in the common schools, 
and on becoming of age assumed full manage- 
ment of the old home farm, which he still 
owns, at a later period removing to Bliss, 
where he has since resided. 

On the 1st of January, 1859, Mr. Howes 
was united in marriage with Miss Charity 
Hiller, a daughter of Jacob I. Hiller. Mr. 
Hiller was a native of the town of Eagle, and 
was a master carpenter. His wife was Mary 
Pool; and to them were born eight children, 
six of whom are still living — Marie, Jane 
Ann, Harriett, John N., Charity, and Mary. 
The father died in Castile, at the age of 
eighty; and the mother passed away at the 
age of fifty-six years. Mr. and Mrs. Howes 
have one son, John, who married Miss Carrie 
Hurlburt. He is manager of the foundry. 

Mr. Howes has been a member of the Ma- 
sonic fraternity for nearly forty years, and is 
connected with Wyoming Chapter, No. 181, 
Knights Templars. He has filled various 
offices in the lodge. He is a Republican in 
politics, and has served as Supervisor and 
Collector two terms and as Loan Commis- 
sioner six years. In his religious views he is 
liberal, but always ready to champion the 
right. 




"OWDIN COVEY, a shrewd and care- 
ful business man, and one of Dal- 
ton's most respected citizens, 
engaged in agricultural pursuits 
upon arriving at the estate of manhood, and 
with marked energy, enterprise, and judicious 
management prosecuted his chosen calling, 
meeting with unbounded success, and adding 
greatly each changing season to his material 
wealth. He is a native of the Empire State, 



having been born in Monroe County, October 
2, 1830. 

Mr. Covey's father, Eldaah Covey, was 
born in Columbia County, in the town of 
Coxsackie, and while a resident of that place 
learned the trade of a carpenter and joiner, 
which he followed as a means of earning a 
livelihood. He was located for a time in 
Monroe County, but removed to Livingston 
County in 1840, settling in Mount Morris, 
where he followed his trade for upward of 
twoscore years. In 1884 he removed to Iowa, 
making his home with one of his sons, and 
there departed this life at the venerable age 
of fourscore and four years. He was united in 
marriage with Rachel Howdin, a daughter of 
John Howdin, of Seneca County, and to them 
six children were born, namely: Phcebe, who 
now lives in Wisconsin; Naomi, a resident of 
Allegany County; Enos, who is deceased; 
Tamer, also deceased; Ann, who resides in 
Milwaukee, Wis. ; and Howdin, of whom we 
write. The mother died in the town of 
Nunda. 

The early years of the subject of this per- 
sonal narration were spent in the place of his 
birth, and his education was principally ac- 
quired in the schools of Parma. As soon as 
old enough to become self-supporting, Mr. 
Covey secured work as a farm laborer, and 
worked one year for Captain Bagley, of 
Nunda. Naturally industrious and cultivat- 
ing the spirit of economy and thrift, he saved 
part of his hard-earned wages, and with this 
money purchased a farm in Allegany County, 
where he engaged in mixed husbandry until 
1859. Having an opportunity to sell at an 
advantage, Mr. Covey then disposed of his 
property there, and returning to Mount Morris 
engaged in general farming and stock-raising 
until 1891, when he bought the house and lot 
where he now lives at Dalton. He may be 
properly ranked among the self-made men of 
the county, having begun his career at the 
foot of the ladder of life, but by energetic 
labor and prudent management has worked his 
way toward the summit of success. In what- 
ever community he has resided Mr. Covey 
has made his influence felt, and has taken an 
active interest in local affairs, having served 



320 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



as Excise Commissioner nine years, and in 
1 891 was appointed Highway Commissioner. 
Socially, he is a member of the Masonic fra- 
ternity, belonging to Kisaqua Lodge at 
Nunda. In politics he is a sound Democrat, 
and cast his first Presidential vote in 1856 for 
James Buchanan. 

With the natural desire to establish a home 
and surround himself with domestic ties, Mr. 
Covey wedded Miss Laura Jones, a daughter 
of Samuel and Loretta Jones ; and she has 
been to him a most devoted companion and 
counsellor. Sorrow, however, has not passed 
them by untouched, but has laid its chasten- 
ing hand heavily upon them in the death of 
their three beautiful children, leaving their 
home desolate and childless; but their hearts 
are cheered and uplifted by the abiding faith 
that assures them a joyful reunion in the 
eternal world bevond. 



-EREMIAH C. RIPPEY, of the town of 
York, was born in Ontario County, 
New York, on the 14th of November, 
1827. His grandfather, John Rippey, 
was a native of Pennsylvania, in which State 
he always lived. George Rippey, the father 
of Jeremiah C, was a tanner and currier in 
Pennsylvania, and did not migrate from that 
section until his maturity, receiving his edu- 
cation in the common schools of his native 
State. Upon his arrival in Ontario County 
he purchased a tract of one hundred acres, 
which had never been turned by spade or har- 
row. Here he built a frame house, and be- 
fore his death had cleared not only this tract, 
but also two other neighboring ones, which 
he had purchased. His wife, also a Pennsyl- 
vanian, was Miss Margery Chamberline. 
Eight children were born to this couple, as 
follows: John; Hamilton; Mary A.; Sarah; 
George O. ; Jeremiah C; Elizabeth (first), 
who died in infancy; and Elizabeth. The 
father died when eighty-two years old, his 
wife departing this life at the age of eight}'- 
three. 

Jeremiah C. Rippey, whose name is the 
caption of this sketch, was educated in the 
district schools of Ontario County, and 



worked on the homestead farm until he was 
thirty-six years old, having during that time 
gradually bought out the heirs. Finding him- 
self the sole owner of the estate, he traded the 
place for a farm in Michigan, to which he 
moved, and where he remained for six years. 
In 1S70 the Michigan farm was exchanged for 
the one in the town of York upon which he 
now resides. 

In January, 1865, Mr. Rippey married Miss 
Laura Eaton, a daughter of Jesse Eaton, of 
Dundee, Yates County. This union has been 
blessed with four children — Sarah E., Ham- 
ilton, Jesse, and M. Belle. Hamilton mar- 
ried Miss Emma Biggart, of York, and is a 
farmer in this town. Sarah has been for sev- 
eral terms a teacher in the village schools. 

Mr. Rippey has served as Highway Com- 
missioner, and proved himself an efficient and 
active officer. From 1852, when he cast his 
first Presidential vote for Franklin Pierce, he 
has been faithful to the principles held by 
that political party of the United States known 
as the Democracy. Both husband and wife 
are united by the bond of a common faith, and 
are members of the United Presbyterian 
church. 



/§> 



EORGE S. PUTNAM, of Mount Mor- 
\ •) I ris, occupies a high social position 
among its residents. He is of New 
England ancestry and birth, the town of Dal- 
ton, which is picturesquely situated among 
the hills of Berkshire County, Mass., being 
the place of his nativity, and August 9, 1840, 
his natal day. His father, Sardis Putnam, 
was born in Middlefiekl, Mass. ; and the 
grandfather, James Putnam, was, as far as 
known, a life-long resident of that Massachu- 
setts town. 

Sardis Putnam learned the trade of shoe- 
making in the days of his early manhood, and 
after following that occupation in Middlefield 
and Dalton for a number of years migrated to 
this State, locating at Cayuga Bridge, Cayuga 
County, in 1850. After a short residence 
there he removed to Montezuma, where he 
lived a few months. Coming then to Mount 
Morris, he became identified with its citizen- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



321 



ship until called from earthly scenes in 1852, 
being then fifty-six years of age. His wife, 
who in the days of her maidenhood was Dor- 
cas Starr, was a native of Middlcfield, Mass., 
and a sister of Martin Starr, a brief sketch of 
whose life is given in connection with the 
history of Samuel Starr, which may be found 
on another page of this work. She lived to 
the advanced age of seventy-seven years, and 
was the mother of five children; namely, 
Frank, George S., Martha, Mary, and Edwin. 

George S. Putnam, of whom we write, was 
ten years of age when he accompanied his par- 
ents to Cayuga County. He received a sub- 
stantial education; but, ere he had settled to 
any decided occupation, the tocsin of war 
resounded throughout the land, wakening the 
slumbering fires of patriotism in many a 
breast; and in August, 1862, Mr. Putnam 
took his place with the brave volunteers, en- 
listing as a member of Company B, One Hun- 
dred and Thirtieth New York Volunteer In- 
fantry, which the following year was changed 
to the New York Dragoons. He served with 
his regiment, which was one of the most ac- 
tive of the entire army, until the close of the 
war, and was an active participant in forty- 
four engagements. During the battle of Cold 
Harbor he was severely wounded, and doomed 
to hospital life for three or four months, but 
subsequently rejoined his regiment, remaining 
with it until after the grand review, and was 
honorably discharged in June, 1865. 

Returning to Mount Morris, Mr. Putnam 
was employed at different kinds of work until 
1 87 1, when he went to Ratavia, and was there 
engaged in the manufacture of brooms for a 
number of years. In 1878 he and his wife 
accepted positions as teachers in the Institute 
for the Blind at Batavia, remaining there four 
years, at the expiration of which time they 
came to Mount Morris. Mr. Putnam has 
since been associated with Samuel Starr in 
farming, they carrying on an extensive busi- 
ness. In 1866 he was united in marriage 
with Miss Mary Johnson, a native of Mount 
Morris, and a daughter of John Johnson. 

Mr. Putnam is a man of influence in his 
community, and is prominently identified 
with many social organizations, being a mem- 



ber of J. E. Lee Post, No. 281, Grand Army 
of the Republic, of Mount Morris Lodge, No. 
122, A. F. & A. M., of Mount Morris Chap- 
ter, No. 137, R. A. M., of Belwood Lodge, 
No. 315, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, 
and of Alert Council, No. 25, E. K. O. R. 




ILLIAM F. JOHNSON, a well- 
known business man of Wyoming 
County, an extensive dealer in all 
kinds of general merchandise at Gainesville, 
was born in this town, January 19, 1842. 
His father, James Johnson, was a native of 
Montgomery County in this State, and was 
the son of Simpson Johnson, also of that 
county, who removed to Gainesville, where he 
spent his declining years. James Johnson 
learned the trade of a shoemaker, which he 
followed exclusively for a time; and when, on 
coming to Gainesville, he spent his days in 
clearing and improving his tract of timber 
land, he worked at his trade in the evening. 
Here he soon established a shop, in which he 
manufactured shoes for the trade, the shoes 
being hand-made, of course, and in much de- 
mand. He later entered mercantile business 
in East Pike, which he conducted for twenty 
years, and died there at the age of seventy- 
six. James Johnson had three children by 
his first wife. His second wife was Elizabeth 
Ellis, who was born on a farm in Pike, where 
her father, John Ellis, was a farmer and 
among the early settlers of that town. She 
reared six children — Norman, John, Will- 
iam F., Emeline, Adeline, and Catharine — 
all of whom are living. Norman resides on 
the old homestead. The mother died at La- 
mont, or East Pike, at the age of seventy- 
eight. The parents were members of the 
Methodist church. 

William F. Johnson spent his early boy- 
hood in Gainesville, and at the age of eleven 
years removed with his parents to Pike, where 
he worked in his father's shop until fifteen 
years of age. He then commenced business 
on his own account, having a severe struggle; 
but in 1865 he succeeded in establishing him- 
self on firm ground, and had a shop in which 
he employed seven men and in which he con- 



322 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



tinned for one year. He then went to Michi- 
gan; but after a brief sojourn in that State 
he returned to Gainesville, and purchased a 
house, together with a shoe-shop, in which he 
resumed his trade. He soon commenced to 
increase his business by purchasing ready- 
made boots and shoes in small quantities, and 
in 1 87 1 established himself as a grocer and 
shoe dealer, purchasing thirteen hundred dol- 
lars' worth of groceries. Continuing to ad- 
vance in prosperity, later he moved to his 
present store, which he enlarged from twenty- 
six by forty feet to twenty-six by eighty; and 
his present stock of goods is the largest in 
Wyoming County, including groceries, dry 
goods, notions, ready-made clothing, wall 
papers, paints and oils, crockery, glass-ware, 
carpets, oil cloths, and other articles of every- 
day need. He also has a complete stock of 
drugs, being a licensed druggist. He has a 
large library, comprising standard historical 
and other books and choice works of fiction. 
He started in business with nothing for a 
capital but brains and energy, and with these 
he has established a successful and highly 
lucrative trade. 

In 1866 Mr. Johnson was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Dorcas Tice, daughter of Joseph 
Tice, a farmer, formerly of Springville, who 
died in Lamont. Mr. Johnson by this his 
first marriage had one daughter, who married 
Walter F. Webb, a dealer in minerals and a 
taxidermist, who mounts and sells all kinds 
of stuffed birds and animals. They have one 
child, Ruth May. Mr. Johnson's first wife 
died in 1883, at the age of forty-nine. She 
was a member of the Congregational church. 
His second wife, whose maiden name was 
Jennie E. Mason, was born at Orchard Park, 
daughter of Andrew S. Mason, a ship carpen- 
ter, the father of Charles R. Mason, a sketch 
of whom appears elsewhere in this work. 
Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have four children — 
Florence M., Mason F., James Arthur, and 
Charles George. 

In politics Mr. Johnson has always been a 
Democrat, but will in the future vote the Re- 
publican ticket. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson are 
very prominent members of the Methodist 
church at Gainesville. He was formerly a 



member of the Congregational church, having 
held many offices in that denomination. He 
takes a great interest in church affairs, and 
was superintendent of the Sunday-school of 
the Congregational church for many years, 
doing much to sustain and increase its useful- 
ness. Mr. Johnson has worked his way up to 
a high position in the mercantile world; and 
his success may be largely attributed to his 
rigid honesty and integrity, as well as to his 
good judgment and his adherence to good busi- 
ness methods. 




OMER SACKETT, superintendent of 
water-works in Avon, N.Y., was 
born in the town of Mendon, Mon- 
roe County, in 1823. He has re- 
sided in Avon for more than forty years, and 
is one of the most widely known and highly 
respected citizens of this beautiful town, hold- 
ing an important public office, the duties of 
which he most ably performs. His father. 
Colonel Orange Sackett, was a native of War- 
ren, Conn. ; and his grandfather, Homer Sack- 
ett, whose name he bears, was a life-long 
resident of that State, being a farmer by occu- 
pation from first to last. 

Colonel Orange Sackett came to Monroe 
County, New York, about 181 5,' and for a 
number of years followed a variety of call- 
ings, such as farming, selling goods in gen- 
eral stores, and school teaching. He is still 
remembered as one of the most successful 
teachers in that region. Finally he opened a 
general merchandise store on his own account 
at Riga, Monroe County, and after carrying it 
on for fourteen years sold out, and removed to 
the town of York, Livingston County, where 
he bought a farm of six hundred acres, only 
twenty acres of which were cleared. This 
was in 1833, or eleven years after his mar- 
riage. The first work he had to do on 
his rmimproved farm, which was very nearly a 
square mile in area, was to repair the old log 
house; and in this he and his family lived for 
many years. In 1822 Colonel Sackett was 
married to Amanda Minerv'a Sheldon, of the 
town of Sheffield, Berkshire County, Mass. 
They reared eight children, four boys and 




HOMER SACKETT. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



325 



four girls; and at the present writing but one 
member of this large family has been removed 
by death. A portion of the original farm 
still remains in the possession of the Sackett 
family, it being owned by Samuel, the fifth 
child born to Colonel Orange and Amanda. 

Their first-born was Homer, the subject of 
this sketch, who was ten years old when they 
removed to York. He received the rudi- 
ments of his education in the Monroe County 
district schools, and then attended an acad- 
emy in Connecticut, and later the Lima Semi- 
nary. Like his grandfather, Homer Sackett 
has always been a farmer; and on April 4, 
1853, he came to Avon, and rented one of the 
Wadsworth farms. After living there for 
about eighteen years, in 1871 he bought the 
farm he now occupies. He has erected new 
buildings, and has improved the property in 
various other ways, it now being considered 
one of the most desirable estates in this 
section. 

Very nearly half a century ago, in 1846, 
Homer Sackett married Margaret McKenzie, 
daughter of John D. and Catherine (Mc- 
Arthur) McKenzie. Mr. John D. McKen- 
zie's father came from Scotland with his wife 
and seven children, settled in York, and had 
three children born to him after his arrival in 
this country. He took up a farm at York in 
1804, and passed the rest of his days there, 
dying in 1826. Mrs. Sackett's parents moved 
to Canada, where her mother died. Her 
father married again, removed to Winnipeg, 
and there made his home till his death. 

Homer Sackett has five children living — 
Orange, Edgar G., Charles H., Sarah A., and 
Cora M. Orange married Ella Briggs, re- 
sides in Iowa, and has one child — Irma 
Sackett. Edgar married Adelaide Brayton, 
and has two children — Edgar G. and Carrie. 
Charles married Hattie Robinson, and has two 
children — Homer and Margaret. Sarah mar- 
ried Charles F. Gwynne, and has two children 
— Cora M. and Ella Gwynne; and Cora M. 
.Sackett married Samuel P. Harman, and has 
four children — Orange S., Samuel P., Mar- 
gharita D., and Phoebe A. Harman. 

Mr. Homer Sackett was appointed inspec- 
tor of the Avon water-works when they were 



put in, in 1888, and now holds the position 
of superintendent. He served as Supervisor 
of the town in 187 1, has been Assessor for 
fifteen years, and has discharged his respon- 
sible duties in such a manner as to reflect 
credit on himself and the town he represents. 
He cast his first Presidential vote in 1844, for 
Henry Clay, but has been a Republican since 
the formation of that party. 

A speaking likeness of Mr. Sackett will be 
found among the portraits of men of mark in 
Livingston and Wyoming Counties that illus- 
trate this volume. 




Nichols, 
England, 



URTON C. NICHOLS, a prominent 
citizen of York, was born in Ben- 
nington County, Vermont, August 
3, 1816. His grandfather, James 
was a clergyman of the Church of 
and had to make a voyage across 
the Atlantic in oi'der to be installed in 
priestly office, there being at that time no 
bishop in America. The father of Burton C. 
Nichols, Charles Nichols, was a native of 
Vermont, who came with his wife and three 
children in a wagon to Genesee County. He 
took up his abode in Bethany, where he plied 
his cobbler's trade, remaining there until his 
death, at the age of sixty-six years. His wife 
was Mary Bristol, of Vermont; and she be- 
came the mother of nine children ; namely, 
Mary, Marshall, Gaylord, Chloe, Cyrus, Hor- 
ace, Amy, Anna, and Burton C. Cyrus has 
children living in Genesee County. 

Burton C. Nichols was educated in the 
schools of Genesee County and at Wyoming 
Academy. After reaching man's estate he 
went into the produce business in Piffard, 
supplying the demands of the Genesee Valley 
Canal for twenty-eight years. When the 
canal was abandoned, he gave up this busi- 
ness, and became a farmer. For thirteen 
years he has been in the employment of the 
Craig W. Wadsworth estate, the length of 
this engagement being conclusive proof of 
his efficiency. About fifteen years ago Mr. 
Nichols's house was destroyed by fire. Since 
that time he has erected another handsomer 
residence, which he has occupied since Au- 



326 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



gust 3, 1887. On the 18th of February, 
1840, he married Miss Charlotte Hallack, 
daughter of John D. and Sarah (Bartholf) 
Hallack, of Bethany, Genesee County. They 
have reared four children, as follows: George 
A., Ellen, Charles B., and Marshall H. 
George A. married Miss Kitty Fish; and 
they have a family of four sons — Lee, Burton, 
Theodore, and Harold. Marshall married 
Miss Nellie Carroll. 

Burton C. Nichols has held prominent 
offices in the town and county. He has been 
Assessor for twelve years. Justice of the Peace 
nine years, and Highway Commissioner for 
several years. He has been a faithful adhe- 
rent to the Republican party since 1840, when 
he cast his first vote for William H. Harri- 
son in the "Tippecanoe" campaign. 




NDREW J. BURROUGHS, a substan- 
tial and enterprising agriculturist of 
the town of Portage, is engaged in 
general farming, to which he de- 
votes his entire attention, and is meeting with 
unbounded success. He is an extensive real 
estate owner, being the possessor of one hun- 
dred and sixty-four acres of choice land, all of 
which is under a good state of improvement, 
the whole constituting one of the finest pieces 
of property in the community. A native of 
the Empire State, Mr. Burroughs first opened 
his eyes to the light of this beautiful world in 
the town of Fayette, Seneca County, on the 
24th of April, 1835, being a son of Philip 
Burroughs, who was born in New Jersey. 
The latter removed with his family from Sen- 
eca County to Portage in 1837, making the 
three days' journey with teams. He bought 
fifty acres of land from William Marks, and 
to this added other land by purchase, at one 
time being the owner of three hundred acres. 
In addition to farming he was for several 
years the proprietor and manager of a good 
hotel, which was well patronized, and added 
many dollars to his purse. Soon after becom- 
ing a landholder, his property was damaged 
by the canal ; and he was awarded eight hun- 
dred dollars by the canal company as indem- 
nification. From the days of his youth he 



was an ardent patriot, and during the War of 
181 2 served as a volunteer soldier. To him 
and his wife, Anna (Parker) Burroughs, seven 
children were born; namely, Carlton, Jona- 
than, Samantha, Jerzine, Aaron, Alma, and 
Andrew J. Aaron served in the late Rebell- 
ion for a term of three years. 

The subject of this brief biographical notice 
was so young when he came with his parents 
to Portage that he remembers no other home. 
He received his education in the public 
schools, and as soon as physically able began 
working on the farm, and has continued thus 
employed the greater part of the time since, 
having remained on the paternal homestead. 
After the death of his father Mr. Burroughs 
inherited the farm which he now owns, and in 
its care and cultivation has spared neither 
pains nor expense. He has erected conven- 
ient and commodious farm buildings, besides 
adding other necessary improvements; and his 
home, with its surroundings, denotes to the 
most casual eye the supervision of an intelli- 
gent farmer and a capable business man. 

The ceremony uniting the destinies of An- 
drew J. Burroughs and Ellen H. Guptill, of 
Allegany County, took place January 6, 1866; 
and one child has been born to them, Inez I., 
who is the wife of Fred Willett, of Portage, 
and the mother of a bright little boy, named 
Claude L. Socially, Mr. Burroughs is a 
prominent member of the Masonic fraternity, 
and in politics is closely identified with 
the Democratic party, having cast his vote 
with that organization since 1856, when he 
threw his first Presidential vote for James 
Buchanan. He has never aspired to political 
ofifice, but has served one term as Supervisor, 
giving excellent satisfaction to his fellow- 
townsmen. 



-OHN HOWDEN, a resident of Silver 
Springs, Wyoming County, foreman 
for the Worcester Salt Works, and 
manager of the farm connected with 
these works, was born in Yorkshire, England, 
May 12, 1847. His father, James Howden, 
was also a native of Yorkshire, as was his 
grandfather, who was a laborer. James How- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



327 



den commenced life as a farm laborer in 
England, and later became a farm super- 
intendent, which position he held until his 
death, at the age of sixty-eight. Mr. How- 
den's mother, whose maiden name was Mary 
Ann Pigott, reared five children. She is 
now (1895) sixty-five years old, and lives 
in Yorkshire, England, as do four of her 
children, namely: Henry, who resides in 
England, and was formerly a miner; Diana; 
Anthony, a miner; and Emma. A daughter, 
Harriet, is the wife of Thomas Kemp, of 
Perry, N.Y. 

John Howden spent his early years in Eng- 
land, where he followed the vocation of a 
farmer, and later that of superintendent of a 
coal mine, having charge at the surface. For 
some length of time before coming to Amer- 
ica, which was in 1869, he worked within the 
mine. Immediately after his arrival in New 
York he went to Allegany County, and there 
worked for a farmer on shares. In 1875 he 
went to Perry, where he also did farm labor, 
and later engaged as a mechanic in the reaper 
works, remaining three years. After this he 
resumed farming in Castile, which he con- 
tinued for five years, moving from there to 
Silver Springs, where he carried on a rented 
farm for five years more. After vacating this 
farm he purchased the site of his present fine 
building, which is sixty-five by ninety feet, 
two stories high, and is devoted to stores, 
offices, and apartments. In 1893 he entered 
the employ of the Duncan Salt Company, 
where he has since remained. 

In 1868 Mr. Howden was united in mar- 
riage to Mary Ann Whardell, daughter of 
William and Elizabeth (Goddard) Whardell. 
She was the only one of a family of five chil- 
dren who ever came to America, the rest re- 
maining in England, where the mother died 
at the age of eighty-two. Her father was a 
wood-worker by trade, and died at the age of 
sixty-two. Her parents were members of the 
Methodist church. 

Mr. and Mrs. Howden lost their only child, 
a son, Hiram, at the age of twenty-six. He 
commenced his education at the Perry Acad- 
emy, where he graduated, and then, after 
studying at Lima two terms, went to the Uni- 



versity of Michigan at Ann Arbor, graduating 
after a four years' course in 1893 as a mechan- 
ical engineer. He returned to his home only 
to be stricken with a disease which caused 
his death, October 31, 1894. 

Mr. Howden was formerly a Republican in 
politics, but is now a Prohibitionist. He is 
a Forester, and a member of the Silver 
Springs Lodge, in which he has been Vice- 
Chief Ranger one term, and is now one of the 
Trustees. He is President of the Cemetery 
Association, also head of the committee for 
the incorporation of the town of Silver 
Springs. Mr. and Mrs. Howden are members 
of the Methodist church, of which he is a 
Trustee and a leader in the Bible class. He 
is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the 
church. Mr. Howden is in every way a self- 
made man, and is a good example of what 
industry and energy will do toward making a 
man successful, as he arrived in the United 
States with no capital, and has attained his 
present position solely through his own 
efforts. Mr. and Mrs. Howden have enjoyed 
a most happy wedded life; and the sad afflic- 
tion which befell them in the untimely taking 
off of their only son, of whose future they had 
every reason to expect so much, was their first 
sorrow. He was an exceedingly intelligent 
and promising young man, and his death is a 
loss to the community. 



^I^ORMAN C. ARNOLD, a citizen of 
I — # Mount Morris, Livingston County, 
lis I N.Y., was born in Venice, Cayuga 

' County, N.Y., April 23, 1832. 

Mr. Arnold is a lineal descendant of one 
William Arnold, who was born in England in 
1589, and who emigrated to America about 
the year 1620, becoming one of the early 
settlers of Rhode Island. He married and 
reared three sons — Benedict, Thomas, and 
Stephen. 

His son Stephen Arnold, born 1623, mar- 
ried Sarah Smith, daughter of Edward Smith, 
November 24, 1646. His son, Israel, born 
October 30, 1649, married Mary Smith, a 
widow, and a daughter of James Barker. His 
son, Elisha, married Harriet, daughter of 



328 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Timothy Carpenter, December 9, 1709. His 
son, James, born September 3, 1719, married 
Freelove, daughter of Josiah Burlingame, De- 
cember 3, 1740. 

George Arnold son of James preceding, 
born October 12, 1754, the grandfather of the 
subject of this sketch, was a veteran of the 
Revolutionary War, and for his services 
therein was awarded a tract of land, which is 
now included within the limits of Venice, Ca- 
yuga County, N.Y. He married Mary Hop- 
kins, September 7, 1781, who was born in 
Rhode Island, August 15, 1760. They set- 
tled upon a farm in Rhode Island about eight 
miles from Providence, near the head of the 
Pawtuckct River, and the nails used in the 
construction of his buildings were made by 
a blacksmith on the anvil. 

He lived on the farm nineteen years, and in 
1800 left the State of Rhode Island, hoping 
in the undeveloped country of New York, 
which was then a border State, to acquire a 
homestead for himself and family. The re- 
moval was made with a cart and oxen ; and on 
reaching Stephentown, Rensselaer County, he 
bought one hundred and sixty acres, princi- 
pally timber land, which with his sons he 
cleared and improved. He resided there until 
his death, March 22, 1829. His wife, Mary, 
died April 15, 1803. Fourteen children were 
born of their union, six sons and eight daugh- 
ters; and each child grew to maturity, mar- 
ried, and reared a family. 

Joseph H. Arnold, son of George and the 
father of the subject of this sketch, was born 
in Rhode Island, February 17, 1789, and 
came with his father to Stephentown in 1800. 
In 181 1 he and his brother, Benjamin, and 
wife, made the journey with a pair of horses 
and lumber wagon to Venice, Cayuga County, 
N.Y., and hired a log house to live in near 
the eighty acres deeded to them by their 
father. They purchased more land in after 
years, until they had in one piece three hun- 
dred and twenty-five acres. In 18 12 a call 
was made for volunteers, and Joseph H. Ar- 
nold was the first volunteer from south of 
Auburn in Cayuga County. The same sum- 
mer Benjamin was drafted, and went to Fort 
Erie. Joseph was a member of Captain 



Burche's Company, and marched to Lewiston, 
being under the command of General Van 
Rensselaer. On October 13 General Van 
Rensselaer ordered the attack on Oueens- 
town, and about one thousand men crossed 
the river in flat-boats. John Boles and 
Joseph H. Arnold were the only ones 
able to land on the Canadian shore, and 
Arnold received two wounds. In the charge 
made by the British, when General Brock 
received his death wound, Mr. Arnold was 
shot in the body and taken prisoner. When 
the British surgeon came to dress their 
wounds, he found Mr. Arnold was a Mason, 
and had him taken to the house of a brother 
of the same order and kindly cared for; and 
through the Masonic Order word was sent to 
Cayuga County, and a Mason by the name of 
Tabor rode on horseback to Buffalo, leading 
a horse, upon which Mr. Arnold returned to 
his home. 

On February 4, 181 3, Joseph H. Arnold 
was united in marriage in Rensselaer County, 
N.Y., to Susanna Gardner, a native of Rhode 
Island, where her birth occurred June 24, 
1793. Her parents were of Quaker descent. 
The wedding trip was made in a wagon to the 
farm in Cayuga County. In a humble cabin 
they began their wedded life, v^hich was 
fraught with as much happiness as falls to the 
common lot of mortals. Man)' trials and 
tribulations beset the pathway of the early pio- 
neer; but with the bravery and courage typi- 
cal of the early settler each obstacle was 
overcome, and as time rolled by the land was 
subdued, and a fine agricultural region was 
developed from the wilderness. When Joseph 
H. Arnold settled in Venice, there were 
neither railways nor canals spanning the 
country, the Erie Canal not being built until 
many years later; and he was obliged to team 
his surplus grain and product to Albany. 
But notwithstanding all these disadvantages 
he succeeded in clearing his land, and there 
resided until his departure from this life, 
September 16, 1834. His wife, who survived 
him, lived until May 11, 1S82, when she 
passed away, full of years and honors. She 
bore him ten children, all of whom grew to 
adult life. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



329 



Norman C. Arnold, the subject of this 
sketch, was the youngest of the family, being 
only two years old when his father died; and 
he was reared in paths of wisdom and virtue 
by his good mother, who instilled into his 
mind those sturdy and self-reliant qualities 
which have been his distinguishing traits 
through life. At the age of seventeen he 
took charge of the home farm; and, when he 
reached the estate of manhood, he and his 
brother Simon bought the old homestead, and 
carried it on in partnership for years. In 
December, 1862, Mr. Arnold was appointed 
Deputy Revenue Collector for the South Dis- 
trict of Cayuga County, and November 11, 
1 87 1, was appointed Agent of the New York 
& Oswego Midland Railroad Company by 
D. C. Littlejohn, President of the road, with 
authority to purchase right of way and mate- 
rials to construct the road. In March, 1876, 
Mr. Arnold went to Philadelphia, having 
charge of the Auburn Manufacturing Com- 
pany and Empire Wringer Company exhibits 
at the Centennial, and was on the grounds 
every day during the six months of the Cen- 
tennial. In the winter of 1876 he went to 
Kansas, and became interested in the sale of 
lands of the Fort Scott & Gulf Railroad Com- 
pany, which lands included the larger portion 
of the six south-east counties of the State ; 
and for a number of years he conducted excur- 
sions to Kansas, which resulted in taking 
many settlers into the State. In 1877 he 
moved to Mount Morris, where he has since 
resided. 

On November 19, 1857, Mr. Arnold was 
united in marriage to Mary E. Bills, daughter 
of Benjamin Bills, of Mount Morris, and a 
lady of great personal worth. Her death oc- 
curred November 5, 1885. Both she and Mr. 
Arnold were members of the First Baptist 
Church of Auburn. January 23, 1888, Mr. 
Arnold married Carrie F. Noble, a native of 
Clinton, Oneida County, N.Y., and youngest 
daughter of the late Dr. W. H. Noble, of 
Mount Morris, who emigrated from Clinton to 
Mount Morris in 1856. 

Mr. Arnold has always commanded the re- 
spect and confidence of all those with whom 
he has had business relations. 



(^TYRTHUR SEWELL and ALFRED 
jA CLARKE GILBERT, residents of 
Jj\\ the town of Avon, are natives of 
^""^ this town, Arthur having been born 
here on the twentieth day of July, 1856, 
while Alfred was born on the tenth day of 
January, 1858. They are the proprietors and 
managers of a mill property, which came 
under the control of their father forty years 
ago, in 1855, and are probably best known to 
most of the residents of this section as Gil- 
bert Brothers, for that is the style under 
which they carry on the old-established and 
popular enterprise of which they are the 
proprietors. 

Their father, Charles Sewell Gilbert, was 
an Englishman by birth, he having been born 
at Mutford Hall, Suffolk, England, January 
5, 1817. The grandfather, Charles Gilbert, 
passed all his life in England, and died in the 
city of London, December 12, 1857, in his 
sixty-fourth year. His wife, Hannah Barrett, 
was also of English birth, and a life-long resi- 
dent of her native land. She gave birth to 
eleven children, but one of whom, Charles 
Sewell, came to America. He came to this 
country in 1837, at the age of twenty, and as a 
matter of course made the voyage in a sailing- 
vessel, being six weeks on the ocean. He 
landed at the city of New York, whence he 
proceeded by the Hudson River and Erie Canal 
direct to Rochester, which at that time was 
the leading city in this country, engaged in 
the manufacture of flour. Mr. Gilbert had 
been apprenticed at the age of fourteen to 
learn the trade of milling, and had seen four 
years of service in a grist-mill operated by a 
wind engine. 

From Rochester he went to Pittsford, Mon- 
roe County, and there secured a situation with 
a Mr. Beers, and later with John Agate, who 
agreed to pay him but ten dollars per month, 
but, finding him competent, soon raised his 
wages to one dollar per day. His next em- 
ployer was Andrew Lincoln, of Penfield; and 
this engagement was a long one, as he re- 
mained in the employ of Mr. Lincoln for 
eighteen years. Some idea of the confidence 
that his employer had in him almost from the 
very first may be gained from the fact that 



33° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Mr. Gilbert was pjiven full charge of the mill 
after a year's trial. In 1855 he bought a 
mill property in Avon, which has since been 
known as Gilbert's Mills, although the Gil- 
bert's Mills of to-day are identical with the 
Gilbert's Mills of forty years ago only in lo- 
cation. It is a thoroughly modern establish- 
ment, equipped with an elaborate plant of 
machinery of the latest improved type, and 
capable of turning out as choice flour as the 
market affords. 

Charles Sewell Gilbert was married January 
30, 1839, to Miss Mary Clark, daughter of 
John and Hannah (Goodwin) Clark. She was 
born in Suffolk, England, January 29, 1817, 
and came to America with her brother Lewis 
and her sister Esther in 1837. Later two 
other brothers, William and John, came to 
this country. Six children were reared by 
Mr. and Mrs. Gilbert, as follows: John W., 
born January 5, 1840; Harriet E., March 11, 
1845; Martha A., March 28, 1851; Charles 
B., December i, 1853; Arthur Sewell, July 
20, 1856; and Alfred Clarke, January 10, 1858. 
Arthur and Alfred Gilbert commenced to 
help in the mill at an early age, and became 
thoroughly familiar with the trade in every 
detail. They succeeded their father in the 
ownership of the property, and Gilbert's Mills 
has not lost one jot of its high and extended 
reputation since it passed into their hands. 
They have completely re-equipped it, not by 
renovating old machinery, but by putting in 
new; and they may to-day safely challenge 
comparison of outfit as well as of product. 
Their father died December 27, 1888, and 
their mother August 11, 1885. Charles Sew- 
ell Gilbert was a "self-made man" in the best 
sense of that oft-used expression. He came 
to this country poor and unknown. He died 
rich and well known, and by far the most val- 
uable of the riches he left behind him was a 
reputation for strict integrity. After he de- 
veloped his mill property, he built a good 
house, planted fruit and shade trees, and in 
various other ways improved and adorned the 
estate, which is now occupied by his sons — 
Arthur and Alfred, Arthur occupying the old 
homestead, while Alfred has built a house 
for the accommodation of himself and family. 



The Gilbert brothers married sisters, most 
appropriate and happy unions. Arthur was 
married on the 19th of November, 1890, 
when he took for his wife Miss Jennie Jack- 
son, who was born in the county of Yorkshire, 
England, and is a daughter of William and 
Sarah (Cooper) Jackson. They have one 
child — Mary Frances. Alfred was married 
on the 22d of October, 1891, to Miss Annie 
Jackson, a sister of his brother's wife, and 
also a native of Yorkshire, England. One 
child has been born to them — Charles 
William. 

William Jackson was born in Lincolnshire, 
England, a son of Robert and Ann (Wingate) 
Jackson, life-long residents of England, and 
was the only son who came to America. 
With his wife he embarked in 1870 on the 
steamship "City of Paris," and went directly 
to Monroe County, where his uncle, William 
Wingate, lived. Mr. Jackson was engaged in 
various lines of business for about a year and 
a half in and near Rochester, and then came 
to Avon, where he resided for a time, follow- 
ing farming as an occupation. He now oper- 
ates a farm located in the town of Rush, Mon- 
roe County. His wife's maiden name was 
Sarah Cooper. She was born in Yorkshire, 
England; and her parents, Robert and Rachel 
(Metcalf) Cooper, were life-long residents of 
that country. Mr. and Mrs. Jackson have five 
children living — Jennie, Annie, William R., 
Frances E., and George A. 

Arthur Sewell and Alfred Clarke Gilbert, or 
the Gilbert Brothers, to give them their firm 
name, are good citizens, devoted husbands and 
fathers, and enterprising business men. They 
stand well in the community, are as highly 
respected as they are well known, and are 
certainly most worthy representatives of the 
honored name thev bear. 



"I^TENRY p. SHARP, M.D., since es- 
l-^-l tablishing his residence at Arcade, 

|l s) I has acquired a very large and lucra- 

^~"^ five practice, and enjoys the repu- 
tation of being a skilful physician. He was 
born at Parma Centre, Monroe County, N.Y., 
June 16, 1854, and is the son of a veteran 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



331 



medical practitioner, Dr. James J. Sharp, a 
native of South Dansville, Steuben County, 
whose father, Henry A. Sharp, was born on 
Staten Island in 1802. William A. Sharp, 
the father of Henry A., was a merchant on 
Staten Island, of which he was a native. His 
wife was Ruby Tucker, who was born in Con- 
necticut. Grandfather Henry A. Sharp mar- 
ried Hannah Preston, of Connecticut. He 
was reared to agriculture, and for a time car- 
ried on a farm on Staten Island, but later pur- 
chased another and more extensive one at 
Dansville, which he carried on for the re- 
mainder of his life. James J. Sharp passed 
his early boyhood in the above-named town, 
and at the age of seventeen years began the 
study of medicine with his uncle. Dr. E. S. 
Preston. He first opened his office for prac- 
tice in Parma Centre, remaining there five 
years, and thence removing to the State of 
Michigan, where he practised three years, 
then returning East to Tuscarora, in the town 
of Mount Morris, N.Y., where he resided and 
continued as a physician for fifteen years. 
After a further practice of ten years in the 
healing art at Nunda, he relinquished the pro- 
fession, and now resides with his son, Henry 
P. Sharp, at Arcade. His wife, whose name 
before marriage was Eliza Russell, and who 
was a daughter of Samuel and Jane (Merri- 
field) Russell, was born in the city of Au- 
burn, N.Y., where her father was an early 
settler, dying at the age of sixty-two years. 
She was the younger of two daughters, her 
sister Helen being the widow of Gurdon Mer- 
rifield. Mrs. Eliza Sharp became the mother 
of two children, namely: Eugene, who mar- 
ried Flora Riber; and Henry P., the subject 
of this record. Mrs. Sharp passed away at 
Tuscarora on the anniversary of her birth, in 
the thirty-fourth year of her age, her mother 
having lived to the age of seventy-eight years. 
Her father was a member of the Congrega- 
tional church. 

Henry P. Sharp inherited his father's love 
for the healing art, and at the age of seven- 
teen entered the Temple Hill Academy at 
Genesee, and passed a Regents' examination 
at the age of eighteen. He later commenced 
his medical studies by attending lectures at 



Buffalo, and also studied with Dr. B. H. Dag- 
gett of that city, and later with his father and 
W. B. Preston, of Dansville, following this 
with a full medical course at the Cincinnati 
College of Medicine, from which he graduated 
in 1876. After another season of careful 
study under Dr. St. John, of Wayland, Steu- 
ben County, with whom he also practised one 
year, he located his office in Conesus Centre, 
Livingston County, where he practised three 
years, and from whence he moved to Bliss, 
Wyoming County, where he was a resident 
physician for a period of eight years; and 
after four years of constantly increasing prac- 
tice at Varysburg, Wyoming County, during 
which time he was attending physician at the 
county almshouse and asylum there, he 
came in 1892 to Arcade, where he has since 
resided, having a very extended practice. In 
1 88 5 he was elected County Coroner, was re- 
elected in 1888 and again in 1894, the term 
of office being three years. Politically, he is 
a Republican, and served as Town Clerk of 
Eagle while residing at Bliss. He is a mem- 
ber of Arcade Lodge, No. 698, Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows, and is Noble Grand of 
this lodge, having assisted in its organization, 
being one of five members who formerly be- 
longed to Sheldon Lodge. He is also a mem- 
ber of Arcade Lodge of A. F. & A. M. 
and of Wyoming Chapter, No. 181, at War- 
saw, and of the Maccabees. Besides these 
he is an active member of the County Medi- 
cal Society, member of the fire department, 
and treasurer of the hook and ladder com- 
pany. 

Dr. Sharp's wedded life began in 1877, in 
which year he was united in marriage to Miss 
Eva Hall, daughter of William Hall, a farmer 
of Mount Morris. After six years of devoted 
attachment Mrs. Eva Sharp was called to her 
rest in 1883, at the age of twenty-six years; 
and later the Doctor married for his second 
wife Elma L. Hall, who was born at Wethers- 
field, where her parents, William and Eliza- 
beth (Curtis) Hall, were early settlers, her 
mother having been born in Middlebury, W^y- 
oming County, and her father in Cayuga 
County. Mrs. Sharp was one of seven chil- 
dren, and has herself borne two children; 



332 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



namely, Harry J. and Ollic 1'. Sliarp. This 
family is a most cslimablc one, and Dr. Shar]) 
is socially as well as professionally popular. 




U'llAKI) Wili.lAM.S, OIK- ol tile 
sell-niade men wiio are pidmiiiently 
identified with the agrieullural in- 
terests of Mount Morris, occuiiics 
an honored ])ositioii, wliirli socially and finan- 
eially is llie lesult of his own unaiiled in- 
dustry, coupled with the sound sense and 
exceUcnt business capacity with which nature 
endowed iiim. Althouf;h havini;- passed the 
llireescore and ten years allotted to man, lie 
is still l)rii;ht and active, enjoying;- to the ut- 
most the comforts of life, and, like the [latri- 
archs of old, is surrounded by iiis chiklrcn 
and grandchildren, wlm lionor and revere him. 
lie was born in Varick, .Seneca County, N.Y., 
Deccmbi'i- I ^, i8i8; ami his father, William 
Williams, was a native of the same county, 
the date of his birth being September 24, 
1792. 

John Williams, the paternal grandfather, 
was a native of I'ennsylvania, whence he emi- 
grated to this State, coming with teams to Sen- 
eca County, where he purchased a timbered 
tract, from which he improved a homestead; 
and there he and his wife, whose maiden name 
was Starritt, spent their declining years. 
They reared a large family, consisting of 
seven sons and four daughters. 

William Williams, the father of Richard, 
was a shoemaker, but after working at his 
trade for a miiiiber of years removed from the 
iiiunlv in which lie was born and bred to Liv- 
ingston County, settling in the town of Mount 
I\l(nris in 1 .S 3 1 . Here he bought a tract of 
woodland, and having built a log cabin re- 
turned to Seneca County for his family, and 
in April, 1831, brought them to their future 
home. He superintended the clearing of the 
land, and ha\ing it well under cultivation re- 
placed the log cabin with a comfortal)le frame 
liouse, and put uji a good set of farm build- 
ings, living there in comfort until his death, 
November 6, \SG6. He married .Sarah I'hil- 
lips, who was born {'"ebruary 9, 1 796, in New 
Jersey. She survived her husband many 



years, dying .September 9, i88r. .Seven chil- 
dren were born to her, as follows: Richard, 
Mary A., Clarissa, John, Helinda, Isaac, and 
William. 

Richard Williams was a hul of twelve years 
when he came with his parents to Mount Mor- 
ris, which was then com]xuatively undevel- 
oped. 'J"here being no coiu'cnienl facilities 
here for the transportation of the suiplus jjro- 
(Inctions of the soil, the farmers were obliged 
to haul their grain to the fienesee River, where 
it was loaded on llalboats, and thence taken 
to points of distribution. Mr. Williams 
assisted his father in clearing a farm until 
twenty-four years of age, and then started out 
for himself. In consideration of having 
worked over time, his father sold him twenty- 
five acres of land for five hundred tlollars, 
wrhich was about one-half its value. He had 
no ready money with which to pay for it, but 
worked the land and other land on shares, in 
that way saving enough to make the final pay- 
ment. He subsequently bought ten acres of 
adjoining land, paying fifty dollars per acre. 
Two or three years later, Mr. Williams 
bought another ten acres, and his next pur- 
chase consisted of thirty-five acres. His ne.xt 
landed accpiisition was an inheritance of forty- 
four acres, antl to this aggregation he subse- 
cpiently added seventy-one more by purchase. 
About the time of the breaking out of the late 
Civil War, Mr. Williams removed to the farm 
of his father-in-law, where he lived five years, 
at the expiration of that time returning to 
his own farm, where he has since resided, 
carrying it on with marked intelligence and 
success. 

On the I2th of December, 1851, Mr. Will- 
iams and IClizabeth Miller, a native of New 
Jersey and a daughter of William and Mary 
Miller, were uniteil in marriage. Their hapjiy 
wediled life has been made bright by the 
birth of three sons. Charles has been twice 
married, his first wife, formerly Alice Jones, 
dying in 1883, leaving two children — Harvey 
and Eva; of his scconti marriage, when Miss 
Dora Rowe became his wife, one ihild has 
been born — Harrw Willard married b'lla 
Hrt)wn, and they have (Uie son Roy. lllmer 
married Adell Creveling. rolitically, Mr. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIKW 



333 



Williams is a sound Republican, havinf( been 
a stanch supporter of the principles of that 
party since its formation. 




Nni<i;\V VV. HUTTICRWAY, a retired 
merchant of <^jeneseo, was born No- 
vember 2, 1825, in a j>art of I'hila- 
flelphia which was then one of the 
suburbs, but is now included in the city. 
His father, Jesse JUitterway, an aj;rieulturist, 
was of early Holland ancestry, and was born 
in the same place where he lived until 1832, 
in which year he removed with his family to 
Allegany County, New York Stale. Nf>t lik- 
infj the cfjuntry, which was then a wilderness, 
and beinji unaccustomed to pioneer life, he 
remained but one year, and then returned to 
i'hiladelijhia, where he lived until his death, 
passing away at the age of sixty-nine years. 
His wife, a native of that part of Phila- 
delphia which was then called Germantown, 
was Catherine Williams. Her father, An- 
drew Williams, was born in Holland, aufl on 
coming to America settled in (jermantown, 
and married a lady from that place, who lived 
to be ninety-eight years old. He attained 
nearly that age, dying at the age of ninety-six, 
on the farm he had cleared for himself in 
Avon, Livingston County, New York, he hav- 
ing moved from Germantown thither. Mr. 
and Mrs. Jesse IJutterway had five children — 
JCdwin, VA'iz'd, Andrew W., Mary A., and 
Adeline. Mrs. Hutterway died at the age of 
sixty. 

Andrew liuttcrway commenced, when six- 
teen years old, to learn the trades of cabinet- 
making and undertaking in Philadelphia, 
where he .served an apprenticeship of five 
years. He was then employed at "jour" 
work until 1847, when he removed to Roches- 
ter, and was engaged there one year, after- 
ward coming to Geneseo and doing "jour" 
work for one year. In 1849 he engaged in 
the furniture and undertaking business on his 
own account, building up a large and lucrative 
trade, and continuing actively engaged in 
business until March, f893. iJuring that 
long period of time almost the entire business 
population of Geneseo changed to such a 



degree that, when he retired from active life, 
there were but two men still continuing in 
business who were merchants when he came 
here. 

December r2, 1849, Mr. JJutterway married 
Mary K. Johnson, a daughter of Jasper John- 
son, of Geneseo, N.Y. 'I'hey have had six 
childn.-n, only two of whom, (Jora and Hattie, 
are now living. Willie died at the age of 
seven, Julward when thirty-live, and two 
others in infancy, l-'or the ))ast few years the 
family have made their summer home at Co- 
nesus Lake, where Mr. liiitterway owns two 
cottages. His son ICdward was the first sum- 
mer resident there, taking u|) his abode in a 
tent, and afterward occupying part of a boat- 
house, which he finally enlarged into a cottage. 

Holh Mr. and Mrs. iiutterway are members 
of the Presbyterian church, and are ever will- 
ing to do all in their power for its benefit. 
During his long business career Mr. Jiutter- 
way has gained many friends by his honesty 
and upright dealings. 




RS. JULIl'.r M.l.l-.; bORRANCiC, 
— ^ a woman of culture and refinement, 
whose mental activity has not 
been dulleri by the frosts of time, 
has been a resident of Attica for upward of 
half a century, and is the widow of the late 
Gardiner Dorrance, M.lJ., who departed this 
life October 12, 1873, at the age of seventy- 
four years. Mrs. Dorrance is of New Eng- 
land birth, and is a daughter of the Rev. Dr. 
Lee, who for many years was settled over a 
parish in Colebrook, Conn. 

Dr. Gardiner Dorrance was the only son of 
the Rev. Gordon Dorrance, a Congregational 
minister of marked ability, whose last days 
were passed in Attica. He married Hannah 
Morgan, a woman well fitted by nature and 
education to assist him in his pastoral duties 
and to rear their only child to a useful and 
honorable life. After leaving school Gardiner 
Dorrance studied with his father, and later in 
J'lainfield, Mass., under the tuition of the Rev. 
•Moses Hal lock, the father of Gerard Hal lock, 
editor of the yonrnal of Commerce oi New 
York. The two boys studied together, and 



334 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



were afterward classmates at Williams College 
in Massachusetts, they being two of the one 
hundred and thirty boys fitted by Mr. Hallock 
to enter that famous institution. 

After receiving his diploma Dr. Dorrance 
spent some time in Virginia, and while a 
resident of that State became more and more 
confirmed in his antislavery convictions, and 
worked with zeal and ardor in the cause of the 
oppressed. Returning to New England, he 
began the study of medicine with Dr. Peet, of 
New Marlboro, Mass., and in 1826 was grad- 
uated from the Berkshire Medical College. 
Locating in Sunderland, Mass., the Doctor 
commenced the practice of his profession, re- 
maining there until 1834, when he removed 
to Amherst, the same State, and continued 
his career some seven years, winning a fine 
reputation for skill and ability. In 1843 Dr. 
Dorrance came to Wyoming County, and set- 
tled in Attica, where he met with the same 
success that had characterized his previous 
efforts, remaining here until called to the 
higher life. He was a well-educated and able 
practitioner, possessing a warm and generous 
heart and a ready sympathy, that won for him 
true friends among all classes of people; and 
his memory will ever be cherished through- 
out his locality with feelings of regard and 
esteem. 




ARON BARBER, although a native of 
Rush, Monroe , County, N.Y., has 
passed nearly all his days in the 
beautiful town of Avon, Livingston 
County, in which he now resides, occupying a 
leading position among the representative 
citizens. He has been closely identified with 
its development during that period, for, al- 
though his main business is that of farming, 
he is prominent in financial circles as Presi- 
dent of the Avon Bank; and his influence in 
political affairs is indicated by the fact that 
for four years he has held the responsible 
office of Supervisor. It is a notable fact that 
he bears the same name that was borne by 
both his father and grandfather, and which, 
therefore, figures conspicuously in the chron- 
icles of the Barber family. 



The grandfather was a native of "the Land 
of Steady Habits," as Connecticut used to be 
called in the earlier days of this country's 
history, when each State was supposed to have 
peculiarities of its own. He was a black- 
smith by trade, a good mechanic and a hard 
worker, perhaps too hard, for he died at a 
comparatively early age, leaving a young fam- 
ily and a widow. The eldest of the children 
was the father of the subject of this sketch, 
and was called Aaron Barber, Jr., before the 
death of his hard-working sire rendered the 
"Jr." unnecessary. 

The bereaved family removed from Connect- 
icut to New York, first sojourning in Onon- 
daga County, and thence coming to Lima, 
Livingston County. Here the new head of it 
— -the oldest male member of a family then 
being always considered the head of it in 
those days, if he had passed early boyhood — 
went manfully to work to help support it as 
best he could. He worked out by the day 
or by the month at any honest employment 
that he could find, and by a combination of 
industry and enterprise forged onward to suc- 
cess. Finally he went into the butchering 
business, and followed it for three years. 
Then he sold out, and removed to Ogden, 
Monroe County, to a one-hundred-and-sixty 
acre piece of timber land that he had bought 
and had partially cleared before his marriage, 
which occurred just before his removal from 
Lima. After living two years at Ogden, he 
removed to Rush, where he bought a fift3-acre 
farm, and remained five years, when he sold 
out and bought one hundred and sixty acres of 
improved land located in the town of Avon. 
A log cabin and a frame house were on this 
property; and they served him for about nine 
years, when he built the fine residence now 
occupied by the subject of this sketch, and here 
resided until his death, at the age of sixty- 
four, in 1868. 

His wife was Lois Stevens, daughter of 
Phineas and Mary (Williams) Stevens; and 
his children were Mary L., Aaron, and F. 
Amanda. Mary married Dr. James E. Jenks, 
of Avon, is now a widow, and has two 
children — William and Louisa M. Jenks. 
Amanda married Holliday Williams, of 




AARON BARBER. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



337 



I'rattsburg, Steuben County, N.Y., and had 
three children — Frank, Aaron, and Lois 
Williams, and like her sister is now a widow. 

Aaron Barber, the third of the name, was 
born in the town of Rush, July 6, 1836. He 
is well educated, having pursued his studies 
in boyhood and early youth in the Avon dis- 
trict schools, in Lima Seminary, and in the 
Rochester Academy. He has made a business 
of farming from the very first, and has con- 
tinued to reside on the Avon homestead. Mr. 
Barber has greatly improved the property; 
and the farm buildings, which were built by 
him, are the finest ones to be found in the 
beautiful and prosperous town of Avon. For 
the past twenty-five years he has been engaged 
in breeding short-horned cattle, of which he 
has one of the finest herds in the L^nited 
States. 

Mr. Barber was married on December 22, 
1862, to Caroline B. Hall, daughter of Will- 
iam E. and Esther M. Hall, of Broomfield, 
Ontario County. He cast his first Presiden- 
tial vote in i860 for Stephen A. Douglas; 
and, with that firm purpose and consistency of 
action which have always been marked charac- 
teristics of him, he has never changed his 
political faith, but has steadily supported the 
Democratic party. As the owner of one of 
the finest estates in the county, containing 
seven hundred acres, as the President of the 
Avon Bank, and as a citizen of sterling worth 
who has the best interests of the town at 
heart, he holds a prominent position in the 
community, is known to all, and by all re- 
spected. His portrait will be found on a 
neighboring page. 




ENRY K. COOPER, one of the prom- 
inent and influential residents of 
Springwater, was born in the his- 
toric town of West Springfield, 
Hampden County, Mass., October 21, 1830. 
Whoever has read the histories of old Colo- 
nial days will have noted the account of the 
gallant military commander of the Springfield 
settlement. Lieutenant Cooper, who lost his 
life in its defence during King Philip's War 
in 1675. This ancestor of two hundred and 



twenty years back deserves honorable mention 
at the beginning of this sketch, as being a 
worthy progenitor of this worthy son of New 
England. Mr. Cooper's life has been in part 
within earshot of the war, and his record is 
that of one who has likewise taken an active 
interest in the welfare of those connected 
with it. 

The towns of Springfield and West Spring- 
field deserve more than passing notice. They 
are situated on the banks of the Connecticut, 
which is acknowledged to be the most beauti- 
ful stream in New England, bordered through- 
out its entire length of over four hundred 
miles by rolling hills, cultivated farms, and 
fertile meadow lands. It divides what was 
originally the one settlement of Springfield 
into two parts. The river is here spanned by 
graceful arched bridges; and merchant and 
scholar alike find on the lands skirting the 
western shore a lull from the busy hum of the 
city and an environment akin to the very 
heart of the country, making attractive any 
location for a suburban home. Ancient 
maples, elms, willows, and other deciduous 
trees shade the streets; and plants in summer 
and evergreens in winter adorn the quiet 
streets and picturesque drives. It was indeed 
a favored spot in which Henry Cooper began 
his notable career. 

Levi Cooper, father of Henry, was born in 
this same neighborhood. He received an edu- 
cation in the district schools of the time, and 
as he grew up began to devote himself to agri- 
culture and general farming. The lands on 
the borders of the Connecticut have been, 
since the time of the colonists, of special 
excellence because of their alluvial deposits; 
and, as the miner seeks with fascination for 
gold in the rushing streams of the Sierra 
Nevada, so does the farmer dig this treasure- 
house under foot, looking with eager expecta- 
tion for rich returns in his fertile fields. 
Levi Cooper followed this occupation through- 
out his brief life, finishing his course in the 
home of his youth at the age of thirty-seven. 

Henry Cooper's mother before her marriage 
was Miss Julia Ashley. She was a daughter 
of Solomon Ashley, a well-known and enter- 
prising farmer of the town. Mrs. Cooper 



338 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



was one of seven children, whose names were: 
Caroline, Harriet, Liicretia, Lucinda, Julia, 
Meribah, and Solomon. None of these are 
now living. It is jileasant to record that of 
her family of four children two lived to give 
her comfort and joy — Henry, the narrative of 
whose life is here given, and his brother 
Solomon. Lewis died in infancy, and an- 
other son of the same name also died in child- 
hood. Mrs. Cooper lived until the age of 
forty-three, and died amid the familiar sur- 
roundings of her early home. The parents 
were, it is thought, members of the Congrega- 
tional church in that town. 

Henry Cooper was but fourteen years old at 
the time of his mother's death; and he then 
went to live with an uncle, Solomon Ashley, 
until he should attain his majority. He was 
a student at the local district school, afterward 
at Munson Academy, and also at the academy 
at Westfield, which takes its pupils through 
high branches of study. On leaving the 
scholar's desk Mr. Cooper was able to teach 
others, and accordingly taught for a time in 
Agawam, which is adjacent to Springfield. 
After coming of age he gave up teaching, and, 
as he had devoted considerable attention to 
.the science of civil engineering, went out 
to Springwater, in Livingston County, New 
York, accepting a position on what is now the 
Corning Branch on the Rochester Division of 
the Erie Railroad. He entered into this new 
undertaking with an ardor that made success a 
foregone conclusion, and after two years went 
to Ohio as resident engineer on the Spring- 
field, Mount Vernon & Delaware line. At 
the expiration of eighteen months he took 
charge of the Marietta & Cincinnati Road, 
doing the engineering work there. 

Two years later Mr. Cooper went to the 
State of Illinois, on that great highway to the 
West, the Chicago & Rock Island Railroad, 
at that time the Sterling & Rock Island Rail- 
road. After a time he undertook the respon- 
sible position of contractor; but the Civil 
War culminated before he had been long en- 
gaged there, and he threw aside this enter- 
prise, and went directly to Washington as 
Superintendent in the Quartermaster's De- 
partment at the Washington Arsenal. This 



new position called for the exercise of all his 
best powers, but his previous experiences had 
qualified him in just the line required. Keen 
observation, perceptive powers, discrimina- 
tion, attention to endless detail, cool, steady 
judgment, and unswerving loyalty to the 
country, then trembling with the dfead of 
an uncertain future — these were qualities 
which alone made the Quartermaster Super- 
intendent fit for his arduous and responsible 
position. 

But, as men of capacity are seldom allowetl 
to remain long in one kind of labor, Mr. 
Cooper went into the military railroad office 
at the end of a year, then, taking up his pre- 
vious line of work, acted as agent in the 
Quartermaster's Department for a time, but 
in 18S2 returned to Springwater. Here he 
bought a farm and settled down, soon after 
purchasing a lot in the village, on which he 
erected the fine residence which he now occu- 
pies, and which was completed in 1S87. 
Since his return to Springwater he has been 
engaged in agricultural pursuits. 

In 1S53 Mr. Cooper was united in marriage 
with Miss Mary Putnam, a daughter of 
Peter Putnam, of Springwater- Of this union 
there were two children, both of whom died 
young. Mrs. Cooper died in 1870. For his 
second wife Mr. Cooper married Mary Snyder, 
a daughter of Alonzo Snyder, and a native of 
Springwater. There are two children living 
by this marriage — Bessie, who first took a 
course of study at the district school, and later 
for a year attended a private school in New 
York City, and then entered Wells College, 
being a member of the class of 1899; and 
Henry. One child died in youth. Mrs. 
Cooper departed this life in July, 1S94, aged 
thirty-nine years. She was a devoted member 
of the Methodist church. 

The foregoing sketch claims special atten- 
tion, showing how a youth, by making an es- 
timate of his leaning toward one particular 
line, may be able to decide for himself what 
course in life he is fitted for, and, once having 
decided his bent, may find, if he has pluck and 
perseverance, a steady uphill road to progress, 
which in the end proves to be success and 
achievement. Mr. Cooper evidently did this. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



339 



His ancestor, Lieutenant Cooper, acted a 
noble part; and his descendant made his bold 
stroke for a broader life and a wider experi- 
ence on the same ground. The result has 
been personal honor and the benefit to the 
community of a praiseworthy example. 

Mr. Cooper has always been an ardent Re- 
publican, but in no sense an office-seeker. 
He is a Trustee of the Methodist church, a 
Trustee of the district school, and also fills 
the offices of Superintendent and Trustee of 
the Cemetery Association in Springwatcr. 




past twenty-six 
in Wales, Erie 
1826. Dr. Mil- 



'AMUEL S. MILLER, M.D., a resi- 
dent physician in Java, Wyoming 
County, for the 
years, was born 
County, N.Y., September 3, 
ler's father, Hunting S. Miller, was born in 
1792 in P'ranklin, Delaware County, whence he 
emigrated to Erie in 1813. He was married 
to Miss Hannah Seeley, of Franklin, whom 
he brought as a bride to the rough wild home 
he had prepared for her, making the journey 
thither by team, and having a family by the 
name of Russell for travelling companions. 
Hunting S. Miller was a minute-man during 
the W^ar of 1812, and was a witness of the 
burning of Buffalo. He lived in the humble 
home where the first years of his married life 
had been spent until his death from a stroke 
of paralysis, with which he was stricken in 
1867. In his last illness he was attended by 
his son, Samuel S., who officiated in the 
double capacity of nurse and physician. The 
patient was a large man, weighing two hun- 
dred and forty pounds, and it took a person of 
herculean strength to perform the office of 
nurse; but with filial love and tenderness the 
son devoted himself to his duty. 

Hunting S. Miller was twice married. 
His first wife, who bore him six sons and 
three daughters, died at fifty-seven years of 
age in 1850. His second wife was Miss Kate 
Perry. Six of his nine children grew up and 
were married. David, who was a cripple, 
died in 1855 at the age of twenty-seven. 
George S. and Dr. W. W. Miller are also 
deceased. The surviving children are: Bet- 



sey, now Mrs. James Bush, in Wales, Erie 
County; Phcebe Miller, who has been a suc- 
cessful teacher for forty years in New York, 
California, and Iowa, and still retains her 
youthful vigor of mind and body; Dr. Samuel 
S. Miller; Erastus R., a bachelor in Fayette 
County, Iowa, who has accumulated a large 
property, and has served for many years as a 
Justice of the Peace; A. J. Miller, a farmer 
of Iowa; and Julia D., Mrs. Columbus 
Mitchell. 

Dr. Miller was educated at Geneva, N.Y., 
and was married on November 29, 1859, to 
Sarah F. Lawrence, of Sheldon. Mrs. Mil- 
ler's parents, L. P. and Catherine (Parker) 
Lawrence, came to Sheldon from Marcellus, 
Onondaga County, where Mrs. Lawrence was 
born, reared, and married. Mr. Lawrence 
was a Justice of the Peace in Sheldon for 
many years, and was at one time a man of 
considerable wealth. Only three of their 
seven children are now living — Candace Law- 
rence, in Varysburg; Mrs. Miller; and Mrs. 
J. Coughran, of Varysburg. Mrs. Miller was 
educated at the Alexandria Seminary, and 
taught school for fourteen years before her 
marriage. 

Six children have been born to Dr. and 
Mrs. Miller. Guy L., who is married, is a 
manufacturer of lumber headings and barrels 
at Java; U. S. Grant Miller, who was edu- 
cated in Lima, and has adopted teaching as a 
profession, married Miss Maud Church, of 
Pennsylvania, and has a son and daughter; 
Grace, the wife of Mr. H. Cheney, is the 
mother of a bright little boy of four years, 
Robert, who is a pet with his grandparents; 
Gertrude Miller is a gifted artist and a 
teacher; Grover, a young man of twenty, is a 
student at Lima, and has not as yet entered 
the arena of life; Glenn C. Miller, aged eigh- 
teen, is also preparing for the future, and is a 
student at Aurora. 

Dr. Miller has accumulated a large property 
during the years of his professional work. 
He owns a farm of one hundred and twenty 
acres in Sardinia, N.Y., which is tenanted, 
and two smaller farms, one of which is con- 
nected with his residence in the village. 
He has been an active politician and warm 



34° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



supporter of Republican principles, but has 
never been an aspirant for an office. Having 
by his arduous labors as a popular village and 
country doctor secured a competency and 
assuredly earned a respite from toil, he has, 
while still in the prime and vigor of life, 
virtually retired from active practice, al- 
though some of his old friends and patrons 
still continue to claim his services. Dr. 
Miller's reputation as a surgeon is well 
known far and near, and in cases of extreme 
urgency his judgment and skill are always in 
demand. 



Y^TIRAM SMITH, a prominent citizen 
L^-l and prosperous farmer of the town of 
|i g I Portage, was born in Westchester 

— ' County, New York, January 7, 
1 8 19, and is a son of Levi Smith, who was a 
native of Fairfield County, Connecticut. The 
grandfather, Abel Smith, who was also a na- 
tive of Connecticut, was a farmer all his 
days, and with his wife, Sarah, occupied one 
house for seventy-one years. He was a sol- 
dier in the Revolutionary War. He died at 
the ripe old age of ninety-three, and she when 
ninety-seven years old. 

Levi Smith, the father of Hiram, was edu- 
cated in his native State, and subsequently 
removed to North Salem, Westchester County, 
N.Y., where he engaged in the occupation of 
wool-carding and cloth-making, carrying on a 
mill for the purpose, the machinery of which 
was of a kind now nearly, if not quite, ex- 
tinct. He continued to reside at North 
Salem for the remainder of his life, and died 
at the age of sixty-nine. He married Ann 
Dibble, and reared eight children — Russel, 
Cynthia, Lyman, Ammon, Julia A., Hiram, 
Norman, and Cornelia. Julia and Cornelia 
are living in Fairfield County, Connecticut; 
and, with the exception of Hiram, the others 
are all deceased. 

■Hiram Smith was educated at the district 
schools of Westchester County, and after com- 
pleting his studies taught school for fourteen 
winters in succession and nine summers. In 
1850 he came to Portage, and took up his 
residence upon the farm he now cultivates. 



He has renovated and enlarged the buildings, 
and has made many other necessary and im- 
portant improvements. 

In 1846 Mr. Smith married Miss Eliza Jane 
Sanford, a daughter of David- and Esther 
(Staples) Sanford, of Redding, Conn., David 
being a son of Daniel Sanford and Esther a 
daughter of Elihu Staples and Abigail Hill. 
Daniel Sanford's wife was Olive Morehouse. 
These families were directly descended from 
Puritan parentage, and were the very earliest 
settlers in Redding, Conn. The union of 
Mr. and Mrs. Smith was blessed by the birth 
of six children, as follows: Gertrude, Cyn- 
thia, Ella, Cornelia, Ernest, and Sanford. 
Ernest died at the age of eight months. Cyn- 
thia became the wife of Samuel Davis, and 
removed to the State of Michigan, where she 
died, leaving two children — Ernest and 
Myron. Ella is the wife of Gilbert Bliss, 
and resides at Genesee Falls, Wyoming 
County; they have one son. Cornelia is the 
wife of George W. Batsford, and has two chil- 
dren — Irving G. and Gertrude. They reside 
at Warsaw, W^yoming County. Sanford mar- 
ried May Wheeler, and resides at home. 

Mr. Smith has led an upright useful life, 
bringing up and educating his family, and 
lives in the enjoyment of seeing his children 
well started upon life's journey. Besides 
attending to the many duties incident to the 
successful carrying on of agricultural pursuits, 
he has found time to acceptably fill many 
positions of public trust, and has been school 
superintendent three years. Assessor seven 
years, and Justice of the Peace for twenty-four 
consecutive years. Both he and his family 
are members of the Universalist church of 
Genesee Falls. His first Presidential vote 
was cast for William H. Harrison, and he has 
been a Republican since the formation of the 
party. 



-OHN PERKINS is a venerable and in- 
fluential citizen of Cuylerville, in the 
town of Leicester, Livingston County, 
N.Y. ; but he was born in Orange 
County, Vermont, in the town of Chelsea, on 
the first day of August, 1804. His grand- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



341 



father, Jacob Perkins, removed from Connect- 
icut to Vermont in 1789, and settled on the 
West Hill in Chelsea. Jacob's son, Elisha 
Perkins, was born in Connecticut, where he 
grew up and married, and then removed to 
Vermont with his father, as a Chelsea pio- 
neer, building a log house and clearing away 
the timber. There were no railways in those 
days, and the early settlers had to cart their 
marketable produce all the way to Boston. 

In Chelsea Elisha Perkins stayed until the 
War of 18 12 was over, but in the fall of 181 5 
sold his land, and started for what was then 
considered the Far W'est, intending to locate 
in the neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. 
The family started with four horses and two 
wagons and all their household effects, and it 
required three weeks for the overland journey. 
When they reached Moscow, Livingston 
County, the Alleghany River was so low that 
boats were not running, so Mr. Perkins left 
his family, and went forward on an investigat- 
ing tour. He found that the difficulties had 
not been exaggerated, and as travelling down 
the river was out of the question decided to 
settle in Livingston County. His means 
were limited; and he found employment at 
farming, but finally bought two hundred acres 
in Geneseo, where he remained the rest of his 
days, his death occurring at the age of 
seventy-seven. His wife was Elizabeth Hill, 
a Connecticut girl, who also died on the home- 
stead, at the age of seventy-six. Both are 
interred in Temple Hill Cemetery. They 
reared nine children. 

Their son John was eleven years old when 
he came to Livingston County with his par- 
ents; and he can perfectly recall the incidents 
of the trip and the primitive mode of life, 
when Squawkey Hill was still the abode of 
Indians, and deer and bears were occasionally 
seen, though not numerous. Before the Erie 
Canal was constructed, the farmers had to cart 
their wheat to Albany, and bring back what- 
soever goods might be needed by the family. 
John attended the first school, taught in the 
neighboring log cabin, where the furniture 
was of the most primitive description, the 
benches being slabs, with wooden pins for 
legs. Of course the boy worked on the land 



almost from his cradle; and it was hard work, 
when so little agricultural machinery had been 
invented. Grass had to be mown by hand 
with scythes. Grain had to be cut with the 
sickle, and was trampled out under foot in- 
stead of being threshed. The members of the 
family, especially the children, were clad in 
homespun; and the wool had to be carded, 
spun, dressed, and woven by the women. 

In 1836 Mr. Perkins went to Michigan on 
an exploring expedition, accompanied by his 
brother. They walked to Buffalo, and thence 
went by boat as far as Detroit. Then they 
again took to their feet, and went to Kent 
County. There they purchased a thousand 
acres, but after a time returned to Livingston 
County, where John bought the farm of a hun- 
dred and eighty acres where he still lives, in 
the Genesee Valley, two miles from the vil- 
lage of Geneseo. In 1828, eight years before 
this Michigan expedition, John Perkins mar- 
ried Eliza Beebe, a native of this town, and a 
daughter of Hopestell Beebe, a pioneer here. 
She died in 1842; and Mr. Perkins married 
her sister, Jane Beebe, who died January 4, 
1888. By the first marriage there were five 
children — Miles, who was born in 1831; 
Frank, in 1836; Artilisa, in 1838; Washing- 
ton and Warren, twins, in 1840. Of the sec- 
ond marriage there were three children — 
John, born in 1844; Alice, in 1852; and 
I'rancis, in 1854. Frank served his country 
throughout the Civil War as a member, of tha 
Second Michigan Cavalry. Warren also went 
to war, was captured by the rebels at Plym- 
outh, N.C., April 20, 1864, and starved to 
death in Andersonville Prison, where he 
breathed his last on the 28th of August of the 
same year. Their father has living fifteen 
grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren. 

Though ninety years of age, and with hear- 
ing somewhat impaired, Mr. Perkins is a very 
bright gentleman, with sound mind and mem- 
ory, and able to take care of his stock. He 
is one of the few living witnesses of the exe- 
cution of the Thayers in Buffalo for arson and 
murder, in 1825. Such men as Mr. Perkins 
are the bone and sinew of American prosper- 
ity. Well was it said by Sir Philip Sidney, 
"True bravery is quiet, undemonstrative." 



342 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 




»RS. SARAH NORTON SHEAR- 
MAN resides on the farm in 
Gainesville, N.Y., which was 
owned and conducted for nearly 
thirty years by her husband, the late Robert 
Shearman, who died January 12, 1885, at the 
age of fifty-six. Mrs. Shearman's parents 
were Edward and Lucina (Wells) Norton. 
Her paternal grandfather was John Norton, a 
native of Vermont, who was a pioneer Settler 
in Erie County, New York. He was a farmer 
and miller, and resided in Erie County up to 
the time of his decease. 

His son Edward was reared to agricultural 
pursuits, and also learned the trade of a 
miller. He remained at home until attaining 
his majority, and after his marriage in 1829 
settled in Gainesville, where he purchased a 
farm, upon which he resided until his decease, 
which occurred at the age of fifty-nine years. 
Edward Norton's wife, Mrs. Shearman's 
mother, was Lucina Wells, daughter of Will- 
iam Wells, born in Washington County, 
where her parents passed their entire lives. 
She was the mother of six children — Harris, 
Sarah (the subject of this sketch), Betsey, 
and Merritt, now living; and Ellen and Laura 
J., who died in infancy. Mrs. Lucina W. 
Norton spent her last years mostly in Castile, 
but died at the home of her daughter in 
Gainesville at the age of sixty-three. Mrs. 
Shearman's parents were members of the Bap- 
tist church, of which her father was a Deacon. 

The marriage of Miss Sarah Norton and 
Robert Shearman took place on March i, 
1854. Mr. Shearman was a son of Gideon 
Shearman, who came to Wyoming County 
from Vernon, Oneida County, at an early 
date, settling as a pioneer in Perry. He 
resided there for a time, but finally removed 
to Castile, where he died. Robert Shearman 
was born in the above-named town, and reared 
to agricultural pursuits upon his father's farm, 
being one of a family of twelve children. On 
reaching manhood, he inherited a farm in 
Castile, upon which he resided for one year. 

In 1855, the year after their marriage, he 
and his wife settled on the farm in Gaines- 
ville, where he continued to reside during the 
remainder of his life. Mr. Shearman was a 



thorough Democrat. He was a Justice of the 
Peace for many years, also Justice of Ses- 
sions, Railroad Commissioner, and Assessor, 
and Loan Commissioner for three years. He 
was a prominent Mason, a member of Oakland 
Lodge, No. 379, of Castile. He was an able 
and high-minded citizen, a faithful public 
servant, and a thoroughly honest man, and 
died regretted by a large circle of friends. 

Mrs. Shearman has one daughter, Inez M., 
a young woman of much practical ability in 
affairs, who was of great help to her father, 
and who since his death has assisted her 
mother in managing the farm, which consists 
of one hundred and seven acres, devoted to 
dairying and general farming. She was care- 
fully and liberally educated at Perry, and is a 
member of the Presbyterian church, of which 
her father was an attendant. Mrs. Shearman 
is a well-preserved lady, who bears the added 
burdens of later years with quiet dignity and 
grace. With the loving help of her daughter, 
who has been to her a source of much comfort 
as well as a strong stay since the death of her 
husband, she not only "looketh well to the 
ways of her household, and eateth not the 
bread of idleness," but she has constant over- 
sight of the farm, well knowing that the only 
sure way of preventing a place from running 
to waste is by exercising constant vigilance. 



M 



R. CHARLES J. MILLS, a popular 
and well-known dentist of Mount 
Morris, has achieved excellent suc- 
cess in the practice of his profes- 
sion, in which he has enjoyed a large 
experience and gained a valuable reputation 
for skill and superior workmanship. Living- 
ston is the county of his nativity, his birth 
having occurred in the town of Springwater, 
January 12, 1844. He is a son of Dr. 
Charles Mills, who was born in Rochester, 
N. Y. , and a grandson of Jesse Mills, a native 
of Connecticut. 

Jesse Mills left the State of his birth on ac- 
count of his health, removing to the State of 
New York, hoping that a more inland atmos- 
phere might prove of physical benefit to him, 
and located in Rochester, being one of its 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



343 



early settlers. He purchased real estate in 
the then growing village, a part of his prop- 
erty being now included in the site of the 
Third Presbyterian church, and there passed 
the remainder of his life. He married a Miss 
Popeneau, a native of France, where she grew 
to young womanhood, and then came to this 
country as a music teacher. 

The father of the subject of this brief biog- 
raphy received a thorough classical education, 
and when a young man studied medicine, but 
afterward turning his attention to dentistry 
practised in Rochester until his death, being 
one of the foremost dentists of that city. He 
was twice married, the maiden name of his 
first wife, mother of the Doctor, having been 
Adeline Jennings. She was a native of 
Macedon, Wayne County, and a daughter of 
John Jennings, who was born in Vermont, but 
emigrated from there to Wayne County, per- 
forming the journey with teams, and located 
in the town of Macedon, where he lived for a 
number of years. Mr. Jennings subsequently 
came to Livingston County, and for several 
years kept a public house in Springwater, liv- 
ing there until after the death of his wife, 
when he made his home with a daughter at 
Sparta. In January, 1844, a few days after 
the birth of a son, Charles J., Mrs Mills 
died, being then but twenty-two years old. 
Dr. Mills afterward married Harriet Chap- 
man, of New York City, the Doctor being a 
boy eleven years old at the time of his father's 
second marriage. 

Dr. Mills was tenderly cared for by an aunt 
in his younger years, living with her until the 
advent of his step-mother, when he returned 
home. He began his school life in the dis- 
trict schools, and afterward attended the 
Rochester High School, which he left to 
enlist in the service of his country. May 2, 
1 86 1, joining Company E of a New York 
regiment, which was immediately ordered to 
the front, and was in the battle of Bull Run. 
After serving for a year with his regiment, 
Dr. Mills had an attack of typhoid fever, and 
being discharged returned home. As soon as 
he was able to be about, he assisted Major 
Downey to raise Company E of the Thirteenth 
New York Volunteer Infantry, and received 



the commission of Second Lieutenant. Pre- 
ferring the cavalry service, however, he re- 
signed his commission, and joined the Eighth 
New York Cavalry as Sergeant of Company 
M, remaining with that regiment, which was 
one of the most active in the service, until 
the close of the war. Sixty-eight different 
battles, engagements, or skirmishes were par- 
ticipated in by the famed Eighth New York 
Cavalry; but Dr. Mills never a moment 
flinched from his duty during the time of activ- 
ity, and was twice wounded. After the close 
of the war he and his comrades were present 
at the grand review; and he received his 
honorable discharge in June, 1865. Return- 
ing to the home of his father. Dr. Mills began 
the study of dentistry, and commenced the 
practice of his profession at Lima, where he 
lived until 1882, busily engaged. He then 
opened his present office at Mount Morris, 
and during the interim has secured an exten- 
sive and lucrative practice. 

On the 1 6th of July, 1867, the union of Dr. 
Mills and Anna J. Artman was solemnized. 
Mrs. Mills was born in Sparta, Livingston 
County, and is a daughter of Abram Artman, 
of that place. Socially, the Doctor is Past 
Commander of J. E. Lee Post, No. 281, 
Grand Army of the Republic, and belongs to 
Union Lodge, No. 145, at Lima, and to 
Mount Morris Chapter, No. 122. He is also 
a member of Genesee Valley Lodge, Ancient 
Order of United Workmen. 




i\CAJ/lLLIAM DANA FITZHUGH, late 
of Groveland, was a descendant of 
an old and highly esteemed Colonial 
family, and was well known in- Livingston 
County. He was born at Sonyea, and died at 
the "Hermitage," March, 1889, at the age of 
sixty-five years. His father. Dr. Daniel H. 
Fitzhugh, was a native of Washington County, 
Maryland. He came to Livingston County, 
New York, in 1814, to superintend the build- 
ing of Hampton for his father, Colonel Will- 
iam Fitzhugh, who moved here with his large 
family in 18 16. 

Colonel William Fitzhugh sen-ed as Aide- 
de-camp on the staff of General Washington 



344 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



through the Revolutionary War. His father, 
Captain William Fitzhugh, was a British offi- 
cer. Too old and infirm himself for active 
service in 1776, he forwarded the resignation 
of his commission in the Horse Guards, and 
sent his two sons, Perry and William, to Gen- 
eral Washington, whose affection and confi- 
dence he enjoyed to a remarkable degree. 
Both sons served with gallantry through the 
entire war. Colonel .William Fitzhugh, after 
his marriage with Miss Ann Hughes, resided 
for a number of years on his beautiful estate, 
"The Hive," the birthplace of the seven sons 
and five daughters who came with their par- 
ents to live at the home in Groveland, near 
Mount Morris, called Hampton. 

Dr. Daniel H. F'itzhugh in 1826 located at 
Sonyea, and became the owner of large tracts 
of land in that vicinity, part of which he 
afterward sold to the Shakers, and which was 
later purchased by the State for the Craig 
Colony for epileptics. He was an extremely 
vigorous man, full of enterprise, and lived to 
be eighty-seven years old, being active and in 
full possession of his mental faculties to the 
time of his death, which was the result of an 
accident, and not from disease or old age. 
The maiden name of his wife, the mother of 
our subject, was Anne Dana. She was a 
native of Sodus, N. Y. ; and her father. Cap- 
tain William P. Dana, born in FIngland, was 
an ofificer of the British army. He came to 
America with his uncle, Sir William Pulte- 
ney, proprietor of the Pulteney tract, and mar- 
ried the daughter of Colonel Perry P"itzhugh. 
She died at the birth of a child; and Captain 
Dana, leaving his child with its grandparents, 
returned to England, where he passed the 
remainder of his days. His daughter married 
at the age of seventeen, and died at the age of 
forty-si.x, in 1850. 

William Dana F'itzhugh, the subject of this 
sketch, married Anne Carroll, the daughter of 
Charles H. Carroll and Alida Van Rensselaer 
Carroll. In 1849 he, with his wife, removed 
to Michigan. They drove in their own con- 
veyance to Buffalo, and from there went via 
the lake to Detroit. Thence Mr. Fitzhugh 
drove; and Mrs. Fitzhugh accompanied him, 
riding on horseback through the woods to 



Saginaw. This place, now Kay City, Mich., 
was then a small village containing but ten 
houses, one of which belonged to the Hon. 
James G. Birney, who from this little place, 
then called Lower Saginaw, was nominated as 
the first Abolition candidate for President. 
Mrs. Birney was a daughter of Colonel Will- 
iam Fitzhugh, and went with her husband to 
live there in 1840. William D. Fitzhugh 
engaged in the real estate business, including 
surveying, and also in the lumber business, 
and remained there four years. He then re- 
turned to New York State, and lived at the 
"Hermitage" in Groveland. His death oc- 
curred there in March, i88g. Since her hus- 
band's death Mrs. P"itzhugh has occupied the 
beautiful homestead known as "Hampton," 
which has been in the family ever since it was 
built, in 1814. 

Mr. and Mrs. P"itzhugh reared six of their 
eight children. Anne, Alida, Cornelia, and 
Edward are now living. Charles Carroll Fitz- 
hugh, the eldest son, died at the age of twenty- 
six years, and Willie at sixteen. Samuel and 
Archie died young. Anne Fitzhugh is the 
wife of the Hon. Hamilton M. Wright, of Bay 
City, Mich. 




1794. 



"ON. CHARLES H. CARROLL, the 
first Judge of Livingston County, 
New York, was born at Bellevue, 
Georgetown Heights, D. C, May 4, 
He was a worthy descendant of a long 
line of illustrious ancestors, some of whom 
bore a conspicuous part in laying the founda- 
tion and establishing the republic of the 
United States, being the son of the Hon. 
Charles Carroll, of Bellevue, whose father, 
Charles Carroll of Duddington, was the son of 
Daniel Carroll, born in the neighborhood of 
what is now the District of Columbia, and 
grandson of Charles Carroll, a native of 
England, who emigrated to Maryland in the 
year 1689, and was the original founder of the 
family in America. He was appointed Judge 
and Register of the Land Office, and agent 
and receiv^er of rents for Lord Baltimore. 
He married in America, and reared two sons, 
Daniel and Charles. A son of the latter was 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



345 



the famous patriot, Cliarles Carroll, of Carroll- 
ton, who was one of the signers of the Decla- 
ration of Independence. Daniel Carroll mar- 
ried Ellen Rosier, and settled upon what is 
now Capitol Hill, Washington, D. C. , where 
he built a fine residence, his farm including 
the site of the city. He was a man of large 
means, and very prominent in public affairs, 
being a member of Congress in 1789-gi. He 
reared three children — Eleanore, Mary, and 
Charles. Eleanore married the brother of 
Archbishop Carroll. Charles married Mary 
Hill, and reared three children — Daniel, of 
Duddington ; Charles, of Bellevue; and Henry 
Carroll. 

Charles Carroll, of Bellevue, was the 
founder of the Genesee branch of the family. 
In 1798, accompanied by his brother Daniel 
and Colonel Nathaniel Rochester, he pene- 
trated the wilds of Western New York; and 
upon this trip they purchased a one-hundred- 
acre tract at the falls of the Genesee River, 
where the city of Rochester was originally laid 
out. In the year 1800 they founded the city 
and named it Rochesterville, in honor of Colo- 
nel Rochester. About the same time Mr. 
Carroll, with Colonel William Fitzhugh, pur- 
chased the Hermitage tract of twelve thousand 
acres, in the vicinity of Mount Morris, which 
included the site of Williamsburg, then cpiite 
a village. In 18 14 Daniel Fitzhugh and his 
sister Rebecca, who afterward married Dr. 
Frederick Backus, went there for the purpose 
of locating the site and preparing the home 
for their father and mother. They journeyed 
upon horseback, their slaves accompanying 
them with teams loaded with provisions and 
other necessary supplies. They selected a 
tract which had been partially cleared and 
improved by one John Hampton, and this 
estate has since been known as Hampton. 

In 1 8 16 Major Carroll and Colonel Fitz- 
hugh, with their families, arrived here for the 
purpose of settling, the former locating at 
Williamsburg. He was very active in poli- 
tics, and took a leading part in the political 
campaign which resulted in the election of 
James Monroe. The President offered him a 
seat in his cabinet — that of Secretary of 
State; but, as he had taken such an active 



part in the campaign, the Major was afraid he 
w^ould be considered an office-seeker, and upon 
that ground refused. He was afterward ap- 
pointed Receiver of Public Moneys for the 
Territory of Missouri, which then comprised 
all the country lying west of Louisiana. He 
accepted this appointment, and went there 
with his family, travelling overland the entire 
distance. He remained there two years, and 
then returned to the Genesee valley where he 
lived in retirement until his decease. The 
maiden name of Major Carroll's wife was 
Anne Sprigg. She was a daughter of Joseph 
and Hannah (Lee) Sprigg, of Cedar Grove, 
Harper's Ferry, which is said to have been 
a very beautiful place. Mrs. Carroll reared 
eight children. 

The Hon. Charles H. Carroll, the subject 
of this sketch, received a liberal education. 
He inherited a large tract of land in Living- 
ston County, and erected a most beautiful resi- 
dence a short distance from the village of 
Mount Morris, known as the Hermitage. He 
was active in political affairs, supporting the 
Whig party, and was an ardent admirer of 
Henry Clay. He married Miss Alida Van 
Rensselaer, of Utica, N. Y., daughter of Jere- 
miah and Sybil (Kane) Van Rensselaer, and 
a direct descendant of Killian Van Rensse- 
laer, a wealthy pearl and diamond merchant of 
Holland, who in 1630 bought a large estate, 
including the present counties of Albany, 
Columbia, and Rensselaer, New York, and 
named Rensselaerswick. He was the first 
Patroon ; and his eldest son, Johannes, the 
second. Both of them spent their lives in 
Holland. The first of the family in this 
country was Jan Baptist, the second son of 
Killian, who came over a few years after his 
father's death, which occurred at Amsterdam in 
1644, as director of the colony, representing 
Johannes. The grandfather of Mrs. Carroll 
was the Revolutionary soldier, General Robert 
Van Rensselaer. Mrs. Carroll reared three 
daughters, and died in 1832. Cornelia mar- 
ried lidward P. Fuller, and resides in Grand 
Rapids, Mich.; Adelina died in i860; and 
Anna E. is the widow of the late William 
Fitzhugh, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere 
in this work. Mrs. Fitzhugh and- her children 



346 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



are the only lineal descendants of the Hon. 
Charles H. Carroll now residing in this 
county. She occupies the beautiful estate, 
situated a short distance from the village of 
Mount Morris, known as Hampton. The 
record of this family is one of which the 
people of Livingston County may justly feel 
proud. 







YRON A. NEVINS, one of the pro- 
gressive farmers and business men of 
Perry, N.Y., was born upon the farm 
he now owns and occupies, December 
25, 1848. He is a son of Dr. Jacob and 
Eveline (Strong) Nevins, grandson of John 
and Hepsibah (Hubbard) Nevins and great- 
grandson of David and Louisa (Patch) Xevins, 
who came from Scotland to America about 
1730, and lived for a time at Bedford, Mass. 
After revisiting their native country, they 
settled in Hollis, N.H., but later removed to 
Plymouth in that State, where they died, 
leaving four children — John, Margaret, 
Louis, and David. In 18 12 John Nevins 
moved to Danville, \'t., where he was a 
farmer and shoemaker. His si.\ children 
were: David, who married Caroline Bowers; 
Sally, wife of John Wilson; Louise, wife of 
Paul D. Phillips; Jacob, who married Esther 
Steel, and after her death in early life mar- 
ried for his second wife, January 17, 1848, 
Eveline Strong; Hepsibah, who died at the 
age of sixteen; and Judith, wife of Ira True. 
The grandparents died in Perry at the resi- 
dence of their son, both having attained a ripe 
old age. Their children have all passed 
away. 

Dr. Jacob Nevins was born January 13, 
1788, at Plymouth, N.H. He was educated 
at St. Johnsbury, Vt., and studied medicine 
with Dr. Jewett. He practised in Vermont 
until 181 5, when he came on horseback to the 
town of Perry, which was at that time very 
thinly inhabited, only a few Eastern families 
having settled there. Being favorably im- 
pressed with the new country, he began 
searching for a suitable place to locate; and, 
while riding one day from Perry to Perry 
Centre, he stopped to speak with Pettie 



Bebee, who was engaged in making maple 
sugar. The latter, being dissatisfied with his 
new home, readily made a trade with the 
Doctor, to whom he sold his fifty acres of 
land for five hundred dollars, and returned 
East, while the new possessor proceeded to 
erect a house. Dr. Nevins sent for his par- 
ents, who lived and died there, as above men- 
tioned. He cleared and improved his farm, 
erected a substantial residence and other 
buildings, and became one of the most noted 
physicians in the county. He practised over 
a broad section, and later built a drug store 
and office near his residence, which still 
stands. Dr. Nevins died September 28, 
i860. He had three children — David; 
Byron, the subject of this sketch: and Walter 
B., who was born in 185 i, and died at the age 
of ten years. 

Dr. Nevins was a great admirer of horses, 
and had bred many fine animals. He specu- 
lated successfully in real estate, and was also 
an extensive dealer in cattle, taking these in 
payment for medical fees, in order to make 
payment more easy for the early settlers. He 
was always ready to assist his neighbors in 
distress. In politics he was a strong Demo- 
crat. His wife was a member of the Presby- 
terian church, and he himself was very liberal 
in religious views. 

Byron A., the Doctor's second son, was 
educated at Perry Academy and at the 
Rochester Business College. He entered the 
book and paper business in Perry, the firm 
being known as Wygart & Nevins. Selling 
his interest at the end of one year, his father 
having died, he took possession of the old 
homestead, which consists of two hundred and 
fifty acres. November 9, 1870, Mr. Nevins 
was united in marriage to Maria, daughter of 
George and Jemima (Keaton) Johnson, who 
were both born in England. They came to 
America, and settled on a farm in Castile, and 
reared two children. Emma, born January 
10, 1847, married George W. Grieves, and has 
three children — William, George, and John; 
Maria, Mrs. Nevins, was born July 10, 1849. 
Mr. Johnson was a Republican, and both him- 
self and wife are members of the Baptist 
church. Mr. and Mrs. Byron A. Nevins have 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



347 



three children — Walter, born May 5, 1875; 
Mark J., born September 24, 1877; and 
Lawrence B., born June 15, 1888. 

Mr. Nevins is one of the largest sheep 
dealers in the country, having wintered as 
many as seven hundred head ; and he also 
breeds cattle, horses, and hogs. He raises 
large quantities of beans, wheat, and potatoes, 
and is in every way a model farmer. He is a 
very active politician, being a stanch Repub- 
lican, and has been Highway Commissioner 
and Supervisor five years. He is very liberal 
in his religious views, and always charitable 
and kind-hearted in disposition. He is a 
member of Consolation Lodge, No. 404, 
A. F. & A. M., of Perry, and a Director of 
the Citizens' Bank. He is also Secretary and 
Trustee of the Perry Knitting Mills, in which 
he is a stockholder. 



OHN R. McINTYRE was born in 
York, Livingston County, January 7, 
1830. His grandfather, also John R. 
Mclntyre, was a native of Scotland, 
and was one of the early pioneer settlers of 
Caledonia, purchasing three hundred acres of 
wild land in a part of the town which is now 
the north-western section of York. The for- 
est growth had to be cut away to clear a space 
for the humble log home, which was built to 
.shelter his wife and family. Nine weeks and 
three days were consumed in the voyage to 
America; and the first place of residence was 
Johnstown, N.Y. From that point the jour- 
ney to Livingston County was made by ox 
teams, by which rough mode of conveyance he 
brought his wife and seven children to their 
new home. The remainder of his life was 
spent in York, where he died in 185 1. He 
was a member of the Presbyterian church, as 
was almost any leal Scotsman in those days. 
The father of John R. Mclntyre, of whom 
we write, was born in Argyleshire, Scotland; 
and, being but a child when his father emi- 
grated to America, his meagre education was 
acquired during the short period of residence 
in Johnstown. As he grew up he worked 
about the farm, of which he afterward became 
a joint possessor with his brother, buying out 



the other heirs. His wife was Isabella Gillis, 
a daughter of D. Archibald Gillis, an old 
Scotch settler; and they reared a family of 
eight children — Helen, Joseph, Daniel, Je- 
mima, Mary, John R., Catherine, and Archi- 
bald. The father was fifty-six when he died; 
and his widow survived him some years, being 
seventy-eight at the time of her death. 

John R. Mclntyre, of this sketch, was the 
eldest child in the parental family, and was 
educated in the district schools of York. His 
natural liking for farm life has, perhaps, been 
one of the elements of his success. At the 
age of thirty-one years he became the posses- 
sor of the property he now owns, which is a 
part of the original estate. He married ;\Iiss 
Grace A. Hamilton, of York; and of this 
union there are the following-named children: 
Jeanette, Helen Kate, and P. Roy. Both 
husband and wife are in the communion of the 
Presbyterian church. Mr. Mclntyre cast his 
first Presidential vote for John P. Hale in 
1852, and has been a Republican since the 
formation of the party. 




i'^rKlfiLLlAU T. SPENNIG, the well- 
i/^V known and highly successful dry- 
goods merchant of Dansville and 
President of the Merchants' and Farmers' 
Bank, is a native of Saratoga County, New 
York, and was born on the 20th of September, 
1820. His father, William Spennig, was 
born in New Jersey, and being left fatherless 
at the tender age of five years was bound out 
by the administrators of his father's estate, 
and as soon as able learned the trade of 
wagon-maker, working at that calling until 
his marriage. He then removed to Cayuga 
Count)', New York, purchased a farm, and 
upon it resided for seven years. He then 
sold, and moved to West Sparta, Livingston 
County, where he purchased another farm, and 
after conducting it for a time again changed 
his residence, having traded his farm in the 
last-named town for one in Mount Morris. 
He, however, made his home in the village, 
and died there at the age of seventy-five. He 
was a member of the Presbyterian church of 
West Sparta, but later of the Methodist 



348 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



church at Mount Morris. The maiden name 
of his wife was Mary Hayes. She was a na- 
tive of Saratoga County. They were the par- 
ents of nine children, as follows: Elizabeth, 
William T., Phoebe, John, Mary, Harriet, 
Marcia, Daniel, and Ansel. Of these the 
only survivors arc William T., Ansel, and 
Harriet. Mrs. Mary Hayes Spennig was a 
member of the Presbyterian church at Mount 
Morris. She passed her declining years in 
that town, dying at the age of eighty-six. 

William T. Spennig received his education 
at the district schools and at Nunda Acad- 
emy. He remained with his father, assisting 
him upon the farm, until reaching the age of 
twenty-eight, and then engaged in business in 
Kyserville for a time, then moved his stock 
of goods to Dansville, where he engaged in 
business for himself, remaining here three 
years, at the expiration of which time he re- 
turned to Kyserville, and embarked in the dry- 
goods business, continuing in it for five years. 
Disposing of this, he returned to Dansville, 
and entered the grocery business, which he 
conducted until 1861, when, disposing of his 
interest, he returned to the dry-goods busi- 
ness, this time as a clerk, and remained on a 
salary for twelve years. In 1876 he opened 
the present large establishment, under the 
firm name of Spennig, Uhl & Co., and has 
successfully conducted the same to the pres- 
ent time. The firm has the largest and most 
extensive establishment of the kind in Dans- 
ville, and carries the heaviest stock of dry 
goods and notions in Livingston County. 
Mr. Spennig is also the oldest merchant in 
town. 

January 13, 1S48, Mr. Spennig married 
Sarah Walker, a daughter of Ephraim Walker, 
a farmer of West Sparta, and one of the early 
settlers of that town. Mr. and Mrs. Spennig 
have one son, William A., who attended the 
public schools of Dansville, and completed 
his education by a two years" course at Pike 
Seminary. When Mr. Spennig established 
his present business, he gave his son an inter- 
est in the same; and he has proved himself an 
able and worthy assistant to his father. Mr. 
Spennig is also interested in various financial 
institutions. He was the principal mover 



in the organization of the Merchants' and 
Farmers' National Bank of Dansville, and was 
its first President; and it is through his care- 
ful foresight that this institution enjoys its 
present enviable reputation of being one of 
the soundest financial concerns in the county. 
He is a member of the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows, and takes a great interest in the 
welfare of the lodge. 

Too much cannot be said of Mr. Spennig, 
either socially or in a business way. In the 
latter he is always consulted by those need- 
ing advice, and is ever ready to render his 
valuable assistance. His rare judgment and 
long and varied experience in mercantile 
affairs enable him to quickly discern the right 
solution of any and all questions laid before 
him; and his opinion is relied upon as being 
sound and generally correct. 

Mr. Spennig is Republican in politics, and 
was formerly a Whig, having cast his first 
Presidential vote for Henry Clay. He is an 
earnest member of the Presbyterian church, 
having been an Elder for more than twenty 
years, and was superintendent of the Sunday- 
school for several years. He has every rea- 
son to look upon his success with pride, for it 
is the result of pure and honorable business 
methods. He resides quietly, enjoying the 
many comforts of his beautiful home, and is 
beloved and respected by his fellow-townsmen. 




,APTAIN SAAIUEL CULBERTSON, 
a well-to-do farmer residing in the 
town of Groveland, Livingston 
County, N.Y., and a veteran of the 
Civil War, was born August 30, 1837. His 
father, Samuel Craig Culbertson, was also a 
native of Groveland, and was born in 1799. 
His grandfather, Andrew Culbertson, was a 
native of Pennsylvania, as was also his great- 
grandfather, who fought in the Revolutionary 
War, and was killed by Indians in 1777. 
(For a more complete history of the family 
see "The Genealogy of the Culbertson Fam- 
ily," published by Dr. Lewis Culbertson, of 
Janesville, Ohio.) 

Andrew Cxilbertson was one of the first set- 
tlers in Groveland, coming here when it was 




SAMUEL CULBERTSON. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



351 



a part of Ontario County and an almost un- 
broken wilderness. He cleared and improved 
a farm, upon which he resided until his de- 
cease. His wife, whose maiden name was 
Elizabeth Craig, was also a native of Pennsyl- 
vania. Their son, Samuel Craig Culbertson, 
was reared to agricultural pursuits, and fol- 
lowed that occupation through life. He died 
in 1857. The maiden name of his wife was 
Nancy Johnson, and she is still living at the 
age of eighty-nine years. She reared nine 
children, as follows: John; Frank; Margaret; 
Samuel, the subject of this sketch; Eliza- 
beth; Michael; Nancy; Matilda; and I'^dward. 
Samuel Culbertson obtained his primary 
education in the district schools, and entered 
the State normal school at Albany for an ad- 
vanced course, but unfortunately was obliged 
on account of ill health to relinquish his 
studies before graduating. He was engaged 
in farming until September, 1862, when he 
enlisted in Company B, One Hundred and 
Thirtieth Regiment, New York Volunteer In- 
fantry. He served in that regiment for one 
year, and was then transferred to the First 
New York Dragoons, with which he served 
until August, 1864, when he was compelled 
to resign from physical disability. He was 
mustered into the service as a Second Lieu- 
tenant, but for gallant and meritorious con- 
duct was promoted to be First Lieutenant and 
then to be Captain. His regiment was con- 
stantly engaged in active service; and Cap- 
tain Culbertson was a participant in the 
following battles: Franklin, Manassas Plains, 
Culpeper, Charlotteville, Todd's Tavern, 
Squirrel Bridge, Beaver Dam, Yellow Tavern, 
Meadow Bridge, Mechanicsville, Hawes Shop, 
Old Church, and the two days' fight at Cold 
Harbor. After his retirement from the army 
Captain Culbertson, as soon as able, resumed 
farming, and in 1865 settled upon the farm he 
now owns and occupies. It is well improved, 
comprising one hundred and ninety-eight 
acres, and is one of the most beautifully sit- 
uated and sightly estates in the Genesee 
valley. 

In 1866 Captain Samuel Culbertson married 
Sarah R. H. Johnston, a native of Cincinnati, 
Ohio, and daughter of James M. Johnston. 



They have had four children, three of whom 
are now living — Margaret B., Samuel C, 
and James J. Robert M., the second child, 
died at the age of three years. The gallant 
Captain is a comrade of Curtis Post, No. 392, 
Grand Army of the Republic; and both him- 
self and wife are members of the Presbyterian 
church. In Captain Culbertson the towns- 
people of Groveland have a fellow-citizen of 
whom they may well be proud — a patriotic, 
high-minded, generous-hearted gentleman, de- 
serving in every way of the high respect 
and esteem in which he is held by the entire 
community. 

The portrait to be found in close proximity 
to the present sketch is an unmistakable like- 
ness of the true "son of liberty," whose 
shoulder straps were bravely won 

■■ill the strife 
For country, for freedom, for honor, for life." 



(e>rDELBERT LELAND THOMSON, an 
1^ extensive farmer and fruit grower of 
Jj\\ Avon, is a native and a life-long 
^~^ resident of the town, and occupies 
the old ho"mestead that has been in possession 
of the Thomson family for several genera- 
tions. He was born in 1841, his natal day 
being December 26. His father, Leland S. 
Thomson, first saw the light of day on the 
2 1st of December, 1809, his native place 
being Peru, Berkshire County, Mass., which 
was also the birthplace of the grandfather of 
our subject, Simeon Thomson. 

It is believed that the great-grandfather, 
Daniel Thomson, was also born in the old 
Bay State. It is known that he was a resi- 
dent of Holliston, Mass., for many years, 
that he was engaged in farming there, and 
that he gave up farming and everything else 
to take an active part in the struggle for free- 
dom. He took part in the battle of Bunker 
Hill; and among the most \'alued possessions 
of his great-grandson, Adelbert L. Thomson, 
are the powder-horn and the bullet mould 
which were used by his heroic ancestor. The 
copper moulds will run nine balls, ranging 
in weight from half an ounce to an ounce. 
There is no knowing, of course, how many 



352 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



balls were run in it all toj^othor; but it is safe 
to assume that those which were run were 
used carefully, for lead, as well as powder, 
was scarce. Daniel Thomson spent his last 
days in Peru, Mass. His son Simeon spent 
his entire life there, and was a farmer by occu- 
pation. The maiden name of his wife was 
Sybilla Lcland. She was born in Holliston, 
Mass., and was a daughter of Daniel and 
Sybilla (Kames) Iceland. (For full infor- 
mation concerning this old and interesting 
family, seethe " Leland Magazine, or Genea- 
logical Record of Henry Leland and his De- 
scendants," published by Sherman Leland.) 

The father of our subject, Leland S. Thom- 
son, was but five years of age when his father 
died, and continued to live with his mother, 
attending school until he was fourteen years 
old, when he came to Livingston County, 
New York, to live with his elder brother at 
East Avon. At that time there were neither 
railroads nor canals, and no markets nearer 
than Rochester for the residents of this sec- 
tion. Ho made the entire journey alone and 
by stage. Some years later he returned to 
Pittsficld to visit friends, and when on the 
way back to Avon was fortunate enough to 
secure a ticket for a ride on the first train of 
cars drawn by steam that ever was run in New 
York State. This line was from Albany to 
Schenectady. After marrying he resided for a 
time in Monroe County, and then bought a 
farm of James Wadsworth in school district 
No. 3, East Avon. There was a log house on 
it at the time, and in it the subject of this 
sketch was born. » 

The maiden name of the wife of Leland S. 
Thomson was Mary Wilber. She was a na- 
tive of the Empire State, and her parents 
were Jeptha and Catherine (Cookingham) 
\Vilbcr. Two children were born to her — ■ 
Morrill and Adelbert L. Merrill is a resi- 
dent of Eaton County, Michigan. He mar- 
ried Jane Shreaves, and has two sons — Henry 
L. and Earl, the former of whom is an exten- 
sive farmer in Michigan. Mrs. Mary Wilber 
Thomson departed this life on Christmas 
morning, 1 890. She was a devoted Christian 
and a member of the First Presbyterian Church 
at East Avon. 



Adelbert Leland Thomson attended the dis- 
trict schools and the Genesee \Vesleyan Semi- 
nary at Lima, N.Y. He has always been a 
farmer and fruit grower, and now owns the 
Jeptha Wilber farm of one hundred and ninety 
acres, and also the old homestead of one hun- 
dred and sixty acres. He resides on the 
Jeptha Wilber farm, and occupies a spacious 
frame house; and his father lives with him, 
for Leland S. Thomson, though having at- 
tained the great age of eighty-five, is still 
hale and hearty, in full possession of his 
faculties, and as well able to take care of him- 
self at this writing as he was in 1893, 
when all alone he attended the World's Fair, 
there seeing the train on which over sixty years 
ago he travelled to Western New York. 

Adelbert L. Thomson was married in May, 
1880, to Miss Adelaide Stover, of Point Pleas- 
ant, Bucks County, Pa., and has four chil- 
dren — Mary, Ella, Leland S., and Adelbert. 
Mr. Thomson is a member of the Presbyterian 
church, and his wife of the Baptist. Now, in 
the very prime of life, at the head of a united 
and happy family, the owner of spacious and 
valuable farm property, and following a busi- 
ness in which he has had a life-long training, 
and which he understands thoroughly in every 
detail, Mr. Thomson has what many would 
consider a most enviable lot; but it is one 
the duties of which he fully appreciates, and 
is most careful and conscientious in the per- 
formance of thom. 



^-m^^-p - ■- 

/2)eORGE WRIGHT, a barber and cigar 
\ '•) I merchant in Pike, Wyoming County, 
^ — whoso life has been full of various 
experiences and interesting incidents, was 
born in Baltimore, Md., October 14, 1840. 
His grandfather, George J. Wright, was a 
Scotchman, who settled in Maryland, where 
he worked a farm and owned an oyster sloop. 
His son John, who was born on the west- 
ern shore of Maryland, remained with him 
until he was eighteen years old, when he went 
to Baltimore, and secured employment in 
Cooper's ship yard, where at length he became 
a foreman. In carrying a piece of heavy tim- 
ber he received an injury from which he died 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



353 



at forty-eight years of age. He married Miss 
Eva Reitz, a daughter of Henry Reitz, who 
for thirty years was a Justice of the Peace of 
Baltimore, where his daughter was born. 
Mrs. Wright was one of nine children, all of 
whom she has outlived. To John and Eva 
Wright three children were born — George, of 
whom this is a sketch; Kate, who married, 
and is now Mrs. Stoker; John, a cigar manu- 
facturer in Atlantic City. Mrs. Wright has 
for many years been a resident of Egg Harbor 
City, N.J. 

At the early age of thirteen George Wright 
went to sea as cabin boy on board the 
"Indus," which ran between l^altimore and 
Rio Janeiro in the coffee trade. After three 
years of service on the '' Indus " he was such 
a good seaman that he easily found positions 
on other vessels, and rose to the place of sec- 
ond mate by the time he was nineteen years 
old. Until 1861 he followed a seafaring 
life, travelling far and seeing all the most 
notable ports of the world. In this year, 
1861, he enlisted as a recruit in Philadelphia; 
but, instead of entering active service, he was 
sent to a hospital in West Philadelphia, where 
he did duty as nurse and ward master. After 
his discharge from the hospital he came to 
Ikiffalo, and sailed the Lakes until 1871, 
when his health became so impaired that he 
had to give up the old roving, hardy life and 
became what sailors call a "landlubber"; 
and thus he gradually drifted into mercantile 
life. In BuiTalo he opened a general store on 
Elk Street, and established also a barber's 
shop. In 1872 he became Harbor Master for 
that city; but two years later he moved to 
Pike, where he opened a barber shop and 
gentlemen's furnishing store, and is still en- 
gaged in business at the old stand. In poli- 
tics Mr. Wright is a loyal Democrat. He 
was nominated for membership of the Assem- 
bly of 1888. He has taken the "stump" dur- 
ing several terms of political excitement, and 
has made speeches all over Western New> 
Yoik. He was appointed by Comptroller 
Campbell E.\cise Inspector of the State of 
New York, his duty being the inspection of 
all railroad cars and vessels selling liquors. 

In 1871 Mr. Wright was united in marriage 



to Miss Mary Kesner, a daughter of George 
Kesner, of Canada. -She was one of four chil- 
dren. One child, a daughter, Ida E. Wright, 
was born of this marriage. She is now Mrs. 
William W. Wolcott. Her husband, who 
belongs to one of the most prominent families 
in this section, is a merchant in Pike. Mr. 
Wright is a member of the Knights of Macca- 
bees, of which he has been Commander four 
terms, and is now Record Keeper of Pike, 
Tent. He has been for the past twelve years 
County Committee, and has been delegate to, 
various political conventions. Mr. Wright's 
foreign travels have resulted in making him 
quite a linguist, for he speaks German and 
Spanish fluently. He teaches the former 
sometimes, having acquired a good knowledge 
of the grammar while attending the college at 
Berlin, Germany. He also has a good deal of 
native talent, both artistic and mechanical. 
Both he and his wife are conscientious mem- 
bers of the Bajjtist church. 



OHN C. WITT, a member of the 
county Board of Supervisors, repre- 
senting the town of Mount Morris, is 
a man of versatile talents, wise and 
thoroughly honest in his business transac- 
tions, and possessing excellent financial abil- 
ity. During the past quarter of a century he 
has been closely connected with the agricult- 
ural interests of Mount Morris, and has con- 
tributed his quota toward bringing about the 
present high standing of this town among 
the magnificent farming regions of Livingston 
County. A native of the Empire State, Mr. 
Witt was born in the town of Schenevus, Ot- 
sego County, Eebruary 28, 1835, and is a son 
of Samuel Witt, who was born and bred amid 
the picturesque scenery of New Hampshire's 
hills. 

Isaac Witt, the paternal grandfather, was 
likewise a native of the Granite State, where 
'the earlier portion of his life was passed. 
Lured by the attractive prices of the lands that 
had then been thrown upon the market in the 
eastern section of New York, he migrated 
with his family to Otsego County, locating in 
the town of Maryland, in the midst of the 



354 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



primeval forest. Buying a tract of wooded 
land, he put forth his best energies toward 
clearing and improving a homestead from the 
wilderness, and with the help of his sons suc- 
ceeded in his efforts, and remained a citizen 
of that place until his death. 

Samuel Witt was reared to an agricultural 
life, and until the time of his marriage as- 
sisted his father on the farm. Removing then 
to the town of Worcester, in Otsego County, 
he bought a hotel, which he managed profit- 
ably and pleasingly, remaining proprietor and 
manager of the tavern, as it was then desig- 
nated, until the end of his earthly life, which 
had continued for nearly eighty years. His 
wife, whose maiden name was Susan Caryl, 
was a native of Vermont and a daughter of 
Isaac Caryl, who was born in the same State. 
Mr. Caryl was a farmer by birth and occupa- 
tion, and, becoming a pioneer settler of Rich- 
mondville, Schoharie County, N.Y., was 
numbered among its most enterprising and 
active citizens. 

John C. Witt was educated in the schools 
of Worcester and Richmondville, and for 
more than a year after attaining his majority 
remained an inmate of his parents' home. 
He began the battle of life for himself as a 
clerk in a general store, acquiring such a 
knowledge of the business in a year that he 
then entered upon a mercantile career, open- 
ing a store in West Richmondville and sub- 
sequently one in Richmondville, and for seven 
years was a successful merchant of Schoharie 
County. He abandoned that business, how- 
ever, to take charge of a hotel in the village 
of Richmondville, where he remained for 
eighteen months. In 1863 Mr. Witt made 
his appearance in Livingston County, and in 
the town of Nunda bought a hotel, which six- 
weeks later he sold at an advance. Removing 
to Angelica, in Allegany County, he pur- 
chased another hotel, which he carried on for 
a short time before selling. Soon after a 
sign, bearing the name of John C. Witt, was 
seen swinging across the entrance of a boot 
and shoe store in Dansville, Livingston 
County: and for a time he was again a mer- 
chant, meeting with the same success that had 
been his in his previous mercantile experi- 



ence. Another removal, and Mr. Witt was 
again engaged in the hotel business in Nunda, 
being the proprietor of one of the best public 
houses there for some six months. The fol- 
lowing year he engaged in general merchan- 
dising in Nunda, but not quite content sold his 
stock, and renting his building bought a farm 
in the town of Portage, but before he had 
moved there sold it, and purchased a livery 
stable in Nunda. 

Six months later Mr. Witt traded his stable 
and stock for a farm in Portage; and in the 
course of another six months that property 
had been sold, and he was the owner of a good 
farm located in Canaseraga, on which was 
an improved water-power and flouring-mill. 
But, ever ready to seize every opportunity of 
financial benefit, he disposed of the mill and 
farm after a year's ownership, and invested 
the proceeds in an interest in a Nunda mill 
and Nunda real estate. On the latter Mr. 
Witt built two houses, and opening a drug 
store continued in business there for a year. 
Selling out his store and trading a part of his 
real estate for a farm in Portage, in the spring 
of 1878 Mr. Witt removed to that town; and 
six weeks later exchanged his Portage prop- 
erty for the farm he now owns and occupies in 
Mount Morris. He at the same time pur- 
chased a boot and shoe store in the village of 
Mount Morris, and carried this on for a year 
or so, then sold it, and has since devoted his 
entire attention to his agricultural and stock- 
raising interests. He makes a specialty of 
raising a superior grade of horses, the Ham- 
bletonians being his favorite breed. A por- 
tion of his valuable farm lies within the 
limits of the village of Mount Morris; and on 
it there are commodious buildings, the resi- 
dence being pleasantly situated on a rise of 
ground overlooking the surrounding country, 
and commanding an extensive view. Besides 
the home farm, Mr. Witt is the owner of 
other valuable and desirable property, having 
a fifty-acre farm on the Genesee Flats and two 
farms in Nunda, one containing fifty-seven 
acres and the other two hundred and thirty- 
seven acres. He also has a half-interest in 
eighty-five and one-half acres about a mile 
from Mount Morris. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



3S5 



Mr. Witt has been twice married. His first 
wife, formerly Catherine Moak, of Schoharie 
County, died during their residence in Can- 
aseraga, in 1872, leaving no issue. In 1874 
he was united in marriage with Miss Helen 
Baylor, a native of Mount Morris; and to 
them one child has been born, a son, named 
Caryl. Politically, Mr. Witt is an earnest 
supporter of the principles of the Democratic 
party; and his services in the management of 
town and county are recognized by his fellow- 
men, who in 1894 elected him to the position 
he now occupies on the county Board of Su- 
pervisors. Socially, he is a prominent and 
influential member of Genesee River Valley 
Lodge, No. 129, Ancient Order of United 
Workmen. 




^\^*'MLLIAM H. HARTMAN, one of 
the later generation of agricultu- 
rists of Livingston County, native 
and to the manner born, who form an impor- 
tant element in the maintenance of its pros- 
perity, and who are helping greatly to extend 
its wealth, is a resident of Dansville, where 
he is actively engaged as a farmer and nur- 
seryman. He was born near his present place 
of residence, September 30, 185 1, and is a 
son of the late William Hartman, who also 
was born in Dansville, his birth taking place 
in 1820. John Plartman, the paternal grand- 
father, was a native of Pennsylvania, but 
when a young man came to York State, set- 
tling in this county, and becoming one of the 
earliest pioneers of Dansville. He ably as- 
sisted in developing the agricultural resources 
of this section of Livingston County, and here 
spent the remainder of his life. 

The father of William H. Hartman was one 
of a family of seven children, being the third 
in order of birth. He assisted his father on 
the old home farm until twenty-five years old, 
and then took a part of the homestead prop- 
erty, upon which he engaged in mixed hus- 
bandry until his death, at the age of threescore 
and ten years. He formed a matrimonial 
alliance with Catherine Driesbach, a native 
of Sparta, where hei' father, Henry Driesbach, 
carried on general farming. Three children 



were born of their marriage; namely, William 
H., Lydia M., and Emma C. The latter is 
the wife of Fred Noyes, a well-known lawyei 
of Dansville. The mother is still living on 
the old homestead, and is a regular attendant 
of the Lutheran church, wherein her husband 
formerly worshipped. 

William H. Hartman, the subject of this 
brief biographical sketch, was educated at the 
district school and Dansville Seminary, ac- 
quiring a substantial knowledge of the various 
branches of study, and after leaving school 
turned his attention to the pursuit of agricult- 
ure. He remained on the paternal homestead 
until thirty years of age, and then moved to 
his present farm, which was formerly a por- 
tion of his father's estate, and comprises three 
hundred and fifty acres of rich and productive 
land. Here he is profitably engaged in gen- 
eral farming, in connection carrying on an 
extensive nursery. The spacious house which 
he occupies is of brick, and was erected in 
1827. In 1893 Mr. Hartman repaired and 
refitted the dwelling, sparing neither pains 
nor expense in remodelling and furnishing it, 
and is now the owner of one of the finest and 
most comfortable country seats in the county. 

In 188 [ Mr. Hartman was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Ella C. Green, the wedding 
ceremony being performed at the home of the 
bride's father, Calvin Green, in West Sparta. 
This felicitous union has been blessed by the 
birth of one child, Herbert G., who is the life 
of the household. Mr. Hartman, who wor- 
thily represents one of the oldest and most 
honored families of the county, is a true, 
courteous gentleman, considerate and genial 
in his intercourse with others and a general 
favorite among his associates. In his politi- 
cal views he coincides with the principles of 
the Democratic party, and religiously is an 
attendant, with his family, of the Presbyte- 
rian church. 



OSEPH W. PRATT, a well-known 
farmer and stock buyer of Gainesville, 
Wyoming County, was born in the 
neighboring village of Wyoming, in 
the same county, March 17, 1827, and came 



356 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



to Gainesville at the age of two years. His 
father, Ira F. Pratt, a native of Vermont, was 
the son of Jonathan Pratt, a Revolutionary 
soldier, who followed agricultural pursuits 
through life in the above-named State. 
Grandfather Pratt reared a family of seven 
children — Collins, William, Betsey, Electa, 
Ira F., Arial, and Joseph W., all now de- 
ceased. William Pratt was a practising phy- 
sician at Eden, Erie County, N.Y., for many 
years and a member of the Assembly for one 
or more terms. 

Ira F., the fifth child, early left the New 
England homestead, and having received a 
practical education began work as a clerk in 
Wyoming County, and later established him- 
self at Gainesville, where he conducted 
business for upward of forty years, at the 
expiration of which time he sold and retired 
to private life. He passed his declining years 
in Gainesville, and died here at the age of 
eighty-nine years. He was a Democrat in 
politics previous to 1856, when he voted for 
General Fremont; and afterward he always 
voted the Republican ticket. He was a very 
temperate man ; and, although most men of 
his day used liquor more or less, he rarely, 
if ever, indulged in stimulants. He owned 
and operated an ashery for many years. He 
represented the town as Supervisor many 
years ago, when it was a part of Genesee 
County. 

The maiden name of his wife was Phcebe 
Locke. She was born at Genoa, Cayuga 
County, daughter of Josiah Locke, a farmer of 
that town, who, however, spent his closing 
years at Covington. He had several children. 
Mrs. Ira F. Pratt became the mother of nine, 
three of whom are still living, namely: Jo- 
seph W. ; Collins W., of Buffalo; and 
Eveline C, who married Henry R. Buck, now 
deceased, of Rochester. Phoebe Pratt, now 
deceased, married Daniel Post, of Attica. 
Melvin A. Pratt went to California in 1858, 
and died there. Martha died at the age of two 
years. Harriet E., Mrs. Major W. Hollister, 
is also deceased. One of the brothers, Lyman 
F., remained with their father in business 
until the latter's retirement, after which he 
went to Nebraska, where he conducted mer- 



cantile business, and died in 1889, at the age 
of sixty years; his wife, whose maiden name 
was Sarah Bates, and who was a native of At- 
tica, died in 1870, leaving a son and daugh- 
ter, Edwin and Maud, the former a merchant 
and county surveyor of Burt County, Neb. 
The other sister, Jane Pratt, married Law- 
rence Flint, a blacksmith of Churchville, 
Monroe County, N.Y., and died in 1882, 
leaving one son, a painter, employed in the 
reaper works at Batavia. The mother spent 
her declining years at the home of her son, 
Joseph W., and died at the age of eighty-four 
years. She was a Methodist. Her husband 
attended the Universalist church. 

Joseph W. Pratt received his education at 
the district schools, after which he went to 
Franklinville, where he remained one year. 
Coming home ready for the work of life, he 
assisted his father in the store and upon the 
farm until reaching the age of twenty-one, at 
which time he married, and settled down on a 
farm which he purchased in Gainesville. Be- 
sides tilling the soil, he engaged in buying 
stock, which he shipped to New York. He 
later sold that farm, and purchased another 
near Silver Springs. He continued to deal 
extensively in live stock until the year 1889, 
when he was appointed Postmaster at Silver 
Springs, in which position he remained five 
years, and in 1894 retired from active 
business. 

In 1847 Mr. Pratt was united in marriage 
to Miss Jane Post, of Gainesville, daughter 
of Christopher Post, one of the early settlers 
of the town. The family were from Cayuga 
County; and Mrs. Pratt was one of ten chil- 
dren, all of whom attained their majority and 
became heads of families. Her parents 
reached the advanced age of eighty-six years, 
and died in Gainesville within two months of 
each other. 

Mr. and Mrs. Pratt had three children — 
Ira F., William B., and Effie M. Ira F. 
Pratt, named for his grandfather, was formerly 
in the firm of Higgins & Co., of Olean, is now 
Poor Master of that place. William B. Pratt, 
in business at Minnesota, married Jennie 
Burt, of Batavia, N.Y., and has three chil- 
dren — Hattie, Joseph B., and Susan M. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



357 



Effie M. Pratt married T. F. Hitchcock, a 
telegraph operator and agent at the junction 
of the Rochester & Pittsburg Railroad in 
Silver Springs, wlio was instantly killed while 
operating at his instrument, at the age of 
twenty-five years. He had been employed by 
the company for eight years. In April, 1871, 
Mrs. Jane Pratt died, at the age of forty-four 
years. She was a lady possessed of many rare 
qualities and a member of the Congregational 
church at Gainesville. 

Mr. Pratt was made a Mason at Portage, 
and later became a member of Castile Lodge, 
A. F. & A. M. He is a Republican in poli- 
tics, and was Collector of the town in 1864 
and again about 1869. He was Supervisor in 
1883-84-85 and again in 1892, also re-elected 
in 1893. He is an attendant of the Methodist 
church. 

Mr. Joseph W. Pratt belongs to one of the 
oldest and best-known families in Gaines- 
ville, and both his father and himself have 
done much to forward its interests. 

Mr. Pratt has been a resident of Gainesville 
since about 1830, and with the exception of 
about two years spent in Covington and one 
year in Franklinville has resided here all his 
life. Since the death of his wife, his daugh- 
ter, Mrs. Hitchcock, has presided over his 
household. She manifests great interest in 
biographical literature and the preservation of 
family history. 



|NOS A. NASH, a worthy and influen- 
tial citizen of Portage, Livingston 
County, N.Y., and a soldier in the 
late war, was born in the above town, Sep- 
tember 4, 1845. His father, Enos H. Nash, 
was a native of the State of Connecticut, 
as was also his grandfather, Alfred Nash. 
The latter served in the War of 18 12. About 
the year 1818 with his family he removed to 
Western New York, making the long jour- 
ney by wagon, and was one of the early pio- 
neers of this section of the State, the country 
then being in its primeval condition. He 
first settled in Rochester, where he purchased 
a strip of land, but soon sold this, and moved 
to Portage (then Nunda, Allegany County), 



being one of the earliest settlers there. He 
took up two hundred acres of wild land, which 
he cleared, dwelling in a log house for sev- 
eral years. Although a shoemaker by trade, 
Mr. Nash entered into the laborious work of 
bringing new land, covered with virgin forest, 
into a state of cultivation. Such a task was 
anything but easy, and the toil and hardships 
necessary to accomplish the desired object 
were extremely severe; for, even after under- 
going the trials and disadvantages of clearing 
and cultivating the land, he was obliged to 
haul his grain to Rochester, where it sold for 
fifty cents per bushel. However, the sturdy 
New Englander meant to succeed, and in 
spite of many drawbacks was eventually suc- 
cessful in his determination, toiling dili- 
gently and steadily until the farm yielded 
handsomely, and prosperity crowned his 
labors. Mr. Nash remained upon this farm 
until his decease. He married Elizabeth 
Hoyt, of Connecticut; and they reared a 
family of nine children. 

Enos H. Nash, father of the subject of this 
sketch, was educated at the district schools. 
He became a tanner and currier, and com- 
menced business in that part of Portage 
known as Hunt's Hollow, there continuing 
for several years, and then returned to the 
farm, where he spent the remainder of his 
days. He married Elanora B. Stockwell, of 
Vermont, and reared three children — John 
A., Adelia E., and Enos A. 

Enos A. Nash received the first rudiments 
of his education in the district schools of 
Portage, and then took an advanced course at 
Nunda Academy. At the breaking out of the 
Civil War, being young and active, and pos- 
sessing a patriotic nature, he determined to 
assist in the defence of the Union, and twice 
enlisted without his father's knowledge, Mr. 
Nash being obliged upon each occasion to 
prove to the authorities that his son was under 
age, in order to procure his release. Young 
Nash was persistent in his desire, however, 
and on reaching the age of eighteen again en- 
rolled himself, this time with the paternal 
consent, and became a private in the Fourth 
New York Heavy Artillery, which was at- 
tached to General Grant's command. He 



3S8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



took part in the various engagements in 
which his regiment participated, and was 
made a prisoner of war, passing through an 
uncomfortable experience of four months in 
the famous Belle Isle and Libby Prisons, but 
was fortunate enough to be exchanged. He 
received an honorable discharge, and was 
mustered out with his company on the iSth of 
October, 1865, and returned home. 

After completing his education, he was 
united in marriage with Miss S. Augusta 
Williams, a daughter of Solomon and Cather- 
ine (Averill) Williams; and they are the par- 
ents of two children — Arthur J. and Albert 
B. Mr. Nash has a civil as well as a military 
record, having been elected Supervisor for a 
fourth term, and has been Collector and for 
the past eight years Justice of the Peace. He 
is a member of the Masonic fraternity, and 
also of the Grand Army of the Republic, 
being a comrade of Hall Post, No. 343, of 
Hunt. He has always been a Republican, 
and cast his first Presidential vote for General 
Grant in 1868. In his religious views he 
is a Presbyterian, being connected with that 
church. 

Mr. Nash enjoys the reputation of being an 
intelligent, able, and patriotic citizen, and a 
trustworthy and honorable gentleman, one 
who is ever devoted to the interests of the 
community. 



1849. 



-OHN A. DONNAN, an enterprising 
farmer of the town of Leicester, a son 
of David and Jane (Milroy) Donnan, 
was born in the town of York, April 2, 
His grandfather was a Scotch farmer, 
who spent his last days in the town of Gal- 
way, Saratoga County. He left a large and 
flourishing family, among whom was David 
Donnan, father of the subject of our sketch. 
He was distinguished as being the seventh 
son of his parents. He was also a man of 
excellent common sense, and reared his chil- 
dren to habits of industry. His wife, Jane 
Milroy, was a native of Scotland, but came 
to America with her parents when she was 
very young. She was reared in Livingston 
County, and died in 1857, leaving two chil- 



dren — John, the subject of this sketch, and 
Mary Elizabeth, who is the wife of Alexander 
McPherson, and now lives in LeRoy, Genesee 
County. 

David Donnan's early education trained 
him to sobriety and frugality. In the course 
of time he bought a tract of land in the town 
of York, after which he made a trade for 
another farm in the same town. He subse- 
quently changed this farm for two hundred 
acres in Leicester, Livingston County. He 
was, in fact, so successful in adding to his 
landed estate from time to time that at his 
death, in 1890, he left five hundred and six- 
teen productive and well-improved acres. He 
lived not for worldly gains alone, but left a 
record of a life "hid with Christ in God." 
In the Presbyterian church at Cuylervillc he 
was an Elder, and his wife was a member of 
the same society. 

John A. Donnan attended the district 
school and Temple Hill Academy. After 
he had attained his majority, he worked his 
father's farm on shares, and at that gentle- 
man's decease succeeded to the ownership of 
one of the choicest estates in the county. At 
the age of twenty-six he became a happy 
benedict. The marriage took place February 
24, 1875; and the bride was Agnes E. Shan- 
non, a native of Covington, Wyoming County, 
New York. They have two children — Edith 
Grace and Dwight David. 

Frank Shannon, the father of Mrs. Donnan, 
was born in the north of Ireland, and was left 
fatherless when very young. At the age of 
eight he came to the United States with a 
friend, and went to Wyoming County, where he 
still lives, engaged in farming. His wife, who 
is now deceased, was Eliza Morrow. She was 
a life-long resident of Wyoming County. 



•1':R1':MIAH H. VINCENT is now liv- 
ing in the village of Pike, N.Y., prac- 
tically retired from active labors, but 
still oversees his five-hundred-acre 
farm, one mile distant. He was born in 
Herkimer County, December 29, 1820, ami 
was five years old when his parents removed 
to Chautauqua County, where his father, who 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



359 



went in advance of the family, took up a 
large tract of land. Wolves howled about the 
door of the little log cabin in the lonely 
woods; and the wife must indeed have been a 
brave woman, for here she was left alone with 
her young children to protect when her hus- 
band joined the army in 1812. The parents 
of Jeremiah Vincent were Sampson and Rhoda 
(Smithy Vincent, and of the fourteen children 
born to them eleven lived to maturity. Six 
sons are still living — James; Jeremiah; 
Dresser, a physician; Walker; William; and 
Stephen. Mrs. Vincent, who was left a 
widow, married a second husband, Chester E. 
Eastman, and spent the last years of her life 
in Michigan. 

Jeremiah H. Vincent left home at twenty- 
one years of age. Havin<^ been accustomed 
since childhood to farm life, and having, be- 
sides, an unusual amount of energy, he deter- 
mined to try his fortunes in a different 
neighborhood. So, finding a party of people 
making ready to go to Pike, he offered his 
services as driver of their teams, and in this 
way journeyed hither in 1842. He soon se- 
cured employment on the farm of Mr. Moses 
Smith at eleven dollars per month. At this 
time Mr. Smith, as executor, had charge of 
the estate of Judge Thomas Dole, then re- 
cently deceased. During the tedious period 
of its settlement the entire management of 
the Dole farm fell to Mr. Vincent, who 
proved himself competent to conduct its 
affairs quite successfully. A few years later 
a daughter of Judge Dole became the wife of 
the young farmer, who finally became the pos- 
sessor of the estate upon which he now worked 
as a "hired hand." Mr. Vincent purchased a 
tract of five hundred acres of land under a 
mortgage, which, by dint of an industry and 
perseverance rarely equalled, he eventually 
raised, making payment from time to time, 
until not a cent of debt remained. Here he 
resided until 1873, when he moved into the 
village, where he purchased a house and lot. 
In 1879 was built, under the personal super- 
vision of himself and his wife, the beautiful 
residence in svhich he now lives. Notwith- 
standing the fact that he has many things to 
interest him in his village home, Mr. Vincent 



still gives personal attention to his fine farm, 
in which he takes great pride. 

His marriage to Miss Harriet Dole in 1846 
was crowned by the birth of an only child, 
who died at four years of age. Mrs. Vincent 
died in the March of 1871, deeply and sin- 
cerely lamented by all those who knew her 
worth and goodness. She was a devout mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church. Mr. Vin- 
cent's second marriage was to Miss Ada A. 
Chaddock, a daughter of Calvin Chaddock. 
Mrs. Vincent's grandfather, Willard Chad- 
dock, of the same descent as Miss Frances 
Willard, was one of the early emigrant farmers 
to Genesee County. He had a son and only 
child by his first marriage, and by a second 
marriage was the father of several children. 
Her father was educated in the district 
schools, and taught for many years. After 
coming of age he had mcfved to Erie County, 
Pennsylvania, where in the township of Elk 
Creek he bought a large tract of land, and 
began life in a log cabin, enduring all the 
hardships of pioneering. Having cleared his 
farm, and put it into a state of cultivation, he 
disposed of it, and moved to the village of 
Cranesville, where he began the business of 
carriage manufacture. He died at seventy- 
nine years of age. His first wife, Louise 
Baker, a daughter of John Baker, of Genesee 
County, reared four children ^ — Willard Ro- 
manzo; Louisa, the wife of Eli Weaver, a 
druggist of Boon.sboro, la. ; Esther Jane, who 
married Mr. Loren Davenport, a farmer in 
Erie County, and is, like her sister, an able 
writer, having been for years on one of the 
prominent Buffalo papers; Ada, who married 
Mr. Vincent, of whom this sketch is written. 
Mrs. Vincent's mother died at thirty years of 
age, at her home at Elk Creek. Both parents 
were in the communion of the Baptist church. 
Her father married a second time a Miss 
Harriet Haggerty, who bore him two children. 

Mrs. Ada A. Vincent, who is a Daughter 
of the Revolution, was educated in a normal 
school and in a female seminary in Mount 
Carroll, 111., and was a teacher for several 
years before her marriage to Mr. Vincent. 
They have one daughter, Harriet Louise, who 
is a graduate of the Buffalo Normal School, 



?6o 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



and despite that she is a wife, having married 
William C. Dunham, a prominent citizen in 
Alfred, Allegany County, whose great-uncle, 
George V. Dunham, assembled the people to 
hear the Declaration of Independence read, 
keeps up her accomplishments, and is taking 
lessons in music, drawing, and china paint- 
ing, and has charge of the advertising depart- 
ment of the Alfred Su//. an eight-page paper. 
She is one of the Daughters of the Revolution. 
Mr. Jeremiah H. Vincent is fond of relating 
the family tradition of his father's powers as 
a marksman, who brought down three hundred 
deer during one year in Chautauqua County, 
when the country was little more than the 
roaming-ground of wolf and bear and deer and 
rabbit. Mr. Vincent is a Mason, and has al- 
w-ays taken an active interest in politics, being 
a stanch supporter of Democracy. He is a regu- 
lar attendant of the Presbyterian church, in 
which he has occupied a pew for fifty-one years. 






AM BEGOLE, deceased, was a 
irthy and honored representative 
of the early pioneers of Livingston 
County, and a true type of the energetic, 
hardy, and courageous men who actively 
assisted in the development of this prosperous 
region. He was born in Hagerstown, Md., 
in 1784, and was the son of a French emi- 
grant, William Begole, Sr. The latter was 
born in France, where he spent the earlier 
years of his life. Coming to America, he 
located in Hagerstown, Md., and was a resi- 
dent of that place for several years, later re- 
moving to this State, and settling at Bath, 
Steuben County. He was a man of wealth 
and a slave-holder, and took his slaves with 
him to Bath. From there he came to Living- 
ston County, and, being pleased with the ap- 
pearance of the surrounding country, located 
in the town of Grovcland, where he passed 
his declining years. 

William Begole, to whom we refer in this 
brief biographical record, was reared to farm- 
ing pursuits, and during the days of his mi- 
nority became familiar with farm labor. In 
18 1 5 he purchased a tract of wild timber land 
in the town of Mount Morris, about two miles 



from the site of the present village, and in 
the midst of the forest erected a log cabin, 
the customary dwelling of the early settlers. 
There were neither railways nor canals tra- 
versing the country at that time; and Roches- 
ter, the nearest marketing and milling point, 
thirty-six miles distant, was accessible by 
teams only, three days being consumed in 
making the round trip. Wheat w\as then worth 
but twenty-five cents a bushel, and other pro- 
ductions of the soil brought a corresponding 
price. For many years after his settlement 
deer, bears, wolves, and other wild animals 
roamed through the forests, and were often a 
terror to the inhabitants. He labored with 
unceasing industry to clear his land, and by 
his unerring judgment, sagacious forethought, 
and wise management became the owner of 
a valuable homestead, wdiich he had redeemed 
from its primitive wildness. After living- 
there many years Mr. Begole removed to the 
village of Mount Morris, where he lived, re- 
tired from active pursuits, until his death, 
at the ripe old age of seventy-four years. 

In 1 8 14 Mr. Begole was united in marriage 
with Miss Eleanor Bow4es, a native of Ha- 
gerstown, Md., and a daughter of Captain 
Bowles, a brave soldier of the Revolution. 
She survived her^^usband, and departed this 
life in Michigan, at the advanced age of 
seventy-eight years. To Mr. and Mrs. Begole 
the following-named children were born: 
Josiah W., a resident ot Flint, Mich., was 
formerly Governor of that State; Frederick is 
also a resident of Flint, ]\Iich. : Thomas is 
deceased ; Philo resides at Mount Morris, 
Mich. ; Frank is a resident of Wayne County, 
Michigan: Sarah married H. H. Brinkerhoff; 
and Cornelia is the wife of Hiram P. Mills, a 
sketch of whom appears on another page of 
this volume. 




ILLIAM BAILEY, a prosperous 

and progressive agriculturist of this 
county, is the owner of a well-ap- 
pointed farm in the town of Nunda, where he 
has resided for nearly half a century. A na- 
tive of the Empire State, he first opened his 
eyes to the light of this world October 14, 




WILLIAM BAILEY. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



563 



1822, in Allegany County, being the son of 
Alexander Bailey, who was born in Vermont. 

Alexander Bailey, having been reared, edu- 
cated, and married in the Green Mountain 
State, removed from there to this State, and 
settled in Allegany County at an early day. 
He had learned the trade of carpenter when a 
young man, and this was of great use to him 
in his pioneer life. He was likewise engaged 
in mercantile business a portion of the time, 
but his principal attention was devoted to 
farming pursuits. He took up one hundred 
acres of wild land, and in the midst of the 
dense wilderness built a log house, in which 
all of his children, with the exception of the 
eldest, were born, they being among the first 
native-born children of that district. Having 
cleared up the major part of his land, he sold 
it, and bought another farm in the same 
neighborhood, where he built a fine house, 
which he occupied until the death of his faith- 
ful wife, when he disposed of his property, 
and went to live with his daughter, making 
his home with her until his decease, at the 
venerable age of eighty-four years. He mar- 
ried Rhoda Harmon, who also lived to an ad- 
vanced age; and by her side he was laid to 
rest in the cemetery at Dalton. They reared 
six children; namely, Louis (deceased), 
Clark, Laura, William, Hiram, and Asahel. 
Laura married Hiram Merithew, of Living- 
ston County; and they are the parents of two 
sons — Seneca and William. 

William Bailey acquired a substantial com- 
mon-school education in his native district, 
and in the earlier years of his mature life was 
engaged in the lumber business, owning and 
operating a large saw-mill for some time. 
After his marriage, following in the footsteps 
of his father, he entered upon an agricultural 
life, buying his present farm in the town of 
Nunda, where he has since been extensively 
engaged in general farming, and is now living 
surrounded by the comforts that make life 
desirable and pleasant. He is well known 
throughout the community as a thrifty and 
successful business man, possessing in a high 
degree those sterling principles of character 
which constitute a good citizen. 

Of his union with Miss Susan Teeple, of 



Nunda, five children were born, three of whom 
died in infancy. The two living are Volney 
T. and Wesley. Volney married Miss Aleida 
Newville; and they are the parents of three 
children, two daughters and a son. Wesley 
remains at home with his father. Mrs. Susan 
T. Bailey died January 23, 1890. In politics 
Mr. Bailey was in former years a Whig, and 
cast his first Presidential vote for James K. 
Polk in 1844; but he is now a strong adherent 
of the Democratic party. 

Portraits of a goodly number of worthies of 
Livingston and Wyoming constitute an inter- 
esting feature of the "Biographical Review " of 
the two counties. Among these will be recog- 
nized the likeness of Mr. William Bailey, of 
Nunda, whose life history is here briefly set 
forth. 



/i^o 



liORGE W. WHITNEY, who with 
\ •) I his partner is carrying on an exten- 
sive nursery business under the firm 
name of George W. Whitney & Co., has charge 
of the retail department of the same, his office 
being located in Dansville. He is a native 
of the Empire State, and was born in New 
York City, November 19, 1865. Some of the 
best blood of the earlier settlers of New Eng- 
land flows through his veins, he being de- 
scended from the Whitneys of Massachusetts, 
in which State his grandfather, Dr. Jonathan 
Whitney, was born and bred. The latter was 
educated for a professional career, and having 
there obtained his diploma from a medical 
college began the practice of his profession 
in Auburn, this State. The village of Ca- 
yuga was then but sparsely populated ; but, 
the indications pointing toward a rapid open- 
ing of the pathless forests, it seemed a favor- 
able place for the ambitious young physician 
to establish himself in business. Becoming 
one of the pioneer settlers of Cayuga, he soon 
found himself the leading practitioner of that 
part of Cayuga County, as well as one of its 
most respected citizens, making it thereafter 
his abiding-place until death. He reared a 
large family of children, of whom Charles H., 
the father of our subject, was the youngest. 
Charles H. Whitney was born in the village 



3^4 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



of Cayuga, and in its schools obtained a prac- 
tical education. When a young man he en- 
gaged in mercantile business, finally settling 
in Chicago, where he lived for many years. 
He subsequently purchased an orange grove 
in Florida, and is nowr living retired from 
business activities, devoting his time to the 
raising of tropical fruits. He married Eliza- 
beth Lowe, a daughter of Samuel Lowe, of 
Chicago, a former resident of New York City; 
and they are the parents of two children — 
Francis L. and George W. The former mar- 
ried E. F. Gorton, of Chicago; and the latter 
is the subject of this brief personal narrative. 

The boyhood of Mr. Whitney was spent in 
the city of Chicago, and in the excellent pub- 
lic schools of that famed Western city his 
early knowledge was acquired. He subse- 
quently accompanied his parents to Florida, 
and there faithfully assisted his father in his 
plantation labors for several years. In 1884 
he returned North, and made his way to Liv- 
ingston County, and being well versed in the 
methods of fruit culture found no difficulty in 
securing employment with Mr. George A. 
Sweet, of Dansville. He was soon appointed 
foreman in the nursery, and after a few years 
was made an equal partner in the retail branch 
of the business. The substantial firm thus 
established is one of the most enterprising 
and sagacious in this section of the county, 
employing about one hundred agents, who dis- 
tribute the products of the nursery through- 
out the entire country. Mr. Whitney has 
achieved a well-merited success in his chosen 
vocation, and gives his personal attention to 
the large spring and fall shipments. 

Mr. Whitney is a member of Canaseraga 
Lodge, No. 123, Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows, and also belongs to Union Hose Com- 
pany, No. I. He usually supports the Demo- 
cratic ticket, but is bound by no political ties, 
and with the courage of his convictions votes 
for the man best fitted for the position. 




ALTER H. CUMMINGS, a pros- 
perous farmer residing at Silver 
Springs, in the town of Gainesville, 
Wyoming County, which lies directly north 



of Gainesville, was born in Warsaw, May 18, 
1852. His father, Almon Cummings, is also 
a native of Warsaw; and his grandfather, 
Henry Cummings, was born at Shaftsbury, 
Vt., where he was reared to agricultural pur- 
suits. 

Henry Cummings came to Warsaw in 1820, 
and purchasing a tract of land began life in a 
log house as a pioneer. After having made 
everything ready for a start in his new home, 
he returned to Vermont, and brought back his 
wife and family, arriving at Warsaw in mid- 
winter, the journey having been made with 
their household effects in a covered wagon. 
Mr. Henry Cummings cleared and improved 
his farm to a considerable extent, and had re- 
sided thereon for many years when he sold 
his property in Warsaw, and moved to East 
Gainesville, now Silver Springs, where he 
purchased a large farm. He presented all his 
sons with a farm in Warsaw, and spent his 
declining years in retirement at Silver 
Springs. He died at the age of eighty-four, 
after having reared and well provided for a 
family of five children, two of whom — Almon 
and Nelson — are still living. The deceased 
are: John, Mary E., and Eliza A. 

Almon Cummings was reared a farmer. 
He conducted the farm given him by his 
father until 1888, when he sold his property, 
and moved to Silver Springs, where he and 
his wife are now residing in retirement. 
They are members of the Free Will Baptist 
church. The maiden name of Mrs. Almon 
Cummings was Jane Miller. Her father 
operated a mill at Castile, where she was 
born, being one of a family of six children. 
John W. Miller, a farmer of Monson, Mass., 
and David A. Miller, of Silver Springs, re- 
tired, are brothers of Mrs. Cummings, who 
is still living at the age of sixty-seven. The 
Miller family were early settlers in Castile. 

Walter H. Cummings passed his early boy- 
hood upon his father's farm, and was educated 
in the district schools and at Perry and War- 
saw Academies. He left home at sixteen to 
w(jrk in a large grocery store at Silver Springs. 
Three years later he returned to Warsaw, 
where he is still engaged in the grocery busi- 
ness. He was for some time employed in 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



365 



settlinj^ affairs connected with his wife's 
estate, after which he moved to his present 
home at Silver Springs. He has a large farm 
of six hundred acres, upon which he carries 
on agriculture in all its branches. The 
maiden name of his wife, whom he married in 
1875, was Grace A. Woodruff. She is a 
daughter of the late Merritt Woodruff, whose 
father, John Woodruff, settled in Gainesville 
in 1816, having moved from Connecticut. 
Grandfather Woodruff cleared and improved 
a farm, upon which he resided the remainder 
of his life, and which is now owned by his 
grand-daughter, Mr. Cummings's wife. Mer- 
ritt Woodruff, who was a farmer, a large land- 
holder, and also interested in pine timber 
lands in Michigan, died at the present home 
of his daughter. He was a Justice of the 
Peace for many years, and was widely known 
as Squire Woodruff. His wife, Mrs. Cum- 
mings's mother, was Elizabeth B. Tinker, of 
Henrietta, Monroe County, N.Y. She also 
died at the home of her daughter, at the age 
of seventy-four years. Mrs. Cummings was 
an only child. Mr. and Mrs. Cunmiings have 
one daughter, Ivy Grace, a young lady of 
sixteen. 

Mr. Cummings is a member of the Masonic 
Lodge at Warsaw, and is a Republican in 
politics, as is his father, his wife's father also 
having been of that party. Mr. Cummings 
was a Justice of the Peace for three years; 
but, when elected Supervisor in 1890, he im- 
mediately resigned the former office, and has 
held the latter two terms of one year each. 
Mr. Cummings is a member and also a Trus- 
tee of the Methodist church. 



B 



R. A. LA BOYTEAUX, a surgeon 
dentist, located in the town of Dans- 
ville, is one of the most eminent 
men of his profession in Livingston 
County, and has a far more than local reputa- 
tion for ability, knowledge, and skill. He 
is a native of Covert, Seneca County, N.Y., 
where his birth occurred July 28, 1828. 

The Doctor comes from honored stock, and 
is a grandson of one Peter La Boyteaux, who 
was for many years a respected citizen of New 



Jersey; and it was in that State that Abraham 
La Boyteaux, the Doctor's father, was born in 
the year 1788. Abraham removed to this 
State when a young man, locating in Seneca 
County, where he followed the trade of car- 
pentry, to which occupation he also added 
agriculture, being the owner of a good farm, 
on which he resided until his death, at the 
venerable age of eighty-nine years. He mar- 
ried Mary Anten, a daughter of John Anten; 
and they became the parents of seven chil- 
dren; namely, Margaret, Catherine, Peter, 
Arthur, Susan, Delia, and William. The 
mother survived her husband, and died at the 
home of Dr. La Boyteaux, in the sixty-third 
year of her age. She was a woman of great 
personal worth, and a sincere member of the 
Methodist church, to which her husband also 
belonged. 

Dr. A. La Boyteaux spent the earlier years 
of his life in Seneca County, where he at- 
tended school until twenty years old, and then 
took up the study of dentistry, for which he 
had a predilection, spending a year at Corn- 
ing, and afterward completing his studies in 
Seneca County. He began the practice of his 
profession in Romulusville, remaining there 
until 1862, and then removed to Rushville, 
Yates County, where he built up a large and 
lucrative practice. Coming to Dansville, he 
opened his present office in the month of 
April, 1874, and has since been constantly 
engaged, his extensive patronage keeping him 
busy. The Doctor has had a wide experience 
in his branch of business, and is probably one 
of the best-known dentists of Central and 
Western New York. While a resident of 
Seneca County, he won premiums at several 
fairs, his work surpassing that of his many 
competitors. In 1857 he took the first prize 
for dentistry at the Seneca County Agricult- 
ural P'air, two years later securing the first 
premium at the same fair, and in i860 re- 
ceived the first prize for the finest specimen 
of plate work at the Mechanics' Fair. This 
specimen of his handiwork is still in his pos- 
session, and shows in a marked degree his 
great mechanical and artistic ability. In the 
medical world Dr. La Boyteaux has won fame 
and distinction, also having been very sue- 



366 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



cessful in the removal of tumors in several 
cases when other physicians had given them 
up as hopeless. 

The Doctor was united in marriage in 1853 
with Martha Tobias, a daughter of John 
Tobias, of Springport, Cayuga County; but 
after nine years of happy wedded life she died, 
leaving one child, Reljecca, who is married 
and the mother of three children. Dr. La 
Boyteau.x subsequently married Sarah A. Leg- 
gett, a daughter of John Leggett, of Blood's 
Corners, Steuben County; and the only child 
of their union is Dr. Charles J. La Boyteau.x, 
a prominent dentist of Buffalo. This son is a 
member of the Masonic fraternity, belonging 
to Dansville Lodge. Politically, both the 
Doctor and his son are firm supporters of the 
Democratic ticket. In their religious views 
the entire family are broad and liberal, and 
are regular attendants of the L^niversalist 
church. 



/iXo 



EORGE P. ALVORD, an important 
\ •) I factor of the agricultural region of 
Livingston County, is a representa- 
tive of one of the early families of New York, 
and is himself a native-born citizen of Mount 
Morris, where his birth occurred March 25, 
1830. His father, Phineas Ah^ord, was born 
on a farm two miles from Montpelier, Vt., in 
1800; and his father, Stephen Alvordj was a 
native of New England, and for a number of 
years owned and occupied a farm in Northern 
\'ermont. L^nfortunately, he indorsed notes 
for a friend, and was obliged to sacrifice his 
farm. In order to retrieve his lost fortune, 
he emigrated to Canada, but finding the win- 
ters too cold remained there but a few years, 
and coming to the State of New York lo- 
cated in East Bloomfield, where he labored 
until 1823, in which year he came to Mount 
Morris, and contracted for a ])iece of timber 
land. He at once erected a log house, and 
expected to soon make a home, but very 
shortly after was taken sick and died. 

Phineas Alvord was but a boy when his par- 
ents removed to this State; and he soon after 
began working for Henry Buell, a farmer re- 
siding in East Bloomfield, continuing in his 



employ for seven years. In 1823 he pur- 
chased a pair of steers and a wagon, and with 
the latter loaded with apples, which Mr. Buell 
had given him, started for Mount Morris, and 
located on the land for which his father had 
contracted, assuming the entire indebtedness. 
He soon afterward built another log house, 
in the construction of which there was no 
sawed lumber used. He rived with his own 
hands the shakes which covered the roof, and 
split and hewed the planks for the floor. P"or 
want of better transportation facilities he 
teamed his surplus grain to Rochester, some 
thirty-five miles away, and from there brought 
back the store commodities needed for family 
use. He was very industrious and an excel- 
lent manager, and in a comparatively short 
time paid for his land, and to the original 
homestead property added other land, at the 
time of his death, which occurred when he 
was seventy-four years old, being the owner of 
three hundred acres of good land. His wife, 
whose maiden name was Rachel Lemen, was 
born in Dansville, N.Y., in 1800, and was a 
daughter of William C. Lemen. She bore 
him ten children; namely, Sarah, Amanda, 
Cordelia, George P., Wealthy A., Lucinda 
J., Mary, Martin Van Buren, William T., 
and Diana. 

George P. Alvonl was reared to the pursuit 
of agriculture, and under the able tuition of 
his father received an excellent drilling in its 
various branches. When twenty-six years 
old, he left the parental fireside, and located 
on the farm which he now owns and occupies. 
His estate includes two hundred acres of 
well-improved and highly cultivated land, 
amply supplied with convenient farm build- 
ings and all the necessary implements and 
machinery for conducting his labors after the 
most approved modern methods. 

Mr. Alvord was united in marriage in 1856 
with Miss Josephine Roberts, who was born 
at Oak Hill, Mount Morris, being a daughter 
of Reuben and Mary (Harrison) Roberts, na- 
tives of Saratoga County. Mrs. Alvord 
comes of Welsh ancestry, her paternal grand- 
father, Noah Roberts, having been born, it is 
thought, in Wales. He emigrated to Amer- 
ica, and settling in Saratoga County, this 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



367 



State, engaged in general farming, remaining 
a resident there until his decease. He mar- 
ried lilizabeth Rhoadcs, a native of Rhode 
Island; and they reared a family of seven 
children. 

The father of Mrs. Alvord was reared and 
married in Saratoga County, living there until 
1S23, when he removed to Livingston County, 
his family, consisting of his wife and one 
child, accompanying him. He made the jour- 
ney with two ox teams, and the latter part of 
the way was obliged to cut a path through the 
dense forest. Settling in the town of Mount 
Morris, Mr. Roberts bought a timbered tract 
on Oak Hill, and there built the log house in 
which Mrs. Alvord was born. There being 
no convenient markets, he and his family, in 
common with their neighbors, lived on the 
products of the soil, and clothed their families 
in homespun garments, the material for which 
was spun and woven by the thrifty housewife. 
After getting a large portion of his land under 
culture, Mr. Roberts sold his farm, but subse- 
quently purchased another in the same local- 
ity, and there lived until his death, at the age 
of seventy-seven years. His wife, formerly 
Mary Harrison, was a daughter of Robert 
Harrison, who was born in England, and was 
the only member of his family to emigrate to 
the United States. Mr. and Mrs. Roberts 
were the parents of six children — William 
Priestley, Elmina, Maria, Adelia, Josephine, 
and Burt. 

Robert Harrison, the maternal grandfat+rgf" 
of Mrs. Alvord, was the second safi of a 
wealthy Englishman, but did not inherit any 
of his father's property. When quite young, 
he was taken by his brother, and placed on 
board an English man-of-war, and was kept in 
the service seven years. About the time of 
the breaking out of the Revolutionary War 
the ship and crew came to America, and were 
cajjtured by the Americans; and, after being 
kept prisoner for a time, Mr. Harrison was 
given his choice of returning to England or 
of fighting against his native country. His 
sympathies being with the colonists, he en- 
listed in the army, and fought until the close 
of the war, after which he settled in Saratoga 
County, where he resided for several years. 



He afterward bought a farm in the town of 
Bath, Steuben County, where he spent his de- 
clining days. He married Fannie Andrus, 
who bore him children, one of whom, Mary, 
was the mother of six children, one of them 
being Mrs. Alvord. The parents of Mrs. 
Alvord were members of the Baptist church; 
and in political matters her father was in his 
earlier years a Whig, but on the formation of 
the Republican party became an earnest sup- 
porter of its principles. 

Mr. Alvord is recognized as one of the most 
skilful and enterprising farmers of this sec- 
tion of the county, and is a business man of 
excellent ability, upright and honorable in all 
of his transactions anil an esteemed citizen. 
Politically, he is a straight Democrat, and 
fraternally is a member of Mount Morris 
Lodge, No. 122, A. F. & A. M. 



i^yrrER D. JONES, an extensive fruit 
grower and apiarist, residing in 
3 Mount Morris, was born on the farm 
which he now owns and occupies, 
the date of birth being September 3, 1829. 
He is a practical, well-educated man, possess- 
ing sound judgment and good business talents, 
which have made him unusually successful in 
his present enterprise. Mr. Jones comes of 
Welsh antecedents, his paternal grandfather 
having been born in New Jersey of Welsh 
parents. He was a soldier, and during the 
tamous WtTfsk«^L.J<ebcllion, in 1794, caught 
cold from exposure7'aTitk^)on after died from 
the effects. His widow, who subsequently 
married Peter Dilts, lived to a good old age. 
Jesse B. Jones, the father of the subject of 
this sketch, was but an infant when his father 
died, and was reared to mature years by his 
mother and step-father. He learned the trade 
of carpentry, and at the age of twent)- years 
came to New York State, locating at first in 
Seneca County. After a few years' residence 
there he came to Livingston County, and was 
a pioneer settler of Mount Morris. Here he 
bought one hundred and twenty-six acres of 
land, twenty of which were partly cleared and 
had been still farther improved by the erec- 
tion of a small log house. It was in this 



368 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



log cabin that his son, Peter D., was born; 
and twenty-four years later if was the home 
to which lie brought the bride of his choice. 
For many years after his settlement here, 
there were no convenient means for transpor- 
tation, railways and canals being unknown; 
and Rochester was the nearest market for sup- 
plies. He was a man of resolution and per- 
severance, thrifty and industrious, and in the 
course of time succeeded in wresting a farm 
from the forest, on which he made substantial 
improvements, among the most noticeable 
being the erection of a good set of frame 
buildings. He added fifty acres to his origi- 
nal purchase, making in all one hundred and 
seventy-six acres. 

Jesse B. Jones lived to be over fourscore 
years of age, and watched with genuine pride 
and satisfaction the wonderful growth and ad- 
vancement of the town and county, and to this 
great change gave able assistance. He mar- 
ried Eliza Christopher, a native of Seneca 
County, and a daughter of Nathan and Eliza- 
beth Christopher, natives of New Jersey, and 
pioneers of Seneca County. She departed 
this life in 1876 at the age of seventy-six 
years, leaving five children. 

Peter D. Jones was reared and educated in 
the town of his birth, and remained upon the 
home farm until after his marriage. In 1854, 
following the march of civilization westward, 
he made a trip to Iowa, going by rail to Ga- 
lena, 111., which was then the terminus of the 
railway, and thence by boat to Dubuque, 
where he hired a conveyance to take him to 
Delaware County. He there bought a tract of 
government land, paying one dollar and 
twenty-five cents per acre. After making the 
purchase, Mr. Jones returned home, and for a 
time worked his father's farm on shares. In 
1858 he removed to Illinois, locating in Linn- 
ville township. Ogle County, where he worked 
land on shares for three years, and then traded 
his Iowa property for a farm in Linnville, 
where he engaged in general farming for a 
time. In 1867 Mr. Jones once more became 
a resident of Mount Morris, and on the death 
of his father succeedeil to the ownership of the 
old homestead, which he now occupies. He 
has been eminently successful in his opera- 



tions, and has a valuable farm of one hundred 
and seventy-six acres. He has made a study 
of the life and habits of bees since a young 
man, and is an extensive raiser of these busy 
insects, averaging about two hundred swarms 
a year. He makes a specialty of fruit grow- 
ing, and has a productive vineyard of twelve 
acres, besides an orchard containing a varied 
assortment of peach, apple, pear, and other 
trees. He has also fifty registered Shropshire 
sheep, the head of the flock being imported. 

An important event in the life of Mr. Jones 
was his marriage in March, 1853, to Jane E. 
Van Sickle, a native of Mount Morris, and a 
daughter of John and Rebecca (Grey) Van 
Sickle. To this union there were born four 
children. Lucius B. married Dora Edick; 
Jesse B. died at the age of eleven months; 
Elida died when twelve years old; Jennie, 
the wife of Edward McHerron, has three chil- 
dren — Minnie, Jesse, and Julia. Politically, 
Mr. Jones is a stanch supporter of the princi- 
ples of the Republican party, and is also an 
earnest advocate of the temperance movement. 
He takes an active interest in local affairs, 
and is a member of the Excise Board. Both 
he and his wife are consistent members of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. 



ARLE S. WHITE, the efficient, courte- 
ous, and popular Cashier of the State 
Bank of Pike, Wyoming County, 
N.Y., was born in Hinsdale, Cattaraugus 
County, on August 20, 1863. His grand- 
father, John White, who was a blacksmith by 
trade, came from New England to Cattaraugus 
in 1841, and settled in Hinsdale. John 
White was the father of seven children, of 
whom the third was the father of the young 
man whose name opens this sketch. 

This third son, Henry K. White, learned 
his father's trade when a boy, and em- 
barked in mercantile business as he grew 
older. He secured a position as clerk in a 
large general store early in life, and, proving 
himself very capable, by diligence and econ- 
omy amassed a sum sufficient in a few years 
to purchase a store of his own, which he con- 
ducted in partnership with his late employer. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



369 



In 1872 he became a travelling salesman, and 
for eighteen years canvassed New York and 
Pennsylvania. In 1889 he returned to Olean, 
where he still lives. His wife, whose name 
before marriage was Sarah J. Smith, died at 
Hinsdale in 1887, aged forty-nine years. 
Two children were born of their union — ■ 
Euie S. and Edith, who acts as clerk for her 
brother. Both parents were in the commun- 
ion of the Methodist church. 

Earle S. White received his early educa- 
tion in the common schools, and completed 
his studies at Chamberlain Institute in Ran- 
dolph. He was for a short time engaged in 
the drug business, but in 1881 accepted a 
]wsition as book-keeper in the First National 
Bank of Olean, which he held until 1884, 
when he moved to Buffalo, where he was for 
two years connected with the auditor's office 
of the Western New York & Pennsylvania 
Railroad. In the spring of 1886 he resigned 
his position to become teller of the Farmers' 
National Bank of Franklinville, where he re- 
mained until March, i88g, at which date he 
came to Pike, and assumed charge of the 
banking office of Adams, Weed & Co. He 
retained the management of its affairs until it 
was reorganized into the State Bank of Pike; 
and it is certainly largely owing to his effi- 
cient direction that the small private exchange 
office has grown into a financial establishment 
with a paid-up capital of twenty-five thousand 
dollars and surplus and undivided profits of 
six thousand dollars. Through the period, 
not long past, of financial depression through- 
out the country, this institution enjoyed the 
entire confidence of the people of Pike. 

The delightful manner which makes Earle 
S. White a social success and general favorite 
has had much to do with his business success; 
and the even courtesy which is always ex- 
tended its patrons has been largely influential 
in making the Pike State Bank popular. In 
his home Mr. White, aided by his charming 
wife and attractive sister, dispenses a cordial 
hospitality. On the 21st of September, 1887, 
he was married to listella S. Gould, of Hins- 
dale, daughter of the late John H. Gould, of 
that place. Two daughters, Alice M., aged 
five years, and Florence E., aged one year, 



have been born of this union. Mr. White is 
a member of Triluminar Lodge, No. 543, and 
Nunda Chapter, R. A. M. He has held most 
of the prominent offices in Triluminar Lodge, 
and at the commencement of the present Ma- 
sonic year was unanimously elected its Mas- 
ter. His political faith is pledged to the 
Republican party. 




RANK J. ALVERSON, attorney-at- 
law, is a resident of Dansville, and is 
making headway along the pathway to 
success, being possessed of energy and tact, 
and having a clientage among all classes. 
He is a type of the native-born citizens of 
Livingston County, Dansville being the place 
of his birth, which occurred July 20, 1867. 

The Alverson family have been connected 
with the history of the Empire State for sev- 
eral generations. Uriah Alverson, the grand- 
father, was born and bred in Utica, Oneida 
County, and was the representative of a well- 
known family, his mother's maiden name hav- 
ing been Donaldson. When a young man, 
Uriah Alverson, who was an extensive dealer 
in lumber, came to Dansville, that he might 
have the benefit of the canal in the transpor- 
tation of his lumber, and was from that time 
until the close of the canal a dealer in lumber. 

The father of the subject of this brief 
chronicle, Augustus Alverson, was born in 
the town of Nunda, and was reared to agri- 
cultural pursuits. He is now in the prime of 
life, bearing his fifty-six years of age with 
ease. He married Marie Cole, a native of Wis- 
consin, and a daughter of John Cole, of that 
State. Two sons were born of their union; 
namely, Frank J. and James A., the latter an 
enterprising young man of seventeen years. 

Frank J. Alverson obtained his elementary 
education in the public schools of Dansville, 
and, being endowed by nature with mental 
powers fitting him for a professional career, 
began the study of law, entering first the 
office of J. M. McNair, and afterward com- 
pleting his reading with Bissell & Foss. He 
passed a creditable examination, and was ad- 
mitted to the bar at Rochester in March, 1892. 
He began the practice of his profession in the 



37° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



place of his nativity, and has been very suc- 
cessful. He stands well in his profession, and 
has the reputation of being honorable and 
manly, winning and retaining the confidence 
of those with whom he is brought in contact. 
On the 19th of July, 1893, Mr. Alverson 
was married to Miss Maria Remmell, a daugh- 
ter of Frederic Remmell, of Corning, Steuben 
County, N.Y. Mrs. Alverson is a member of 
the Presbyterian church. Politically, Mr. 
Alverson is a hearty supporter of the grand 
principles promulgated by the Republican 
party, and socially is influential in Masonic 
circles, belonging to Lodge No. 115, A. F. 
& A. M., and Dansville Chapter, No. gi. 
Knights Templars. 




dent 
Miss 
eight 



ARSENA DRAKE, an extensive 
cattle and wool dealer in Arcade, 
Wyoming County, N.Y., was 
born in Clarkson, Monroe 
County, December 25, 1827. His father, 
Francis Drake, was a New Englander, who 
came to Monroe at an early period of that 
county's settlement, and lived for many years. 
He died in his seventy-eighth year, at the 
home of his son, who at the time was a resi- 
of Eagle. P'rancis Drake married a 
Kelsey Dimmes; and of this marriage 
children were born, of whom two are 
still living — Marsena and Charles, a resident 
of Erie County, Pennsylvania. P'rancis died 
in Iowa, where he had gained considerable 
prominence in mercantile circles, in the au- 
tumn of 1894. Both parents were members 
of the Baptist church, in which faith Mr. 
Drake was reared. 

Until about five years of age Marsena Drake 
lived on his father's farm in Monroe County. 
Thence they removed to Niagara County, and 
three or four years later to Wyoming County. 
When twelve years old he began to work for 
his brother-in-law, in whose employment he 
remained until he was eighteen. In the 
mean time he attended the district schools of 
his neighborhood, exercising the faculties of 
mind and body, and keeping the even balance 
of a simple, well-ordered life. Contented 
with the meagre earnings received for farm 



labor, Mr. Drake worked on patiently, and in 
a few years was able to purchase the property in 
Eagle which he still owns, and which is under 
the management of his son at present. From 
Eagle he came to Arcade in 1884, and purchased 
his present pleasant home on Main Street. 
Here he continued dealing in wool, which was 
a remunerative line of trade. For thirty years 
Mr. Drake has been a large cattle dealers, buy- 
ing stock from the neighboring farmers and 
shipping to Buffalo and New Jersey, where 
a satisfactory profit was generally realized. 

Mr. Drake was wedded June 5, 185 1, to 
Miss Eliza M. Nott, of Sardinia, Erie County, 
where her father, Ezra Nott, was one of the 
first settlers. Ezra Nott was a prominent 
man in his day. He served in the War of 
1812, and was promoted to be Captain before 
its close. After the war he was connected 
with the militia, and rose to the distinction 
of General, a name he was familiarly known 
by. His wife was Hannah Hardy, by whom 
he had six childrenr, as follows: Samuel E., 
Sampson H., William P., Hannah W., Eliza 
M., and Angelette J. Two sons were the 
issue by this union — Fred Ezra, who married 
Miss Jennie Daggett, the daughter of an inn- 
keeper at Springville, and is engaged in con- 
struction of iron bridges; and Charlie M., who 
married Miss Ellen Willson, of Arcade, and has 
one child — May Eliza. Mr. Charlie Drake has 
the management of his father's farm at Eagle. 

Mr. Marsena Drake's popularity in the 
community is evidenced by the fact that he has 
for five consecutive years held the office of 
Supervisor, a longer period than any other 
incumbent of the position has ever officiated. 
He has also been Town Commissioner, and 
was at one time President of the village. In 
political faith he is strongly and zealously 
Republican. Mrs. Drake is a member of the 
Baptist church of Arcade, of which her husband 
is a regular attendant and liberal supporter. 



Conn 



OHN T. McCURDY, an adjusting 
agent of the Caledonia Fire Insurance 
Company of New York, was born 
in Barkhamsted, Litchfield County, 
on the 30th of March, 1850. His 




L. P. WEST. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



373 



grandfather, James McCurdy, was born in 
the parish of Cavan, County Antrim, Ireland, 
May lo, 1782, though he was of Scotch ances- 
tors. James McCurdy's father, John Mc- 
Curdy, was a son of Robert McCurdy, whose 
wife's maiden name was Mary Moore. His 
grandmother was Margaret Ferrier, a daughter 
of Hugh Ferrier. 

James McCurdy, the grandfather of John 
F., with his mother, who had married a sec- 
ond time, came to America in 1788, landing 
at Wilmington, Del., thence going by way of 
Buffalo to Northumberland County, Pennsyl- 
\-ania, where they remained for seven years, 
coming from thence to Dansville in 1795. 
James McCurdy was the first settler in the 
town of Dansville, and lived for sixty-five 
years on the farm he then purchased. He 
accumulated a large property, and at his death 
in 1863, at the age of eighty years, left his 
family of seven children in comfortable cir- 
cumstances. Of this family six are now liv- 
ing in Dansville, engaged in agricultural 
pursuits. Mr. McCurdy was for many years 
Supervisor of the town, and was always inter- 
ested in the political questions of the day. 

John McCurdy, the father of John T., was 
born in Dansville on the i6th of January, 
1820. He was educated in the district school, 
and remained with his father until he reached 
his majority, when he came into possession of 
a farm of his own, which he cultivated for 
many years. In 1884 he gave up the cares of 
farm life, and has since lived in the village. 
He has been an extensive and successful grain 
speculator, and has occupied a prominent 
place in the community. He married Miss 
Elsie A. Case, a native of Barkhamsted, the 
date of whose birth is January 27, 1823. 
Mrs. McCurdy belonged to a large family, 
most of whom were farmers. Five children 
were born of this marriage, two of whom are 
living — John T. and Sarah A. The latter is 
the wife of Thomas E. Gallagher, a fire insur- 
ance agent of the Eastern New York Company 
and a resident here. Three children died in 
early childhood; namely, Sheldon, Elsie, and 
Elizabeth. Both parents attend the Presby- 
terian church of the village. 

John T. McCurdy lived with his parents 



until he was twenty years of age, and attended 
the district school and Dansville Seminary. 
Going West, he secured a position as clerk 
with the Pacific Insurance Company of Cali- 
fornia in their Chicago office, which he held 
until the great fire in that city in 1871, which 
utterly ruined the company. After tliat dis- 
aster he went to Youngstown, Ohio, and en- 
gaged in coal mining for a time, and later in 
the grain and coal business for himself. A 
desire to return to the haunts of his boyhood 
grew strong upon him as the years of absence 
accumulated ; and so he returned at last to 
Dansville, and joined his father in establish- 
ing a coal and grain business, in which enter- 
prise he continued until 1877, and then 
became special agent of the Lancaster Insur- 
ance, and later one of the managers of the 
Washington F"ire and Marine Insurance Com- 
pany of Boston. This position led to that of 
general agent of the New York Continental 
Company, and finally to an engagement with 
the Niagara and Caledonia Fire Insurance 
Company of New York, of which he is now 
adjusting agent. 

Mr. McCurdy was united in marriage in 
1874 with Miss Henrietta Reno, a daughter 
of Francis Reno, a merchant and civil engi- 
neer of Youngstown, Ohio. Mrs. McCurdy 
was one of six children. There is one child 
of this union, a son, James R., a lad of eigh- 
teen, who, after receiving the best educa- 
tional advantages that the village afforded, 
was sent to Dr. Lyon's Preparatory School on 
P'ifth Avenue, New York. Mr. McCurdy is a 
Republican in politics. He is a member of 
the Masonic fraternity, and belongs to Phoenix 
Lodge, No. 115, and Dansville Chapter, No. 
go. The family are attendants of the P'pisco- 
pal church of Dansville. 



K0VI':TT1': p. west was born in the 
town of Livonia on December 24, 
^ 1 84 1. His paternal grandfather, 
Hezekiah West, a native of Connect- 
icut, was killed at an early age by the falling 
of a tree. He left a widow and a family of 
nine children, who after his death moved to 
the State of New York. 



374 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Erastus West, the third of the nine, was 
born in Hartford, Conn., in the latter part of 
last century. He received a plain, practical 
education, and at an early age developed a 
very decided talent for mechanism. Follow- 
ing the natural bent of his mind, he secured a 
position in a spinning-wheel manufactory in 
.Pennsylvania, where he found some scope for 
his native ability as well as congenial occupa- 
tion. Among the articles made in the factory 
were carding-machines of his invention. He 
continued in this line of business until 1813; 
and two years later, in 1815, he came to 
Livonia. The journey was made in wagons; 
and upon his arrival he found only a few white 
families in this locality, which was still a 
favorite hunting-ground of the aboriginal 
American. The land was, for the most part, 
wild; and the life of the new-comer was nec- 
essarily an arduous one. He had the misfort- 
une, just at the point when he needed the 
cheer and encouragement that only a loving 
and faithful wife can give, to lose her who had 
given her young life into his keeping. 

Mrs. West died in 1815, leaving three chil- 
dren — Perry, De F'orest, and Experience. 
Mr. West continued the manufacture of card- 
ing-machines, but, in order to buy his prop- 
erty, was obliged to contract a debt of two 
hundred dollars; and shortly after, through 
the depreciation of the currency, which in- 
volved many people in absolute ruin, he lost 
all that he had accumulated. Returning to 
Pennsylvania, he was married there to Miss 
Lucy M. Burns, of that State, who was born 
May 6, 1800. The young bride accompanied 
her husband to his home in New York State 
on horseback, in truly mediaeval fashion. She 
was the mother of Lovette, of whom this is 
a memoir; Ziba H. ; Covil G., who died at the 
age of nineteen; Lucy M. ; Elisha; Jonathan 
B. ; and Erastus N. The mother died at the 
homestead on February 23, 1S88, aged eighty- 
eight years. The father was seventy years of 
age at the time of his death. 

After completing his course of study at the 
business college at Poughkeepsie Mr. Lovette 
P. West, who had obtained his elementary 
education in the district schools at Livonia, 
became travelling salesman for the firm of 



Johnson & Co., with whom he remained for 
eighteen months. At this time he bought out 
the interests of the other heirs to his father's 
estate, of which he became entire owner. He 
then went to Jeffersonville, Ind. , where he 
entered the employment of Hall, Semple & 
Co., as foreman of their manufacturing estab- 
lishment, which position he held for three 
years. On returning to Lakeville, he em- 
barked in a mercantile enterprise, which he 
conducted for eleven years. The business was 
sold finally; and Mr. \\'est, who still retained 
his real estate, devoted himself to larger pur- 
poses and ends. He was prime mover in 
accomplishing tlte building of the railroad 
from Lakeville to Conesus Lake Junction, a 
work which was completed in July, 1S82, and 
which has been of inestimable advantage to 
the whole communitv. This road, of which 
he was President, was sold to the New York, 
Lake Erie & Western Railroad, which took 
possession of it in 1886, since which time Mr. 
\\'est has been actively engaged in the culti- 
vation of his estate. He is still President of 
the branch road, which has never had any 
other executive head, and is also agent at its 
station. 

In 1869 he was married to Miss Hattie M. 
Dimmick, daughter of Shubael and Mary W. 
(Clawson) Dimmick, of Susquehanna County, 
Pennsylvania. Mrs. West's paternal grand- 
father was an officer holding the rank of Cap- 
tain in the Revolutionary army. Mr. and 
Mrs. West have reared five children — Harry 
F"., Erastus L. , Charles S. , Florence L., and 
Livingston D. Harry holds the position of 
head clerk of the Division Freight Agency of 
the New 'Wuk Central & Hudson River Rail- 
road at Rochester ; and Erastus, who is at 
school still, is telegraph operator at the 
Lakeville station. The other children are at 
home, attending school. 

Mr. Lovette P. West, who has always been 
a Republican, casting his first Presidential 
vote for the martvred Lincoln, has held some 
of the most important offices in his town. He 
was Postmaster until change of administration, 
and since that date (1870) has been Justice of 
the Peace. He is a member of the Masonic 
Order, which la\-s upon the wearers of its en- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



375 



sign the burden of their fellow-creatures who 
are in need, and declares the law of mutual 
obligation and universal love. A lifelike 
portrait of this worthy craftsman of the mystic 
fraternity may be found among the illustra- 
tions of the present volume. 



-OSEPH M. DUNCAN, President of the 
Duncan .Salt Company, whose works 
are located at Silver Springs, Wyo- 
ming County, was born at Syracuse, 
N.Y., April 17, 1846. His father, William 
Duncan, was born near Aberdeen, Scotland, 
where he carried on the business of a stone- 
mason, and came to the United States .soon 
after marriage. He settled at Oswego, N. Y., 
and was for some time employed in erecting a 
pier and light-house at that important lake 
port. He at length removed with his family 
from Oswego to Syracuse, where he resided for 
the remainder of his life. He assi.sted in the 
erection of the Presbyterian church and other 
prominent buildings, and died at the age of 
sixty. The maiden name of William Duncan's 
wife was Mary Wood. She was also born near 
Aberdeen, Scotland. They reared six chil- 
dren, f(jur of whom are living — Elizabeth, 
who married Dr. A. H. Tanke, of Syracuse ; 
William A. ; Jo.seph M. ; and John H. Duncan. 
The mother died at Syracuse, aged seventy 
years. B(jth parents were members of the 
Pre.sbyterian church. 

Joseph M. Duncan was educated at the pub- 
lic schools of Syracuse, and learned the trade 
of a cooper, which he followed for three years. 
He was then employed four years in the 
jjrinting-office of the Syracuse Standard, after 
which he engaged in book-keeping for six 
years for the Syracuse Woollen Company and 
one year with J. W. Barker. In March, 1870, 
Mr. Duncan first became connected with the 
industry which has been the chief business of 
his life. The Ashton Salt Company, with 
which he gained his first experience, he re- 
mained with thirteen years, or till May, 1883, 
when he went to Warsaw with the Warsaw 
Salt Company, and, erecting their plant, occu- 
pied the position of general manager to Au- 
gust, 1885. He then, in company with Mr. 



William A. Morgan, a .sketch of whom ap- 
pears elsewhere in this work, removed to 
Silver Springs, and purchased the present 
plant, which was then the Silver Springs Salt 
Works. It was incorporated under the name 
of the Duncan Salt Company, with a capital of 
two hundred thousand dollars, and is the best- 
equipped salt manufactory in the world. 

Mr. Duncan erected nearly all of the present 
buildings, and they have increased the output 
from three hundred barrels to thirteen hundred 
barrels per day. In place of the original two 
wells, there are now si.x. Their boilers were 
four of eighty horse-power each ; and now they 
have twenty-three boilers of one hundred and 
sixty horse-power each, which shows the rapid 
advance the new concern has made. While at 
Warsaw Mr. Duncan introduced the vacuum 
evaporation process, and was the first to apply 
this in the manufacture of .salt. He now has 
this process in operation, with a capacity of 
twelve hundred barrels per day. The vacuum 
salt is sold under the brand and trade-mark 
of W^orcester .Salt. 

In October, 1881, Mr. Duncan was united 
in marriage to Addie M. Pharis, daughter of 
Charles E. Pharis, of Syracuse, a salt manu- 
facturer in the then village of Geddes, now 
incorporated within the city of Syracuse. . Mr. 
and Mrs. Duncan have two adopted daughters, 
twins — Mary and Carolyn. Mr. Duncan is 
a member of the Masonic fraternity, having 
taken thirty-two degrees; a member of Royal 
Arch Chapter, Central City, of Syracuse; and 
of Central City Commandery, Knights Tem- 
plars, of the same place. He was Senior 
Warden in the Blue Lodge, and has filled the 
chair of Thrice Potent Grand Ma.ster of the 
Lodge of Perfection. He is also a member 
of the Royal Arcanum of Syracuse, and of the 
Maccabees at Silver Sjjrings. He is a Re- 
publican in politics. Mr. and Mrs. Duncan 
are members of the Methodist church, and he 
is superintendent of the Sabbath-school. 

Mr. Duncan has exhibited a remarkable 
amount of industry and enterprise from the 
very commencement of his business career, 
applying his uttermost energies to whatever 
he has undertaken. During his residence in 
Silver Springs he has, by his activity in busi- 



376 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ness, raised it from a small hamlet to a thriv- 
ing village, and has devoted much of his time 
to forwarding the general interests of the com- 
munity. 




'Rh:EMAN F. COVERT, a substantial 
and well-to-do agriculturist of Ossian, 
is the descendant of an honored pioneer 
of this part of Livingston County, and one of 
its most respected and valued citizens. He 
resides within the limits of the town of 
Ossian, about three miles west of Dansville, 
and only a mile from the place of his birth, 
which occurred July i8, 1835. His father, 
Frederick Covert, was also a native of this 
part of Livingston County, and was a son of 
Frederick Covert, Sr. , who came from New 
Jersey to this county during the latter part of 
the past century, and was one of the first, if 
not the first settler of Ossian. In the midst 
of the dense wilderness he reared his humble 
log cabin, and, with the characteristic energy 
of the courageous pioneer, began the arduous 
work of transforming the forest-covered tract 
which he bought from the government into a 
productive farm. He succeeded in his efforts, 
and after a few years built a plank house, this 
being in turn superseded by a commodious 
frame house, in which he spent his last days, 
enjoying the comforts to which his years of 
persevering toil entitled him. He reared a 
family of ten children, who ably assisted him 
in his agricultural labors. 

The father of Freeman F. Covert was reared 
to a farmer's life, and after attaining his ma- 
jority purchased the farm now owned by his 
son Freeman; and this he managed with a 
skill and wisdom that produced excellent re- 
sults, until his sons, Freeman and Nathaniel, 
assumed control, thus relieving him of all 
care. Here he departed this life, at the age 
of sixty-seven years. He married Ann Porter, 
who was born on this farm, and upon it spent 
her long life of seventy-four years, this being 
the homestead which her father, Nathaniel 
Porter, redeemed from the wilderness. He 
was a native of New Jersey, and when a young 
man migrated to this part of the Empire State, 
locating first in Dansville, then coming to this 



town, where he bought the two hundred acres 
of woodland from which the present farm was 
evolved. Here he and his good wife, who 
bore him a large family of children, passed the 
remaining years of their lives. Both were 
members of the Presbyterian church, and con- 
tributed liberally toward its support. 

I-'reeman F. Covert was one of two children 
born to his parents, the other being Nathaniel, 
now a resident of Dansville. F'reeman re- 
ceived the rudiments of his education in the 
district school, and afterward attended the 
seminary in Rogersville. L^pon leaving 
school, he engaged in the management of the 
home farm, of which he and his brother had 
full control for some time; and after the death 
of his father he bought the interest of his 
brother in the estate, which he has since car- 
ried on with skill and ability, bringing it to 
a high state of culture and productiveness. 

The marriage ceremony uniting the desti- 
nies of Freeman F". Covert and Minerva 
Lemon was solemnized in 1865. Mrs. Covert 
was born in Ossian, of which place her father 
was a very early settler. Five children were 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Covert, as follows: 
F"red, Arthur, May, Jennie, and Carrie. The 
two sons are extensive dealers in hay. Across 
this happy household Death cast his shadow, 
the devoted wife and affectionate mother hav- 
ing passed to the higher life on the 13th of 
October, 1891, at the age of forty-nine years. 
She was a woman of most exemplary character, 
deeply beloved by all who knew her, and was 
a faithful member of the Presbyterian church. 

Mr. Covert, who takes an active interest in 
promoting the welfare of the place of his nativ- 
ity, is a stanch supporter of the Republican 
party. He served as Supervisor in 1890, and 
has been Assessor for nine years. He is a 
man of sterling integrity, well informed on 
the current topics of the day, and takes espe- 
cial interest in the preservation of the family 
genealogy. 




DWARD L. DIEFFENBACHER, who 

carries on a large cooperage business, 
and is also a farmer and a manufact- 
urer of staves, was born in the town of Gen- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



377 



eseo, N. Y. , July 24, 1862. His paternal 
grandfather, who was of German ancestry, was 
born in Pennsylvania, but came to Livingston 
County when a young man. Here he felled 
'the trees on the timber land which he bought, 
clearing a space for the log cabin in which he 
first lived. He soon cultivated a farm, and 
erected frame buildings, and here made his 
home the remainder of his life, departing from 
earthly scenes at a ripe old age. Soon after 
coming to Livingston County he married Mary 
Price, who was a native of Maryland, and 
came from Pennsylvania to the State of New 
York on horseback. Mr. and Mrs. Dieffen- 
bacher were the parents of seven children — 
Betsy, Katie, Susan, Samuel, William, John, 
and Leonard. Mrs. Dieffenbacher died at the 
age of seventy-five years. 

John Dieffenbacher, the father of Edward, 
was born in the town of Geneseo in 181 2. He 
was instructed in agricultural pursuits, and, 
having inherited land from his father, added 
to it by purchase, until at the time of his 
death he owned two hundred and twenty-five 
acres. In the month of June, 1846, he mar- 
ried Martha Cordelia Knight, who was born 
December 3, 1821, and is still living at the 
old homestead in Geneseo. She is a daughter 
of Asahel Clark Knight, a New t^nglander by 
birth, who came to Livingston County when 
a young man, locating in Livonia, where he 
lived for a time, then moved to Wyoming 
County, residing there until 1830, when he 
bought a farm in Geneseo, upon it passing the 
rest of his life, his death taking place at the 
age of sixty-six. He married Patience, a 
daughter of Stephen Heath, of Berkshire 
County, Massachusetts. She died at the age 
of seventy-five. John and Martha (Knight) 
Dieffenbacher were the parents of five chil- 
dren — Mary, Martha, Frank, Olivia, and Fid- 
ward. 

Edward L. Dieffenbacher studied at the 
State normal school in Geneseo, and later 
was graduated from the Rochester Business 
College. After graduation he engaged in 
business with his brother, who was a manu- 
facturer of barrel-heads for about four years. 
In addition to this he has also been in busi- 
ness for himself, and managed the old home- 



stead. In 1885 he married Dollie T. Week.s, 
who was born in Geneseo. Her grandfather, 
Cornelius Weeks, made the journey on foot 
and without money from Massachusetts, his 
birthplace, to his new home, where he rented 
land, successfully raising tobacco and hemp, 
and in due season was enabled to buy land and 
make a home for himself, living there until 
his death. He married Betsey Chaptell, of 
Connecticut, who came to New York State in 
1806. Cornelius P. Weeks, the father of Mrs. 
Dieffenbacher, was born in Geneseo, and mar- 
ried Mary Clark, a native of the same place. 

Mr. and Mrs. Dieffenbacher are earnest 
workers in the Presbyterian church, to which 
they both belong. In his active life Mr. 
Dieffenbacher has won the respect of all with 
whom he has been associated in business trans- 
actions, and has also gained many sincere 
friends in private life; for, although much of 
his time is occupied with work, he is never 
too busy to assist others. 



SUMAN A. DAVIS, a leading resident 
of Arcade, carries on a very extensive 
^ and prosperous mercantile business, 
besides being largely interested in 
agriculture, and is, in fact, one of the solid 
men of Wyoming County. He is a native of 
the town in which he was born October 11, 
1853, and where he now resides. His father, 
William W. Davis, was born at Freedom, Cat- 
taraugus County, September 24, 1825, where 
his father, Sardis Davis, was an agriculturist, 
moving from there to Oakland County, Michi- 
gan, where he passed the remainder of his 
life. William W. Davis was eight years of 
age when his parents moved West; and he 
resided with them in the above-named State 
ten years, when he returned to the Empire 
State, engaging in the livery business at 
Arcade, in 1851. He conducted business at 
Arcade for six years, but, with a view of more 
rapidly improving his circumstances, sought 
a new home in the West, settling on a farm in 
Whiteside County, Illinois, which he operated 
for three years, then returned to his native 
State, and established himself in Arcade, 
where he, in partnership with A. A. Spencer, 



378 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



commenced running a line of stages from the 
latter town to Buffalo, also one from Arcade 
to Attica, following this successfully for some 
years, when in 1867 he was elected Sheriff 
of Wyoming Count}-. He resided in Warsaw 
three years, finally settling down at Arcade for 
the last time, where his widow now resides, 
and where he continued to reside until his de- 
cease, which occurred November 10, 1889, at 
the age of sixty-four years. 

On July 6, 1S51, he was united in marriage 
to Miss Julia Ann Maynard, born at Sheldon 
in 1 83 1, daughter of Thomas J. Maynard, a 
native of Massachusetts, where his father, 
William Maynard, a farmer, lived, although he 
spent his latter years in the State of Illinois, 
where he died. Thomas J. Maynard was 
reared to agricultural pursuits, but later be- 
came a stone-mason, and also died in Illinois, 
at the age of seventy-three years. The mater- 
nal grandmother of Luman A. Davis was be- 
fore marriage Julia Godfrey, who was born in 
Brutus, Cayuga County, the daughter of Mol- 
bone Godfrey, a pioneer in that section, and 
she was the mother of eight children, six of 
whom are still living, namely: Julia Ann, the 
subject's mother; Chauncey, now living in 
South Dakota; Frank M. ; Almeda L. , who 
married Daniel Van Antwerp, and resides in 
Illinois; Mrs. Martha A. Wescott, now resid- 
ing in Chicago; and Julius E. , now residing 
in Sterling, 111. She died in Illinois, at the 
age of fifty-five years, both herself and hus- 
band having been members of the Free Will 
Baptist church. Julia Ann, their second 
child, was well educated at the schools of 
Arcade, and attended the academy of that 
town, residing with her parents until her mar- 
riage. She is a member of the Congrega- 
tional church society, of which Mr. Luman A. 
Davis is a Trustee. Their daughter Lillian 
was born October ig, 1873, and died Julv 14, 
1874. 

Luman A. Davis commenced to be of valua- 
ble assistance to his father at a very early age. 
He received a very careful education, graduat- 
ing from Temple Hill Academy at Geneseo in 
1872, and entering Bryant & Stratton's Busi- 
ness College at Buffalo, where he pursued 
a thorough course of mercantile instruction. 



He was called to assist his father, who at this 
time conducted a very extensive express busi- 
ness under the firm name of Spencer & Davis, 
and was also engaged in closing up his father's 
livery business, acting, in fact, as his pri- 
vate secretary, manager, and book-keeper, 
which he continued to do until his father's 
death, when he was necessarily called upon to 
adjust his late parent's affairs. The latter, in 
1878, had purchased the piesent mercantile 
business now carried on by his son, and also 
did a very extensive business in pressed hay. 

June 30, 1885, he married Hattie D., the 
only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Rich- 
ardson, of Arcade, N. Y. Mrs. Davis was 
born in Arcade, October i, 1858, was one of 
the many favorite girls of the community, and 
was organist of the Congregational church for 
many years. They have three children — one 
son, W. S. , and two daughters, Florence and 
Olive Jane. 

Sidney Richardson was a nati\e of Arcade, 
and married Harriet E. , only daughter of Mr. 
and Mrs. John Colton, who moved here from 
Vermont. He was very active in business, 
serving in many positions of trust, and was 
Deputy Sheriff of the county at the time of 
his death, May 23, 1S81, at the age of forty- 
six. His father, W. E. Richardson, was born 
in Livonia, and was one of the pioneers in this 
section. He married a daughter of Silas 
Parker, of this town, and died in March, 1884, 
his wife surviving him, and dying May 29, 
1S85. His connections with the Congrega- 
tional church are of the most earnest nature 
as a member ; and he has been superintendent 
of the Sabbath-school for a [period of twenty 
years. 




RANGE SACKETT, Po.stmaster of 
Avon, N. v., has repiesented this 
place most ably, not only in the ca- 
pacity of Village Trustee and in other 
civil offices, but also on the field of battle; for 
he saw three years of service during the Re- 
bellion, service so active that less than half 
of the company in which he was a commis- 
sioned officer survived the war. He was born 
in the same county, Livingston, in the town 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



379 



of York, July ii, 1837. He comes of New 
England ancestry, his grandfather, Homer 
Sackett, having been a native and life-long 
resident of Connecticut, in which State he 
followed the occupation of farmer. 

Colonel Orange Sackett, the father of the 
subject of this sketch, was also a native of Con- 
necticut, and for a number of years he taught 
school there ; but he came to New York State 
at a comparatively early age, and for some 
time settled in Monroe County. He was an 
active, enterprising, and industrious man, and 
engaged in different occupations, carrying" on 
a general store and a pottery for a considerable 
period, until he finally removed to York, and 
began the improvement of a si.\-hundred-acre 
farm which he had bought there. He had no 
light task before him, as but twenty of the six 
hundred acres were cleared ; and he had to 
build a log house to live in. Hut hard work 
evidently agreed with him ; for he lived to a 
ripe old age, dying in 1877, at the age of 
eighty-one, just forty-four years after he had 
begun to improve the farm. He was married 
in 1822 to Amanda Minerva Sheldon, of Shef- 
field, Berkshire County, Mass. ; and they had 
eight children, four of each sex, their names 
being as follows — Homer, James, Sarah, 
I^' ranees, Samuel, Cornelia, Orange, and Mi- 
nerva. 

Orange was the youngest son. He was edu- 
cated at Lima and at Canandaigua, and did 
farm work until he attained his majority, when 
he removed to Avon, and became identified 
with the butcher's and grocer's business. But 
a much more important undertaking was soon 
to occupy his energies, the task of helping to 
preserve the Union; for in August, 1862, he 
enlisted for three years in the One Hundred 
and Thirty-sixth New York Volunteer Infan- 
try. He held a commission as First Lieuten- 
ant at the time of enlistment, but did not hold 
it long; for in six months he was promoted 
to the rank of Captain. The first battle in 
which he participated was at Chancellorsville. 
This was followed by engagements at Fred- 
ericksburg, Gettysburg, Wohachie, Lookout 
Mountain, Missionary Ridge, Kno.xville, At- 
lanta, Savannah, Jk-ntunville, and other 
points. Lieutenant Sackett went out with 



one hundred men : Captain Sackett returned 
with but forty-four, eleven being lost at Get- 
tysburg alone. He was mustered out in June, 
1865, and, on returning to Avon, re-entered 
the line of business in which he had been en- 
gaged before he went to the front. After a 
few years he bought a hotel at Avon Springs, 
and carried it on for three years, when he sold 
out and removed to Youngstown, Ohio. He 
there also carried on a hotel for three years, 
at the end of which time he returned to Avon, 
where he has since remained. Farming has 
been his chief business; but he has also en- 
gaged in the improvement and handling of real 
estate, in the fire insurance business, and in 
the construction of cement sidewalks. Cap- 
tain Sackett has served as Village Trustee and 
Clerk, has held the position of School Trus- 
' tee, and was appointed Postmaster of Avon, 
j January, 1892. He is a charter member of 
the Avon Hook and Ladder Company, and has 
been Chief of the Fire Department. He is 
connected with the Free Masons, and is a 
prominent member of the Grand Army. 

Orange Sackett was married in 1867 to Cor- 
nelia U. Van Zandt, daughter of Jesse Van 
Zandt, who at the present writing is one of 
the oldest men in the county, he being ninety- 
four years of age. His parents were Garret 
and Hannah (Doble) Van Zandt, who came 
from Bucks County, Penn.sylvania, at an early 
period, and were among the pioneer settlers 
in this section of New York State. Two sons 
have resulted from this union — William V., 
who is now in the office of the railroad super- 
intendent at Rochester; and John S. , who 
officiates as Assistant Postmaster at Avon. 
The mother was removed by death in January, 
1893. 

Now in the prime of life, and holding re- 
sponsible and important positions, Captain 
Orange Sackett is a prominent and most useful 
member of the community in which he has 
lived so long. He has had a busy and a 
varied career, has worked hard and diligently 
to advance the best interests of the town, has 
proved his devotion to his country as a whole 
as well as to that section of it in which he 
lives, and is an honored citizen, who well 
deserves the popularity he enjoys. 



38o 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



'ERA J. LL'SK, 
physician in 
County, 
County 
grandfather of Dr. 




M.D., now a resident 
Warsaw, Wyoming 
N. Y. , was born in Erie 
in 1 85 J. The paternal 
Lusk was William Lusk, 
a native of Vermont, who emigrated from Rut- 
land to New York, and selected six hundred 
acres of land near Batavia, on which he deter- 
mined to locate. Returning to Vermont for 
his family and for the money which was to 
purchase the New York farm, he made all nec- 
essary arrangements, packed his effects in 
wagons, and set forth upon the long journey 
to the new home. At one of the various inns 
at which the travellers stopped for a night's 
lodging there befell to them a sad misfortune. 
Mr. Lusk, being wearied from the day's driv- 
ing over a rough road, slept heavily, and 
awoke next morning to find that the trunk con- 
taining his money, which was in specie, had 
disappeared. After a vigorous search the 
missing trunk was discovered half a mile from 
the town, entirely rifled of its contents. With 
heavy hearts and diminished means, the family 
resumed their journey. Ill luck, it would 
seem, did not pursue them farther. William 
Lusk became a prosperous contractor and 
builder. He met his death by an accident, 
while building a bridge at Akron, N. Y. 

His wife, formerly Miss Elizabeth Sanford, 
became the mother of four sons and three 
daughters. Of this family only two are now 
living — S. B. Lusk, of Batavia, N. Y. ; and 
the Doctor's father, William H. Lusk, who 
was the first-born. William H. Lusk, who was 
born in August, 181 3, in Vermont, is now a 
resident of Clarence, Erie County, N. Y. , and 
retains a remarkable vigor of mind and body. 
Although eighty-two years of age, he still 
looks after his estate and is interested in cur- 
rent events. His wife, who was Miss Lavinia 
Johnson, daughter of Zera Johnson, of Erie 
County, is also still living. She is seventy 
years old, and has two sisters and two brothers. 
Mr. and Mrs. William H. Lusk reared three 
children, the Doctor being an onl)- son. The 
daughters are : Adele, the widow of George J. 
Farrand, who lives with her parents at Clar- 
ence; and Jennie L. , the wife of Harris A. 
Corell, a lawver of note in Tacoma, Wash. 



Zera J. Lusk pursued his elementary studies 
in' the public schools of Clarence, and later 
attended the State normal school of Brock- 
port. His medical education began at the 
Bellevue Hospital Medical College, New York 
City. He graduated from the Buffalo Univer- 
sity afterward, and began to practise his pro- 
fession in the village of Eagle, Wyoming 
County, where he was located for four years. 
Sixteen years ago he came to W'arsaw and en- 
tered into a partnership with Dr. O. B. 
Adams, which continued for about four years, 
since which time Dr. Lusk has conducted his 
large practice alone. He is a member of the 
American Medical Association and the Na- 
tional Association of Railway Surgeons, and 
ex-Vice-President of the New York State 
Medical Association, and also a member of the 
Wyoming County Medical Association. He 
was for a period of twelve years United States 
Examining Surgeon. Besides his professional 
interests, he has outside duties which com- 
pletely fill the days of a busy life. He is a 
Knight Templar, and holds the office of High 
Priest of the Wyoming Chapter, No. 181, 
Royal Arch ]\Iasons. 

Dr. Lusk has been married twice. His first 
wife was Miss Ida M. Rice, of Clarence, to 
whom he was married in October, 1875. She 
died in the summer of 1882, leaving two chil- 
dren — William Rice, a boy of sixteen; and 
Minnie Edith, a bright and attractive girl of 
thirteen. His second matrimonial alliance 
was with Miss Jennie Frank Nassau, a daugh- 
ter of the late Joseph E. Nassau, D. D., who 
was pastor of the Presbyterian church in War- 
saw for thirty-five years. They have buried 
an infant son, who was the namesake of his 
maternal grandfather. Dr. Lusk is Vice-Pres- 
ident of the Pearl Salt Company, and was one 
of the promoters of the Gas and Electric Light 
Company, in which he owns stock. 



DELBERT A. SMITH, a native and 
well-known resident of the flourishing 
town of Portage, Livingston County, 
N.Y., was born July 12, 1842. 
He is of New England ancestry, his great- 
grandfather. Abel Smith, who was a Revolu- 




BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



381 



tionary soldier, having been a native of 
Connecticut and a prosperous farmer of ihat 
State. Both of Mr. Smith's great-grandpar- 
ents lived to reach a very unusual age, Abel 
dying at ninety-three and his wife at ninety- 
seven. They lived in one house as husband 
and wife seventy-one years. 

Their son, Levi Smith, grandfather of Adel- 
bert A., was born in Fairfield, Conn., and 
was a cloth-maker by trade. He came to 
North Salem, Westchester County, N.Y., 
where he established a mill for the manufact- 
ure of cloth, and died at the age of sixty-nine 
years. He married Ann Dibble, and they 
reared eight children. Amnion, the father of 
our subject, was born at North Salem. Hav- 
ing grown to manhood, he and his brother 
Lyman each took up forty acres of wild land 
in what was then the town of Nunda, now 
Portage. From their home in Westchester 
County, they had travelled to Albany by the 
only railway at that time running, and from 
there to Rochester by canal, completing the 
journey to their destination in a wagon. 
They remained a year at Nunda, then went to 
Connecticut, where they stayed three years, 
after which they returned to their new home, 
paid for their first purchase, and bought fifty 
acres more. This was in 1837. They 
worked diligently together in order to clear 
their property of all encumbrances, and not 
only succeeded in doing this, but added fifty- 
seven acres more to their possessions. This 
they then divided, Lyman retaining his origi- 
nal purchase of forty acres, while Amnion had 
one hundred and seven acres. He afterward 
purchased thirty-seven more acres, making 
one hundred and forty-four acres. He re- 
mained upon this farm throughout the rest of 
his life, continuing to improve it, and stead- 
ily increased in prosperity. He married 
Julia R. Nash, of Connecticut, daughter of 
Alonzo Nash; and the subject of this sketch 
was their only child. 

Adelbert A. Smith received his elementary 
education in the district schools of Portage, 
and followed this with an advanced course at 
the Nunda Academy. He was an exceedingly 
apt scholar, and after thus providing himself 
with knowledge of the higher branches of 



learning taught school one term in his native 
town. While yet a young man he left home 
to learn the trade of a machinist, but was 
obliged to return to his parental roof, called 
there by the dangerous illness of his father. 
This caused him to relinquish his intention of 
following mechanical pursuits as a means of 
livelihood, and he decided to remain at home. 
His father was seventy-six years old when he 
died, and had been Supervisor of the town 
nine years. 

Mr. Smith was married to Miss Eliza S. 
Jennings, daughter of James and Mary (Gallo- 
way) Jennings; and they have three children 
— Carrie A., Everett A., and Eva E. Like 
his father, Mr. Smith has found time aside 
from his private affairs to attend to public 
business, having held with credit the office of 
Collector of the town of Portage. He con- 
tinues to successfully carry on the farm which 
his diligent and persevering parent reclaimed 
from the wilderness, and his present prosper- 
ity is the natural result of persistent industry 
and good management. In politics he is a 
Republican, having cast his first vote for 
Abraham Lincoln. 



IRA PATCHIN was born in the town of 
Scipio, now Venice, Cayuga County, 
N.Y., February 24, 1814. His grand- 
father, Jesse Patch in, came to America 
from Hesse-Cassel, Germany, as a member of 
the Hessian troops, to fight against the colo- 
nies, but deserted the ranks of the foe, and 
remained in this country, settling in Ballston 
Spa, Saratoga County, N.Y., where he died. 
Azor Patchin, son of Jesse, was a native of 
Ballston Spa, and was there educated. He 
learned the hatter's trade in Schenectady, and 
followed that occupation during the greater 
part of his active life. He emigrated to Wis- 
consin in later years, and passed the last years 
of his life with his son. He was married to 
Electa Wanzer; and of this marriage eight 
children were born, two of whom died in 
infancy. The others were: Ira, Willard B., 
Smith, Ann Eliza, William, and Daniel, all 
of whom, except William, are still living. 
After attending; the district schools and the 



3S2 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Genesee Wesleyan Seminary of Lima, Mr. Ira 
Patchin became a teacher in the schools of 
Monroe and Livingston Counties, in which he 
taught for ahnost four years. He then became 
school superintendent of Livingston County, 
and was afterward interested for several years 
in a publishing house in New York City. 
For the last twenty-six years, he has been 
engaged in that most independent of lives, a 
farmer's. He married Miss Clarissa A. Dix- 
son, a daughter of Captain Robert Dixson, of 
Livonia. She has borne him two children — 
Robert A. and Charles Arthur. Mr. Patchin 
belongs to the Masonic Lodge of Lima, 
is a member of the Methodist church, and 
is a stanch Republican in political faith. 
He voted for William Henry Harrison in 
1840. 



J "^v AVID O. PATTERSON, Cashier of 
— I the Merchants' and Farmers' Na- 
97 tional Bank of Dansville, was 
born in Nunda, Livingston County, 
N.Y., May 23, i860. His ancestors were 
from Connecticut, and settled near Elmira, 
N.Y. His grandfather, David Batterson, 
came from there in an early day, and settled 
near Nunda Village. The site upon which 
the village now stands was offered to him, but 
a location three and one-half miles from this 
spot was chosen. Here the young farmer 
began life. The dense aboriginal growth was 
cleared away, and he built one of the first 
white houses ever seen in that section. He 
married Sallie De Witt for his first wife; and 
four sons and four daughters were born to 
them, the youngest, Orlando, being the father 
of the original of this sketch. Sallie De Witt 
died at the age of thirty-seven; and Mr. Bat- 
terson married afterward Lucretia Murry, a 
resident of Springville, N.Y. Orlando re- 
mained with his father until his marriage with 
Emily Powers, of Tuscarora, after which he 
purchased a farm near his father. Here his 
two children — David O. and Nelson E. — 
were born. 

David O. Batterson attended the district 
school with the other farmer boys of the 
neighborhood, and was a pupil of the Nunda 



Academy. He also attended the Riverside 
Seminary at Wellsville, N.Y. 

At the age of seventeen he entered the em- 
ployment of A. R. Hill, who was an exten- 
sive tanner at Wellsville. He remained with 
him for three years as book-keeper, and left 
him to become book-keeper for Hoyt & Lewis, 
bankers of Wellsville. 

He afterward was book-keeper and teller of 
the Plrst National Bank of Wellsville, hold- 
ing this position for nine years, at the expira- 
tion of which time he came to Dansville, and 
was elected in December, 1890, Cashier of 
the Merchants" and Farmers' National Bank. 
Mr. Batterson is a Director of this bank and 
also a Director of the E. M. Parmelee Medical 
Company of Dansville. 

Mr. Batterson married in August, 1881, 
Lillian A. Russell, daughter of George W. 
Russell, of Wellsville, N.Y. She lived but 
a short time; and he married in October, 
1885, Sarah Palmer York, daughter of Hiram 
York, also of Wellsville. 

To David and Sarah York Batterson two 
children have been born — Emily Louise and 
Harriet York. 

Mr. David O. Batterson, who came an 
absolute stranger to the locality in which he 
has risen by his own unaided efforts to a posi- 
tion of influence, is a proof of what a man may 
make of himself by application to his business 
and an unswerving determination of .purpose. 

He has the gift of attracting friends, and is 
a very popular man in Dansville. He is a 
Vestryman in St. Peter's Church, of which 
his wife is a communicant. His political 
creed is the Republican platform, upon which 
he stands firm and unshaken. 



Tt!^ONALD McLEOD, a clear-headed oc- 
I ^^ togenarian, the original of the por- 
|b\ trait on the opposite page, is now 
^"■^ living quite retired at the home of 
his son in Attica, Wyoming County, N.Y. 
His father was Allen McLeod, born in 1777, 
in the town of Stone Arabia, Montgomery 
County, and was brought up at Johnstown, in 
Fulton County. His grandfather was Will- 
iam Norman McLeod, a Scotch Highlander, 




RONALD MCLEOD. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



38s 



who was married twice, the second wife being 
the grandmother of Ronald. Her family 
name was McKenzie; and she was sister of 
the celebrated Sir Alexander McKenzie, who 
was knighted for his daring explorations. 
Allen McLeod was her only son, but he 
found himself the possessor of three half- 
brothers by his father's former marriage. 
These three half-brothers joined the United 
States army during the War of 1812; and one 
of them, Neal McLeod, was killed by the Ind- 
ians. The others escaped with their lives, 
and served to the close of the war, when they 
were dischaj\ged at Charleston, S.C. Mur- 
dock remained at the South; but Norman 
came North, and later was the father of the 
noted Episcopal clergyman. Dr. William Nor- 
man McLeod. The grandfather, William N. 
McLeod, died three months before his son 
Allen was born. The grandmother died, and 
was buried near her husband in Johnstown. 

Allen McLeod married Miss Jane Lough- 
ley, a daughter of Alexander and Elizabeth 
(Magee) Loughley. Her parents came over 
from the old country when she was but seven 
years old, landing in Philadelphia after a six 
weeks' voyage in the "Lady Washington." 
These maternal grandparents were plain 
farmers, and lived to be very old. Their re- 
mains now rest in the cemetery of Louisville, 
they having removed to St. Lawrence County 
in 1801. Allen McLeod took his family to 
Canada when his son Ronald was quite a 
young boy, and settled there, living in a log 
cabin, and with two hundred acres of land to 
clear and cultivate, the land having been 
given to him by his uncle. Dr. McKenzie. 
The year that followed was the memorable 
one when snow fell in June, and the seasons 
seemed to have mistaken their order of succes- 
sion. It was a hard year for the agriculturist, 
and especially for the settler in an unculti- 
vated locality, when he had no previous year's 
crops to help him tide over the strain. 

Allen and Jane McLeod were blessed with 
ten children, of whom Ronald was the eldest. 
The second son, John, was called from the 
happy flock at the age of nine years. The 
others grew up and raised families. Only 
three are now living, namely: Ronald, our 



subject ; John Raymond McLeod, who is a 
farmer and a fisherman on the shores of Lake 
Michigan, and carries on quite an extensive 
trafific in fish, though in his sixty-eighth year; 
and a sister, Isabella, widow of J. H. Robin- 
son, living in Massena, St. Lawrence County, 
N.Y. Mr. Allen McLeod lived to the age of 
ninety-one. His wife died at eighty-four. 

Ronald McLeod was born June 15, 18 10, 
in Stormont County, now Ontario County, 
Upper Canada. He lived a boy's life on his 
father's farm, learning the sweet lessons of 
nature and acquiring those habits of industry 
which fitted him for the activities of manhood. 
At the age of twenty years he left home to 
take a share in his brother Alexander's busi- 
ness, which was chiefly trade in lumber and 
stone, but also included some manufacturing. 
He was with his brother three full years; and 
then, having a fancy for the water, he went 
into the employ of a steamboat company as 
captain of the steamer "Black Hawk," making 
trips from Ogdensburg to Kingston, Ontario, 
and to Sackett's Harbor, his home at that 
time being in Clayton, Jefferson County. 
After his brother went West, Ronald joined 
him in Northern Michigan, where they en- 
gaged in the lumber business, having also an- 
other station in Wisconsin, until the death of 
his brother after twenty-five years' copartner- 
ship. Alexander McLeod's grave is on Mack- 
inaw Island. In 1841 Ronald McLeod went 
from Wisconsin to Chicago, where he re- 
mained two years, and during that time built 
the toll-bridge across the Des Plaines River. 

Mr. McLeod was united in marriage at 
Aurora, 111., to Emeline Wilder, of Antwerp, 
Jefferson County, N.Y. Mrs. Emeline Mc- 
Leod died in 1854, at Aurora, after about five 
years of wedded life, leaving one son, named 
for his father. The second marriage of Mr. 
McLeod was in Chicago, in 1856, to Eliza- 
beth G., widow of Mr. Michael Dousman. 
They had one daughter, Jennie, who died at 
seventeen years of age, in 1877. Eight years 
later, August 11, 1885, Mr. McLeod was 
called to part with his second wife. Only 
those who know a similar loss in their own 
experience can understand the extent of such 
a bereavement. Ronald McLeod, Jr., worthy 



386 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



son of a worthy father, is now conducting a 
farm of one hundred and two acres, which is 
known through all this section as the most 
productive and well-kept farm of its size. 
Ronald, Jr., moved here in 1871, from Mack- 
inaw Island, where he had been for eleven 
years the proprietor of the McLeod House. 
He had sold the establishment to Mr. James 
F. Cable, for the satisfactory sum of six thou- 
sand dollars, and then he purchased this fine 
piece of property for twelve thousand six 
hundred dollars. Ronald McLeod, Jr., mar- 
ried Elizabeth G. Corey; and they have one 
daughter, Enielinc, who attends school in 
Attica. 

Mr. Ronald McLeod, who is in politics a 
firm Republican, served as Internal Revenue 
Assessor in the Sixth Congressional District 
of Michigan, the Ninth Division, for three 
years. He is a communicant of the Episcopal 
church. His career has been a very useful 
one, as well as active and somewhat eventful. 
The infirmities of age are drawing nigh, but 
his mind is clear and vigorous; and after his 
arduous labors in the past he now has leisure 
to enjoy the interests of the farm without its 
cares, the peace of the fireside, and the com- 
pany of his beautiful little grand-daughter. 




'HELBY BAKER, a Livonia mer- 
chant, whose birth date was the 
2 1st of November, 1826, is of a 
New Hampshire family, his father, 
Timothy Baker, having been a native of that 
State. Mr. Timothy Baker came from Aure- 
lius, Cayuga County, N.Y., to Livingston 
County in 181 5, conveying his effects by way 
of Rochester. The farm purchased by him in 
Livonia, and on which the remaining years 
of his life were passed, is now the site of a 
Baptist church. Mr. Baker died at the age 
of eighty-five years. He married Philena 
Powell, and from this marriage four children 
were born, namely: Orange P.; Lusina; Phi- 
lena E. ; and Shelby, who is the original of 
this biographical sketch. Both husband and 
wife had been previously married, and each 
had a family of children by the former 
marriage. 



Shelby Baker was educated in the district 
school of his neighborhood and at Temple 
Hill Academy, finishing both courses of study 
by the time he had attained his majority. He 
was just twenty-one years of age when he em- 
barked on a whaling-vessel bound for the 
Sandwich Islands and San Francisco, and 
started on his first voyage, which occupied 
eighteen months. The homeward journey was 
made by way of the Isthmus of Panama; and 
the adventurous farmer lad saw the wonders of 
distant lands and foreign people, and had the 
vista of a new world of life and manners pre- 
sented to his youthful eyes. An early attack 
of the "gold fever" led him to California. 
He was one of the "forty-niners," and re- 
mained there for six years. With a cool 
judgment and determination of purpose that 
evidenced strong character, he then shook off 
the illusive spell, broke from the shackles of 
visionary expectation, and returned home, 
after a second trip to the Sandwich Islands in 
1855. He here went back to the old simple 
farm life, and engaged also in mercantile 
business, in which he has continued for 
twenty-six years. In 1862, when the tran- 
quillity of the United States was disturbed by 
the dreadful struggle between the North and 
South, Shelby Baker entered the Federal 
army. On the iith of August of that year, 
he enlisted at Geneseo in the One Hundred 
and Thirty-sixth New York Infantry as a pri- 
vate, and was promoted to be Sergeant and 
later First Sergeant, and was on active duty 
for nearly three years. He was in the memo- 
rable and bloody engagements of Chancel- 
lorsville, Gettysburg, Chattanooga, Mission 
Ridge, and a severe midnight battle previous 
to that. 

Following General Bragg to Knoxville, he 
encountered the perils and hardships which 
attend an invading army in the enemy's coun- 
try, and had many a stirring tale to tell when 
he returned to his old quarters. He was one 
of the soldiers who made the march to At- 
lanta with General Sheridan, and bore the 
phenomenal record of never being off duty for 
a single day. On the march to Goldsboro 
Mr. Baker received his commission as First 
Lieutenant, and on the march from Goldsboro 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



387 



to Washington he had command of the com- 
pany as Captain. In 1865 he was mustered 
out at Rochester. 

Mr. Baker was married to Miss Marietta S. 
Sharp, a daughter of Timothy and Alpha 
(Hartshorn) Sharp, of Livonia, whose family 
were among the earliest settlers of that place. 
The one child of this marriage is a daughter, 
Eleanor, who is a student at the normal 
school of Geneseo. Mr. Baker is a member 
of the E. S. Gilbert Post, Grand Army of the 
Republic, of Livonia. He has been loyal to 
the Republican party since it came into exist- 
ence. His first Presidential vote was cast for 
General Winfield Scott in 1852. 




ILLIAM R. McXAIR, a foremost 
farmer and ex-Supervisor of Lima, 
Livingston County, N.Y., was born 
in Groveland, in the same county, on Septem- 
ber 23, 1823, during the second Monroe ad- 
ministration. He is a grandson of William 
McNair, who was born in Ireland, but at the 
age of nine came with his parents to America, 
settling at once upon what is still the family 
homestead at Groveland. In 1795 Grand- 
father McNair bought two hundred and sixty- 
two acres of uncleared land in Livingston 
County, and erected a log house, with later a 
frame addition. His remaining days were 
spent there in active labor until his ninety- 
sixth year, when he died. His first wife was 
Margaret Wilson; and his second was Jane 
Horner, of Pennsylvania. 

Robert McNair, father of our subject, was 
born in Pennsylvania, but spent all his active 
life in Groveland. His education was of a 
practical character. Although his entire 
schooling was limited, being self-educated, 
he became one of the leading business men of 
the county. As a farmer and stock dealer he 
was very successful, acquiring twenty-two 
hundred acres of good land in Livingston 
County. His wife was Amelia Warner, 
daughter of Captain William Warner, of 
Lima. They had six boys and four girls — 
William R. ; Sarah A. H. ; Henr>' W. ; Augus- 
tus, who died in infancy; Charles B. ; Miles 
B. ; Mary Jane; Amanda W. ; Emma; and 



Augustus C. Mr. McNair died in Grove- 
land, at the age of seventy. 

William R., son of Robert and Amelia 
(Warner) McNair, was educated at the district 
schools and at Canandaigua Academy, after- 
ward teaching one term in Groveland, where 
he then engaged in farming. He came to 
Lima in April, 185 i, at the age of twenty- 
seven, and still remains on the farm of his 
mother's ancestors, in the house his grand- 
father Warner built. His wife, whom he 
married in December, 1850, just before com- 
ing to Lima, was Mary Williamson, daughter 
of Samuel M. and Susannah (Burrows) Will- 
iamson, of Bucks County, Pennsylvania. 
Mrs. McNair was a member of the Presbyte- 
rian church. She died March 25, 1890, leav- 
ing four children — Henry H., Willis, Anna 
L., and Clara A. Henry McNair is in mercan- 
tile business in Portland, N. Dak. Willis Mc- 
Nair lives in Livonia Centre. Anna resides 
at home with her father. Clara married Alex- 
ander McCune, and resides in Minneapolis, 
Minn. Mr. McNair sen'ed the town as Su- 
pervisor for three successive years, from 1870 
to 1872. His first vote was cast in 1844 for 
James K. Polk, but he has been a Republican 
since the formation of the party. He is a 
member of the Presbyterian church, and is 
much respected. 

"Life's evening, we may rest assured, will 
take its character from the day which has 
preceded it." 




WEN BENNION, a retired hardware 
merchant and insurance agent of Stry- 
kersville, in the town of Sheldon, 
N.Y. , was born in Cheshire, England, 
February 14, 1843, and at the age of fifteen 
months was brought by his parents to the 
United States. His father, Thomas Bennion, 
son of Thomas, Sr. , and grandson of Joseph, 
has been a resident farmer in Sheldon for 
nearly forty years. Joseph Bennion, who was 
a native of Cheshire and a tenant farmer upon 
the estates of Lord Cumbermarle, died at the 
age of eighty-four years, having reared a fam- 
ily of eight sons and three daughters, all of 
whom attained their majority and married. 



388 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Thomas Bennion, Si., son of Joseph, was 
also a tenant farmer upon the estates of the 
above-named nobleman, and occupied but two 
farms during his whole life. The maiden 
name of his wife was Sarah Cook. They 
reared two daughters, Mary and Ann, and one 
son, Thomas Bennion, of Sheldon. Mary, 
now a widow, is nearly eighty years of age, 
a resident of England. Ann, unmarried, also 
lives in England. Grandfather Bennion died 
in 1838, at about fifty years of age. 

Thomas Bennion, son of Thomas, Sr. , and 
Sarah (Cook) Bennion, was born in Cheshire, 
England, August 17, 18 19, and was reared to 
pursuits of agriculture upon the estates of 
Lord Cumbermarle. On September 14, 1841, 
he married Ellen Davis, daughter of David 
and Ellen (Baker) Davis. Her father was 
a native of Cheshire, and a small farmer, own- 
ing his farm, which was entailed. In May, 
1S44, Mr. and Mrs. Bennion emigrated to the 
United States, sailing from Liverpool on 
board an American ship, and having a very 
rough passage of forty-one days to New York. 
They had no capital with which to start; and 
for the first two years Thomas Bennion worked 
for a farmer in Fairfield County, Connecticut, 
for two hundred dollars per year, with a house 
and garden free. In the fall of 1845 they 
moved to Wales, Erie County, N. Y., but on 
account of homesickness returned in the fol- 
lowing spring to Connecticut, where Mr. Ben- 
nion continued to work for the same wages as 
before, with many privileges, and spent five 
very pleasant years as farm superintendent. 
He then purchased a small farm of thirty- 
eight acres in Connecticut, paying the sum of 
three thousand dollars; and, in order to effect 
this trade, he was obliged to incur quite a 
heavy debt for those days. He later sold the 
property, and in June, 1856, removed with his 
family to Sheldon, where he purchased his 
present farm of one hundred and one acres, for 
which he paid the sum of three thousand dol- 
lars, one-half at the time of purchase, and the 
remainder to be paid in the future. Upon this 
farm he and his faithful wife, a patient help- 
mate, dwelt happily for many years, she dying 
July I, 1893, after a wedded life of fifty-two 
vears. 



Thomas Bennion is still toiling on the farm, 
although now well advanced in years, being, 
like many of his active temperament, unable 
to remain idle while he has strength sufificient 
to keep busy. He has deeded one-half of hfs 
property to his son Henry, who resides near 
him. He has lost two infant children, and 
has seven children living, three sons and four 
daughters. All of these are married, and he 
has several grandchildren. He is an Episco- 
palian, as was his wife. A Democrat in poli- 
ties, he has served as Assessor for twenty 
years. His children are as follows: Owen, 
the subject of this sketch ; William, a farmer 
in Erie County; Mary, wife of Peter Foldin, 
a resident of that section ; Sara, who married 
John Cole, now a farmer in Illinois; Henry, 
who resides upon the old farm, having a wife 
and eight children, seven of whom are sons; 
Jane, wife of E. Warner, of Strykersville; and 
Emma, wife of James French, of West Falls, 
N.Y. 

Owen Bennion came to Sheldon at about the 
age of twelve years, and attended the district 
schools. At the age of seventeen he left his 
home and worked for monthly wages as a 
farmer. At the age of twenty-one years he 
opened a fire insurance office at Strykersville, 
which he conducted with both energy and suc- 
cess for thirty years, retiring in 1894. At 
the age of twenty-five he engaged in the hard- 
ware business, which he also successfully car- 
ried on until 1893, when he sold out his busi- 
ness and purchased his pleasantly situated 
home in the lower part of the village. This 
property contains about fifty acres of fertile 
land fronting upon the main thoroughfare, and 
is under high cultivation, as Mr. Bennion does 
general farming as a sort of recreation after 
many years of active and jirofitable mercantile 
business. 

On November 20, 1862, Mr. Owen Bennion 
was united in marriage to Miss Amarette 
D. Dunbar, born at Varysburg, daughter of 
Chauncev B. and Eliza (Spencer) Dunbar, who 
were earl)' settlers in that section, and are 
now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Bennion have 
two sons and one daughter, namely : Miles, who 
succeeded to his father's insurance business, 
and is unmarried; Howard B. , also unmarried. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



389 



and a resident of Strykersville; and Maud E. , 
wife of Adelbert F. Getty, a salesman in the 
dry-goods house of Burt, Fitzsimmons, Hone 
& Co. at Rochester, having one son, Owen B. 
Getty. 

Mr. Bennion is a Democrat in politics. He 
was a Magistrate for twenty years, and is now 
serxiny; his third term as Postmaster. Mrs. 
Bennion is a lady possessing many accomplish- 
ments, having been thoroughly educated at 
Attica, and having taught school several terms 
previous to her marriage. She has one sister, 
the wife of Burton F. French, of Attica, and 
had the misfortune to lose her only brother, 
Jerome Dunbar. Mr. Bennion is a Master 
Mason. He takes a great interest in all pub- 
lic affairs of importance, having an intelligent 
understanding of matters relating to the wel- 
fare of his communitv. 




[/jj^ELSOX JANES, for many years agent 
for General Wadsworth's estate, and 
now living in retirement at Gen- 
eseo, Livingston County, N. Y., 
where he has long been identified with public 
affairs, was born in Conesus, in this county, 
January 3, 1819. His grandfather, Heman 
Janes, was a native of England. He emi- 
grated to America, and, after spending about 
forty years in the United States, removed to 
Canada, where he died. 

Elijah Janes, son of Heman, was a native of 
New York State, where he was reared a 
farmer. He married, and resided in Conesus 
until his son Nelson was about five years old, 
when he removed to Canada, where he re- 
mained for a time; but in 1840 he went 
to Indiana, and there passed his declining 
years, dying at the age of eighty. His wife, 
Polly Clark, a native of Cayuga County, was 
the mother of eight children, two of whom 
died young. The others were: Nelson, the 
subject of this sketch; Laura; Adeline E. ; 
Ann Eliza; Sarah; and William C. Mrs. 
Janes died at the age of sixty years. 

The early life of Nelson Janes was passed 
in the vicinity of Woodstock, Canada, where, 
besides attending school, he was employed in 
farm work until reaching the age of nineteen. 



at which time he came to Geneseo, his uncle 
then being Sheriff of Livingston County. In 
1 84 1 he was appointed Deputy Sheriff, in 
which capacity he served three terms, or nine 
years in succession, having been reappointed 
for two terms after the expiration of his first. 
He was also Constable for the town of Gen- 
eseo at this time. P^rom 1849 '^'^ ^855 he was 
Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, and from 
1850 to 1855 he was manager for the estate of 
William H. Spenser. In 1855 he was en- 
gaged by General James S. Wadsworth to 
superintend his affairs in Buffalo, which he 
did until 1863, when the General induced him 
to assume charge of the entire estate with 
headquarters at Geneseo. His new duties re- 
quired him to not onl)' manage the Geneseo 
and Buffalo affairs of the Wadsworth estates, 
but also several outlying interests in Alle- 
gany County and in the States of Michigan 
and Ohio. This position he held until Jan- 
uary I, 1889, when on account of failing 
health he was compelled to practically retire 
from active responsibility. He, however, still 
remains in the employ of the estate, as his 
long experience of forty-nine consecutive years 
at the head of its vast interests makes him of 
untold value to the heirs at the present time. 

In 1842 he married Philena E. Baker, 
daughter of Timothy Baker, of Livonia, and 
has three children — Mary A.; Laura L. , a 
graduate of Temple Hill Academy; and Will- 
iam S. , the latter educated in the normal 
school, and now in a manufacturing establish- 
ment at La Porte, Ind., where he is express 
agent, time-keeper, and pay-master. He mar- 
ried Flora Miller, of the above-named city; 
and they have four children — Nelson, Shelby, 
Catherine, and May, the first two mentioned 
being twins. Mrs. Janes, who was an earnest 
member of the Presbvterian church, died in 
the month of April, 1874, her decease being 
the cause of much regret by the entire commu- 
nity, in which she held a very high place. 

During his long residence in Geneseo ]\Ir. 
Janes has held many positions of public trust. 
He has been a Trustee and Secretary of the 
Cemetery Association for thirty years, and 
a Trustee of the union school for twenty- 
eight years. He was also a Trustee of the 



39° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



village, and its President for several terms, 
besides being its Treasurer for four years. 
He was Clerk of the village two terms, and in 
1S69 was Super\isor of the town of Geneseo. 
Since 1863 he has been a Director of the 
Genesee Valley National Bank. Mr. Janes 
has many times been obliged to decline impor- 
tant public offices on account of business press- 
ure. He was a stanch supporter of the Whig 
party, supporting General Harrison in i S40, 
and was one of the founders of the Republican 
party in New York State. 

Mr. Janes has led an exceptionally well- 
regulated life, faithfully and steadfa.stly adher- 
ing to the right in all his transactions, always 
vigilant in the discharge of his duties, both 
public and private, and "enjoying the highest 
respect and esteem of his employers and the 
public generally. The family are members 
of the Presbyterian church, Mr. Janes having 
been a Trustee thereof for twenty-five years, 
during the period from 1864 to 1889. 



; Peletiah Bliss 

1770; Adolphus 

Nash, 



A. 



born 




OX. EDWIX A. XASH, of Avon, 
X'.Y., County Judge, and e.\-District 
Attorney, was born in Bedford, 
Canada; but his claim to American 
citizenship is unquestionable. 

His father, Adolphus Nash, was a native 
of Dorset, Vt. His mother, although born in 
Canada, was of American parentage. Her 
father and mother were Dutchess County, X'ew 
York, people. He traces his paternal ancestry 
back to the Nash family of Herefordshire, Eng- 
land. The following is an extract from a 
volume in the British Museum entitled, "Gen- 
ealogies and Pedigrees of Herefordshire Fami- 
lies, collected by William Berry" : "Margery 
Baker and Thomas Xash, married and went to 
Xew England. ' ' The paternal ancestr}' is 
further traced in a genealogy of the Xash fam- 
ily published some forty years ago. Thomas 
Xash and family landed at Boston, July 26, 
1637, in the ship "Hector" from London. 
The line of descent from Thomas Nash : Tim- 
othy Nash, born in England, 1626; John 
X'ash, born in Hadley, Mass., 1667; Stephen 
Xash, Stockbridge, ^lass. , 1704; Moses Xash, 
First Lieutenant in Revolutionary War, born 



in Westfield, Mass., 1741 
Nash, Stockbridge, Mass. , 
Nash, born in 1S13; Edwin 
October 26, 1836. 

Adolphus Nash, the father of the subject of 
our sketch, received his education in the dis- 
trict schools of Massachusetts, and learned the 
trade of cabinet-maker at Troy, N. Y. , and 
then went to Canada, married, and set up 
business for himself. He located in a small 
place in L^pper Canada near Kingston, built 
up a good business, and might perhaps have 
remained in Canada permanently; but a few 
years after his arrival the relations between 
the United States government and the Prov- 
inces became so strained that the Canadians 
made things decidedly unpleasant for such 
Yankees as were unfortunate enough to be 
within their dominion, and the upshot of it 
was that Mr. Nash had to choose between loss 
of life and property, and loss of property only. 

Of course, he took the latter alternative ; but, 
as even the surrender of his earthly possessions 
would not have entirely satisfied the enraged 
populace, he silently stole away with his fam- 
ily at night, leaving house, store, and stock of 
furniture. So, when he stood once more under 
the protection of the stars and stripes, he was 
in decidedly reduced circumstances, having 
but two dollars with which to practically 
begin life over again. He took up his abode 
at Canandaigua, and entered the employ of 
Eldad Clark, doing cabinet work, and being 
paid by the piece. He continued in Mr. 
Clark's employ for two years, when he removed 
to Reed's Corners, and from there to West 
Bloomfield. In 1849, ten years after his hasty 
migration from Canada, he removed from West 
Bloomfield to Lima, where he resided until 
his death in 1SS4, at the age of seventy-one. 
His widow survived him, and continued to 
reside in the town of Lima until her death, 
which occurred in August, 1894, at the age of 
eighty-one. Her maiden name was Harriet 
Smith. The subject of this sketch was the 
first child born to them ; and, although he was 
followed by a brother and a sister, he is now 
the only survivor, as his brother died in early 
youth, and his sister, ^Mary A. Nash, died at 
Lima in 1886, a member of the faculty and 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



39 « 



teacher of art in the Genesee Wesleyan Semi- 
nar}-. 

Edwin A. Xash was educated at the Lima 
district schools and at the Genesee Wesleyan 
Seminary. He studied law in the office of the 
late Harvey J. Wood at Lima, was admitted to 
the bar in i860, and was associated with Mr. 
Wood in the practice of law until the death of 
the latter in 1871. Mr. Nash continued the 
law business at Lima alone until 1878, when 
he removed to Avon, where he has since re- 
mained. Some nine years after he was ad- 
mitted to the bar he was chosen as District 
Attorney, holding that position for two terms 
from January, 1869, being chosen again in 
1872. In 1S78 he was elected County Judge, 
was elected again to the same office in 1884, 
and again in 1890. 

The above facts tell their own story as to 
the standing of Judge Xash at the bar and on 
the bench, and his standing as a citizen, so 
that any extended eulog)' here would be as 
unnecessary to the public as it would be dis- 
tasteful to him. The Hon. Edwin A. Xash 
was married in 1862 to Miss Frances A. Mor- 
gan. But one child blessed the union, a 
daughter, who died at the age of seventeen. 
Judge Xash cast his first Presidential vote in 
i860 for Abraham Lincoln, and has been a 
Republican from the beginning. 



I^TEXRV J. McXAIR, of Arcade, Wy- 
[ zX I oming County, X.Y. , long and favor- 
\[s I ably known to the community as 

^""^ book-keeper and clerk in the estab- 
lishment of L. A. Davis, was born in the town, 
May 21, i860. He is of Scotch ancestry, his 
father, William McXair, being a native of 
Portpatrick, Scotland, where he lived in his 
youth, and commenced life as a sailor in the 
employ of various coasting-vessels cruising off 
the coasts of the British Isles. At the age of 
thirty-three he gave up navigation and came to 
America, and remained two years with a 
brother in Xew Jersey, and then went to 
Arcade, where he purchased a farm and took 
up his residence for a time; but in 1894, get- 
ting somewhat advanced in years, he leased 
the place and went to the village, and has 



since resided with his son. He is now sev- 
enty-eight years old. The wife of William 
McXair was before her marriage Mrs. John 
Simpson, formerly Miss Margret Miller, who 
in early life emigrated to this country, and 
spent her life in Arcade. Their marriage took 
place Xovember i, 1S54. The six children 
resulting from this marriage were : Samuel 
R., of Ellicottsville, Cattaraugus County, of 
the firm of Laidlaw & McXair, lawyers ; 
Henry J., of this sketch ; George W. , formerly 
of the Arcade Bank; one brother who died in 
March, 1893 ; and a brother and sister who died 
while children. The mother finished her term 
of years in October, 1894, having been a 
member, as also the father, of the L'nited 
Presbj-terian church of Freedom, Cattaraugus 
County. 

Henr}- J. IMcXair lived during his boyhood 
on his father's farm, and attended the district 
school in Eagle \'illage. At the age of seven- 
teen (1877) he took a position as clerk in the 
establishment of W. W. Davis, where he has 
remained during the past eighteen years, grad- 
ually growing in the estimation of the head of 
the concern, and being given more and more 
of its responsibility. Mr. McXair has charge 
of the book-keeping, and in the absence of 
Mr. Davis has supen"ision of the various de- 
partments, including the purchase and sale of 
goods, which is done on a large scale, requir- 
ing good judgment and keen business ability; 
and it is doubtless owing to these qualifica- 
tions in Mr. McXair as his chief manager that 
Mr. Davis's business is so successfully and 
firmly established. 

Henrj' J. McXair was married in May, 
1885, to Miss Alice Spencer, daughter of Bur- 
ton Spencer, a well-known resident of the 
town of Arcade, moving to Prophetstown, 111., 
about the year 1857, where he died. This 
union has been blessed by two children — Julia 
A. and William G. McXair. Although giving 
devoted attention to his chief business, Mr. 
McXair has manifested a true citizen's inter- 
est in the local matters which concern the 
town and its neighborhood. He sened as 
Town Collector during one term, Village Col- 
lector on three separate elections, and Town 
Clerk two years; he was elected Supervisor in 



392 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



1 894 for two years' service, and has been some 
years on the School Hoard. This is always an 
important office, as its work deals with the 
interests of education, and demands of its offi- 
cers men of broad views, keeping in line with 
the rapid development of the times. He is 
a member of Arcade Lodge. .\. V. Sc A. M., 
No. 491, of which he has been secretary four 
years, a charter member of China Lodge, In- 
dependent Order of Odd Fellows, No. 698, 
a seven years' member and four years' secre- 
tary of the Chemical Engine Company in 
Arcade, ^\'voming Countv, also Chief of Lire 
Department. And, not overlooking religious 
matters, he attends with his wife the Congre- 
gational church in Arcade. 

The chief point indicated bv Mr. McXair's 
success in the preceding narrative has been 
continuance in his chosen career and improv- 
ing its opportunities for an understanding of 
the business. This happily follows the line 
of Mr. Longfellow's words: "The talent of 
success is nothing more than doing what one 
can do well, and doing well what one must 
do, without thought of fame." And, in con- 
clusion, since "there is no chance in results." 
the law of compensation here has proved that 
more responsibility is the award of carrying 
a little well. 



Y^TIRAM BOSTWICK WARNER, an 
In; I energetic farmer of Lima, Living- 
|l 9 I ston County. N. Y., was born in 

^~^' that town August 7, 1S26, the year 
when John Adams and Thomas Jefferson died, 
on Independence Day. Mr. Warner's grand- 
father, William, came from Canaan, N. V. , to 
this section of the countrv in companv with his 
brother, Asahel, in 1794. They first located 
a claim, and in the fall of that year went back, 
and were married in the winter of 1794-95. 
In the spring they and their wives, joined by 
two other brothers, migrated with ox teams, 
crossing Cayuga Lake on the ice in the month 
of March, a dangerous undertaking at that sea- 
son of the year. Daniel and William Warner 
settled first in Richmond, Ontario County, 
where they remained from 1795 to iSii, when 
they came to Lima, then known as Charleston, 



William bringing seven children. They trav- 
elled by marked trees, as there was then only 
one road — the old road from Albany to Buf- 
falo — in this section. 

The four brothers Warner built log houses, 
and, in clearing the land, burned many acres 
of fine, heavy timber. Indians were numer- 
ous and to a certain extent troublesome. 
The Warners raised flax and wool, and made 
all their own clothing. Seed potatoes were 
brought with them for future crops. Later on 
William Warner was Captain of the militia at 
Lima. His wife was Lois Bristol. belona:in£r 
to another pioneer family. Grandfather War- 
ner was one of fourteen children, and with 
seven of his brothers served in the Revolution. 
He and his wife reared a familv of nine, as 
follows: Henrv Warner, born October 9, 
1797, died April 26, i^//. Polly Warner, 
born December 24, 1798, died in September, 
1875. Miles B. Warner, born July 31, iSoo, 
died May 20, 1877. Amelia Warner and 
Amanda \^'arner, twins, were born March 26, 
1803 ; Amelia died March i, 1823, and Amanda 
on January 4, 1865. William Warner, born 
August 10, 1807, died February 4, 1850. 
Albert, born November 13, 1809, is still liv- 
ing. Abel, born Januar}" 29, 181 2, died Jan- 
uary 15, 1S32. Lois N., born September 14, 
1 81 3, died December 23, 1831. 

Miles Bristol \\'arner, their third child, 
father of the subject of the present sketch, was 
educated at the district schools of Richmond 
and Lima, and was a singing-teacher nearly 
all his early life. He carried on the farm 
purchased in 181 1, and lived in Lima all the 
remainder of his days, dying at the age of 
seventv-seven, at the home of his son Hiram 
in the village of Lima. His wife was Jane 
R. Clark, the daughter of Thomas Clark, 
of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Said 
Thomas Clark emigrated from Drumore town- 
ship, Lancaster County, to Ontario County, 
New York, in 1799, and, as he wrote in his 
Bible, "No road out, no road in." 

Their son, Hiram Bostwick Warner, with 
the exception of a sister who lived to the age 
of sixteen, was the only child. Hiram was 
educated at the district schools of Lima, and 
later attended the Genesee Weslevan Seminary 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



393 



in that town, working at the homestead farm 
until late in life. He removed to the village 
of Lima in 1876, but continued to carry^ on the 
farm until 1879, when he sold out and retired 
from active life. April 27, 1854, he married 
Harriet Horner, daughter oi Hugh and Sarah 
E. (Humphrey) Horner, of Northampton 
County, Penn.sylvania. Mr. and Mrs. Warner 
have never had children of their own; but 
their affectionate natures have prompted them 
to adopt two, who are grown up, married, and 
are now living in comfortable homes of their 
own. The Warners are much respected mem- 
bers of the Lima Presbyterian church. Mr. 
Warner has been a Republican in politics 
since 1864, casting his first Presidential vote 
for General Taylor, the Whig candidate, in 
1848, the year the Mexican War closed. 

•• Oh. blest retirement, friend to life's decline .' 
How blest is he who crowns, in shades like these. 
A youth of labor with an age of ease I " 

So writes that graceful poet, Oliver Gold- 
smith; and his lines are illustrated by such 
a career as those herein chronicled. 



rms 



L'STAV KREBS, a popular resident 
\ [^ I of Dansville, widely known as a tal- 
^— "^ ented and accomplished musician 
and a man of superior worth, was born in 
Germany, April 9, 1829. His father, David 
Krebs, -was air 'educated man, and was long 
engaged in teaching in his native country. 
In his last years he was the principal of a 
school. He- died while yet in the midst of 
his usefulness, at the age of fifty-si.x years. 
He was twice married, his first wife bearing 
him two children — Gustav, of whom we 
write; and Carl. 

Gustav was but six years old when his 
mother died, and he remained under the in- 
struction of his father until fourteen years of 
age. Having given evidence of his musical 
genius, he was placed under the tuition of 
competent teachers of that art, and while still 
a resident of Germany became famous for his 
skill as a player of the flute. At the age of 
twenty-five years Professor Krebs came to 
America under the auspices of the Mendels- 



sohn Quintette Club of Boston, Mass., and 
remained with them seven years, playing 
throughout the New England States, although 
he spent the larger part of his time in Boston. 
He was subsequently a member of the Boston 
Symphony Orchestra for several years, and 
then turned his attention to the teaching of 
music, remaining in that city until his health 
failed, and then joining his brother in Web- 
ster, Mass. He came from Massachusetts to 
this county in 1874, and for a time was at the 
Jackson Sanatorium in Dansville. Deciding 
to establish himself permanently in this town, 
he built the fine house which he has since 
occupied, and where he welcomes his large 
circle of warm friends with a true and gener- 
ous hospitality. He has engaged in his 
chosen and loved profession a portion of the 
time since coming here, among his pupils 
being the son of Dr. Jackson, the manager of 
the Sanatorium. The Professor's brother, 
Carl Krebs, who was associated with him as a 
teacher for a time, died in Dansville. 

Professor Krebs has been twice married. 
His first wife, whom he wedded in 1862, died 
in May, 1874. Her maiden name was Helen 
M. Davis; and she was born in Newport, 
Herkimer County, N.Y., being the daughter 
of Amasa and Sally Davis. Mr. and Mrs. 
Davis were the parents of five children — 
Eliza, Harriet, Helen, Sarah, and Esther B. 
The youngest is the second wife of Professor 
Krebs, and presides over his household with 
a kind and genial courtesy. Professor Krebs 
is a member of the Lutheran church, and in 
politics uniformly supports the principles of 
the Republican party. 



-IpNARLEY GARDNER, a retired 
I'x^ farmer, who lives on his estate near 
I -J the village of Attica, N.Y., was 
born on this place, January 8, 1818. 
His paternal grandfather, Josiah Gardner, was 
a man of note in Massachusetts, rising to the 
rank of Major in the Continental army during 
the Revolution, and afterward serving as a 
member of the State legislature. His two 
sons — Asher, the father of Mr. Parley Gard- 
ner, and Adolphus — came from New England 



394 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



to this part of New York, where they settled 
in 1808, before there were roads on this side 
of Attica. Asher was the owner of the one 
horse they had with them, and during the 
long journey hither the brothers rode alter- 
nately. 

The brothers felled the trees from seventeen 
acres of forest-covered land, and began at 
once to build a small log cabin. Four years 
previous to their coming, in 1804, a few pio- 
neers had settled in this region, among whom 
Benjamin Nelson and a man by the name 
of Randall were the first, followed by Lora 
Phelps and Major Adams. Asher Gardner's 
family made the journey thither in a covered 
wagon drawn by two oxen and a horse. He 
and his good wife had laid by the snug little 
sum of six hundred dollars, four hundred dol- 
lars of which he invested in fifty acres of 
land. Mrs. Gardner, who was before her 
marriage Philinda Patrick, was a faithful 
wife, and became the mother of five children 
— Reuben Patrick, born in 1812; Samantha, 
born in 1814, and now living in Attica; 
William, who died in 1878, owner of a fine 
farm of three hundred acres in the eastern 
part of Attica; Parley, of whom this is a 
memoir; and Josiah, who is also deceased. 

I-'arley Gardner was early inured to farm 
labor, making himself generally useful even 
when he was but a little fellow of ten years 
old, and learning the lessons which were so 
useful in later years. He attended the dis- 
trict school, and worked on the farm between 
terms, until he attained his majority, at which 
time he engaged to give a year's labor on the 
farm for a new suit of clothes and two hun- 
dred dollars. In 1848, when he was thirty 
years of age, he was joined in wedlock to 
Miss Mary Ann Wales. Her parents, Ros- 
well and Anna (Gardner) Wales, were among 
the early settlers of Attica, and like her hus- 
band's people came from Massachusetts. 

Only one child was born of this marriage, a 
son, who bears the name of Blake, and is 
himself a family man. Blake Gardner was 
married November 29, 1877, to Miss Ellen 
A. Pratt, her parents being A. Sidney Pratt 
and Jane (Showerman) Pratt, of Massachu- 
setts and New York respectively. Mr. and 



Mrs. Blake Gardner have one child, a son, 
Parley Van Gardner, now a boy in school. 




"ON. WILLIAM P. LETCHWORTH, 
LL.D., of Buffalo, N.Y., Commis- 
sioner of the State Board of Chari- 
ties, resides during the summer at 
his beautiful country seat. Glen Iris, on the 
picturesque bluffs of the Genesee River in 
Wyoming County, New York. He was born 
at Brownville, Jefferson County, May 26, 
1823. His father, Josiah Letchworth, came 
of English ancestry, and was born and reared 
in Philadelphia. His mother was a native of 
New Jersey. Both were members of the So- 
ciety of Friends. For a few years after their 
marriage they lived in Burlington, N.J., 
whence they removed to Auburn, N.Y. jo- 
siah Letchworth was a man of positive char- 
acter, large intelligence, and philanthropic 
spirit, and became identified with many affairs 
of public interest. He devoted much thought 
and energy to the development of the public 
school system, and was outspoken and elo- 
quent in .his advocacy of temperance and his 
opposition to human slavery. For many years 
he was an intimate friend of William H. 
Seward. 

William P. Letchworth entered early upon 
a mercantile career, holding a confidential po- 
sition in one of the largest importing houses 
in the country. Declining an offer of part- 
nership, in 1848 he went to Buffalo, where 
he formed a connection with Samuel I", and 
Pascal P. Pratt, under the firm name of Pratt & 
Letchworth, taking the position of managing 
partner in a wholesale business of importing 
and manufacturing saddlery hardware. About 
this time was established in Buffalo the work- 
house now known as the Erie County Peniten- 
tiary, to which large numbers of both sexes 
were sentenced for short terms. Mr. Letch- 
worth's attention being called to the demoral- 
ization resulting from enforced idleness in 
close confinement, he conceived the plan, 
which proved practicable, of employing the 
prisoners in making goods which were then 
generally imported, rendering their services 
available for short periods of time, by so sub- 



% 




WILLIAM P. LETCHWORTH. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



397 



dividing the work and multiplying processes 
that each person would be required to deal 
with a part of an article instead of the whole. 
Prior to this time convict labor had been util- 
ized only in State prisons, where the length 
of sentence gave each prisoner opportunity to 
learn a trade. In the business of Pratt & 
Letchworth a pressing necessity being felt for 
the manufacture by themselves of malleable 
cast iron, Mr. Letchworth bent his energies 
in this direction, and with such good effect 
that a process was developed for the produc- 
tion of iron of a superior quality. The result 
was the establishment of the Buffalo Malle- 
able Iron Works, which in a few years be- 
came one of the largest works of its kind in 
the country. 

Mr. Letchworth's business enterprises grew 
to large proportions, and were crowned with 
gratifying success; but all this meant arduous 
and protracted labor and impaired health, and 
he was at length compelled to relax his efforts 
in the direction of business, and seek rest at 
his country home on the Genesee. Always 
in active sympathy with that which is best 
in thought and purest in sentiment, in the 
partial retirement of his rural retreat he now 
had leisure to indulge his taste for polite lit- 
erature and to extend his knowledge of human 
works and human needs. An ardent lover of 
the beautiful, he gladly gave time to the en- 
couragement of the fine arts. In 1874 he 
was elected President of the Buffalo Fine 
Arts Academy, a position held by him for 
three years. During this time the member- 
ship was increased, the annual exhibitions 
were made more interesting, the gallery was 
enriched by the addition of new pictures, the 
debts were paid off, and an endowment fund 
was created whereby the Academy was placed 
on a firm financial basis. Mr. Letchworth 
has also served as President of the Buffalo 
Historical Society, as Trustee of the Buffalo 
Savings Bank and of the Buffalo Female 
Academy, and has been steadfast in his de- 
votion to the various charities of the city. 

With a view to giving himself more fully 
to philanthropic work, in 1869 Mr. Letch- 
worth withdrew from the firm in which he had 
been so prosperously and happily associated 



for a quarter of a century. In April, 1873, 
he received from Governor Uix the unsolicited 
appointment of Commissioner of the State 
Board of Charities, to fill the vacancy caused 
by the death of Dr. Samuel P^astman, an office 
he has held by successive reappointments for 
twenty-two years. His attention was soon 
directed to the condition of the children in 
the almshouses, whom he found subjected to 
the most degrading associations and in a way 
to grow up as paupers and criminals. Mr. 
Letchworth secured an appropriation of three 
thousand dollars from the legislature for the 
purpose of making, through the State Board of 
Charities, an inquiry into the causes of pau- 
perism and crime. He was then empowered 
by the State Board to obtain statistical infor- 
mation relating especially to the unfortunate 
children in the poorhouses and almshouses^ 
He entered systematically upon his work, and 
made extended and thorough visitations to 
these institutions throughout the State, and 
prepared a faithful and comprehensive report 
of his work. By means of an ingenious chart, 
with the use of colors he showed with the 
utmost clearness the various influences that 
affected the physical, mental, and moral con- 
ditions of these pauper children. He also 
recommended such action by the legislature as 
would break up the system of rearing children 
in almshouses. His report, which, with the 
general report of the Board, was sent to the 
legislature in January, 1875, became the basis 
of subsequent legislation, resulting in the en- 
actment of a law for the better care of pauper 
and destitute children, under which thousands 
of little ones were removed from the poor- 
houses and placed in families, asylums, and 
other institutions remote from the contaminat- 
ing influences to which they had been sub- 
jected. 

It being deemed by many impracticable to 
dispense with the almshouse care of children 
in New York City, a bill exempting New 
York County from the operation of this man- 
datory law was prepared and presented to the 
legislature, indorsed by the Commissioners of 
Charities of the city, and supported by the 
city press. Mr. Letchworth was now ready 
with a special report on this new question. 



39S 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



which was sent to the legislature in January. 
1S76, showing in its true light the want of 
economy in the system, its inhumanity, and 
the moral and physical degradation it worked 
upon those living within the circle of its 
baneful influences. This proved so effective 
that a strong revulsion of feeling followed. 
The press condemned what it had lately 
approved, and public sentiment became pro- 
nounced ag-ainst the evil. Mr. Letchworth's 
recommendations were accepted; and the Ran- 
dall's Island Nurseries, which had long been 
a reeking source of corruption and demoraliza- 
tion, were abolished, and their patronage, in 
the form of salaries, amounting annually to 
about twenty thousand dollars, was extin- 
guished. 

In the following year Mr. Letchworth 
visited personally nearly all the child-saving 
and reformatory institutions of the State, con- 
tinuing his good work of investigation and 
recommendation, which he embodied in a 
third carefully prepared report. 

On January i. 1S74. Mr. Letchworth was 
elected Vice-President of the State Board of 
Charities, and on April 21, 1877, was reap- 
pointed by Governor Robinson Commissioner 
for the full term of eight years. On March 
14. 1 8 "8, he was elected President of the 
Board, which highly responsible position he 
held until his resignation of the office ten 
years later. His time has been given, with- 
out compensation, to the work of the Board, 
work requiring rare discretion and unlimited 
patience; and in its prosecution he has 
visited institutions in nearly all the Northern, 
Western, and Middle States, and has also 
carried his spirit of investigation into other 
countries, studying closely wherever he went 
the care and treatment of the dependent and 
delinquent classes. During the years 1880 
and 1881 he devoted seven months to travel 
in England, Ireland, Scotland, and on the 
Continent, gathering such information as 
would aid him in the discharge of his duties. 

Mr. Letchworth's comprehensive volume 
entitled "The Insane in Foreign Countries," 
a book noble in purpose, scientific in state- 
ment, and scholarly in style, is replete with 
valuable information and suggestion, espe- 



ciallv in reference to the provision made 
abroad for the insane poor, and may be said 
already to have been a means of ameliorating 
the condition of that wretched class of unfort- 
unates in the L^nited States. It has received 
high commendation from influential medical 
journals and other periodicals and newspapers, 
including among others the American Journal 
of Mttiical Siirnas, Jottrual of the American 
Medical Association, the J/etlical Analectic, the 
Sanitarian, the Medico-Legal Journal, the 
Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, the .AV^i' 
England Medical Gazette^ the New York Trib- 
une, World, Sun, Post, and the American 
Journal of Insanity. 

In order to preserve the natural features of 
the wildly beautiful scenery of the upper Gen- 
esee from the ruthless hand of land specula- 
tors, Mr. Letchworth purchased a tract of 
about seven hundred acres lying along both 
sides of the river, and including the Upper, 
Middle, and Lower Falls. The water of the 
tapper Falls dashes down a height of seventy 
feet, while the Middle cataract rushes with a 
tumultuous roar over a perpendicular precipice 
of one hundred and ten feet. The current of 
the Lower Falls, whose descent is ninety feet, 
is very rapid; and its erosive action has cut a 
ravine fifty feet deep through the solid rock. 

The natural beauty of the immediate suu- 
roundings of Mr. Letchworth's home is in- 
geniously heightened by artistic effects, 
among which should be mentioned a fountain 
supplied with clear water from the hills, 
which sends up through the long days of sum- 
mer a sparkling column terminating in a 
cloud of foam. Swiss cottages upon the cliffs 
near by suggest thoughts of Alpine ranges 
and mountain airs. An ancient Indian coun- 
cil house occupies an eminence overlooking 
the grounds. Within these rude walls the 
chiefs of the Iroquois held their war councils 
or smoked the calumet, and distributed the 
I spoils of the hunt. Here also parties of the 
Senecas, returning from predator)' excursions 
south and west, held their feasts; and here 
many war captives have run the gauntlet, 
including among their number the brave 
soldier and noted prisoner. Major Moses Van 
Cam pen. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



399 



Within doors a library, which includes an 
extensive collection of books relating to his 
special work, objects of artistic household 
adornment, rare lots of bric-a-brac and curios 
from various countries, evince the intellectual 
and artistic tastes of the proprietor of Glen 
Iris. 

In contemplating the life work of the man 
and noting its results, one feels that a single, 
unswerving, indomitable principle must have 
been the mainspring of his being — the love of 
humanity. The inarticulate cry of the alms- 
house children and the silent plaint of the 
poor and the unfortunate reached his sympa- 
thetic heart, and he determined to ameliorate 
their condition. To this his personal efforts 
through long years of his life have been 
directed. Inspired by a courage born of ten- 
derness, he has been enabled to effect some 
of the great social reforms of the age. 

It is gratifying to note that the services of 
this faithful worker in the cause of humanity 
have been recognized by the Board of Re- 
gents of the University of the State of New 
York, which in 1893 conferred upon Mr. 
Letchworth the degree of LL.D., "in recog- 
nition of his distinguished services to the 
State of New York as a member and President 
of the State Board of Charities and as an 
author of most valuable contributions to the 
literature pertaining to the dependent classes." 
This is a distinction rarely bestowed, the 
degree having been conferred by the Board of 
Regents only in a few extraordinary instances 
during the one hundred and ten years of the 
existence of the university. 



YPT^^'^'^L'-^ ^- TAYLOR is a well-known 
l[^-^ and much respected resident of the 
J_5\ town of York, Livingston County, 
^""^ N.Y. His father, Jasher Taylor, 
was of good old English descent, and was 
born in Buckland, Mass. From that beauti- 
ful, quiet New England town on the banks of 
the Deerfield River, whose waters, then un- 
contaminated by the waste of the modern fac- 
tory, reflected the passing cloud or the leafy 
shrub on its shore, Mr. Taylor migrated in 
1827 to Covington, Wyoming County, N.Y. 



Although the pioneer work of clearing the 
forest, making roads, an9 erecting buildings 
had already been accomplished, still Mr. 
Taylor found there was plenty to do in per- 
fecting the farm of eighty-five acres which he 
bought, and getting his land under good culti- 
vation. The life of an ambitious farmer is 
always a busy one and full of activity, and 
Mr. Taylor's was no exception to the rule. 
He died at the age of seventy-two years, leav- 
ing a record of honest and honorable endeavor, 
which, although perhaps not showing brilliant 
achievements, shows much useful service, well 
rendered and worthy of emulation. 

Mr. Jasher Taylor's wife was before her 
marriage Betsey Bryant. Her lineage is un- 
known to the present writer, but the opinion 
may be hazarded that she was a descendant of 
Stephen Br\ant. They had seven children — 
Asenath, Eliza, William, Henry (deceased), 
Rufus K., Charles, and Mary. All are still 
living except two, and three have homes 
in the vicinity of Covington, William and 
Rufus residing not far from the old place, 
in the next county and the next town of 
York. 

Rufus K. Taylor was born in Covington, 
May 4, 1838, and was educated in the district 
schools of Wyoming County. Upon leaving 
school he chose the occupation of farming, 
and has since continued to follow agricultural 
pursuits. After living for eighteen years 
with his brother William on the home farm, 
which they cultivated together, in 1874 Mr. 
Taylor bought the old A. Stewart place in 
South West York. 

In 1883 Mr. Rufus K. Taylor married Julia 
Miller; and their home is brightened by the 
presence of two children who have been born 
to them, both daughters, Mabel and Mary. 
Although Mr. Taylor lived in his early man- 
hood through the stirring events of the war 
times, he did not enter in active service him- 
self, but paid for a substitute. 

Mr. Taylor has always been a strong advo- 
cate of the Republican principles in politics, 
and has always voted the Republican ticket. 
He was fortunate enough to reach manhood 
and obtain the right to vote when one of the 
nation's greatest leaders was nominated to the 



400 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Presidency, and his first vote was cast for 
Abraham Lincoln in i860. 



/ 2) ROVE BARNUM, a popular musician 
\ ST of Wyoming County, New York, who 
^ — resides upon his farm near the vil- 
lage of Cowlesville, in the town of Benning- 
ton, was born at Alden, Erie County, July 4, 
1847. His father, Salmatious P. Barnum, a 
native of Vermont, was born in 181 5. His 
paternal grandfather was the Rev. Luther 
Barnum, a Methodist preacher, who'carrrg' 
wiTh'his ox team from Vermont, and settled 
in the woods at Sheldon as a pioneer, about 
the year 1820. He was an itinerant much of 
his life, and also a manufacturer of potash. 
The maiden name of his wife was Dorcas Pat- 
ten; and they reared two sons — Salmatious 
and Chamberlain Barnum, both now deceased. 
The Rev. Luther Barnum survived his wife, 
and died at about the age of sixty years. 
Their graves are in the burial-ground at 
Cowlesville. 

Salmatious P. Barnum was a merchant in 
Cowlesville for some twenty years previous to 
the Civil War; but during that eventful 
period he settled upon a hundred-acre farm, 
where he resided the remainder of his life. 
He was a thorough musician, and organized 
the band of which he was leader and director 
for many years, his son, the subject of this 
sketch, assuming that position after his 
father's death. This band is composed 
mostly of stringed instruments, and is more 
properly an orchestra of eight pieces. In 
1845 Mr. Barnum married Odell Rathburn, a 
native of Onondaga County ; and they reared 
two sons and one daughter. Grove, the subject 
of this sketch, being the eldest son. Ida Bar- 
num, his only sister, was a very talented 
artist, who made a specialty of portrait paint- 
ing, at which she was remarkably proficient, 
having executed a very praiseworthy effort in 
that line at the age of seven years. She died 
at the age of thirty-nine, deeply mourned by 
all who knew her. 

Grove Barnum received a common-school 
education, and also attended Bryant & Strat- 
ton's College at Buffalo. He resided at 



home, assisting in the farm duties until his 
first marriage, which occurred October 19, 
1 87 1, to Maria Fulton, of Alexander, Gen- 
esee County, a teacher, and a daughter of 
Charles Fulton. Mrs. Maria Fulton Barnum 
died at Cowlesville in 1881, at the age of 
thirty-two, leaving two sons and one daugh- 
ter. Pliny, the elder son, an assistant teller 
of the Third National Bank at Syracuse, has 
a wife and one daughter. The other son, 
Charles, is now a young man, aged nineteen 
years, res'iding at home. His sister. May Bar- 
num, an interesting and bright young lady, 
also resides at home. Mr. Barnum was mar- 
ried the second time in 1885 to Miss Kate 
Goldburg, of Sardinia, Erie County, by whom 
he has three living children — Florence, aged 
eight years; Grove, a lively boy of six; and an 
infant son. They have lost two children, one 
aged four years and the other eighteen months. 
Mr. Barnum in politics is a Democrat, and 
has rendered some public service. He was 
Supervisor three terms, and was defeated for 
the Assembly by his friend, Vangorder. He 
is now State Inspector in Agriculture. Mr. 
Barnum is not a member of any church, but 
supports the different religious denomina- 
tions. He is recognized through this section 
as a skilful musician and band leader. As 
people say hereabouts, "Everybody knows 
Grove Barnum, and everybody likes him." 



highly es- 



Tt^OBERT RAE, M.D., 
I ^-^ teemed physician and prominent citi- 
_|_t)\ zen in Portageville, N.Y. , was born 

in Scotland, December 10, 1835. 
His father, Thomas Rae, was a native of that 
country, as was also his grandfather, who bore 
the same name of Thomas, and who followed 
farming, cultivating the soil, and providing in 
this way for a large family of children. 
Thomas, Jr., was the second son of his par- 
ents, and was brought up to his father's occu- 
pation, remaining at home in his early years, 
while he attended the parish school and 
learned methods of farm work. In 1852 he 
journeyed to Canada, and was employed for 
several years as contractor on the railroad be- 
tween Montreal and Ottawa, as one of the firm 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



401 



of Sykes, Deberg & Co. After closing his 
engagement there, he returned to Scotland, 
and lived in retirement until 1861, in which 
year he again set sail for this country, and on 
his arrival came to Portageville, where he 
spent the rest of his life, his age being fifty- 
six at the time of his decease. The wife of 
Thomas Rae was before her marriage Miss 
Mina Grey. She was a native of Scotland, 
and the only one of a family of three children 
who came over to this country. Her father 
was a native of Scotland, and never left the 
land of his birth. The children of Thomas 
and Mina Rae were nine in number, four of 
whom are still living — Robert; Mary, mar- 
ried to the Rev. Dr. Allison, a missionary in 
Africa; Jane, Mrs. Price, of Michigan; and 
Anna, not married, living in Michigan. Mrs. 
Rae lived to the age of fifty-tw-o. She w-as 
a member of the Presbyterian church, and 
spent her last days with her son in Portage- 
ville. 

Robert Rae lived in Dumfriesshire, Scot- 
land, till he was twenty years of age, in boy- 
hood attending the parish school, and later the 
school know-n as Wallace Hall. He began his 
professional studies at the Edinburgh Medical 
College, and continued them in the University 
of Medicine in the city of New York, which 
he entered in 1S58. After graduation he en- 
gaged at once in the active practice of his pro- 
fession. Shortly after the beginning of the 
w^ar, in 1862, he enlisted in the P'irst New 
York Regiment of Dragoons; and during the 
campaign he was promoted to the office of 
Major. On June 11, 1864, he was made pris- 
oner at Trevilian, Va. , and was held for some 
time in confinement in various places, spend- 
ing seven months in the prison at Charleston, 
S. C. His term of .service ended in July, 
1865. In all the chief engagements his regi- 
ment was prominent, and stood high in the 
estimation of the Military Department at 
Washington for courage and discipline. 

At the close of the war Dr. Rae resumed 
the practice of his profession, coming to this 
neighborhood and establishing himself with 
good success, and rising to the ofifice of Presi- 
dent of the Medical Association, being also 
a member of the Countv Association, besides 



which he has held many minor offices in the 
county. Dr. Rae married Miss Jane Porteous 
Herkness, a daughter of James Herkness, a 
merchant of Canada. Mrs. Rae was born in 
Scotland. Her father was a native of Canada. 
Dr. and Mrs. Rae have one child, Mary L. 
Rae. In politics the Doctor is a Republican. 
He has been County Coroner, Pension Sur- 
geon, and Examiner, holding these offices sev- 
eral years; and as a man of ability and distinc- 
tion in his profession, and as an upright and 
loyal citizen. Dr. Rae is a valuable member 
of the communit\' in which he lives. 




<^:Yi^ lARTIN LINDSEY, a prosperous 
farmer, whose well-tilled acres lie 
in District No. 9, town of Attica, 
N.Y. , is a native of Warren 
County, where his birth occurred March 3, 
1 82 1. His father, Kiliab Lindsey, who was 
born in the same tow-n, April 30, 1786, was 
a son of Archibald, also a nativ-e of that local- 
ity. Archibald Lindsey was a Revolutionary 
soldier, and died about 1837, at the age of 
ninety-one. He was thrice married, his first 
wife, grandmother of Martin Lindsey of this 
notice, bearing him nine children, five sons 
and four daughters, all of whom arrived at 
maturity and became the heads of as many 
respective households. 

Kiliab Lindsey, on attaining his majority, 
selected a wife in Miss Eleanor Loop, of War- 
ren County. Their marriage occurred January 
15, 1807, the bride being a year younger than 
her husband, April 20, 1787, having been the 
day of her birth. Sixteen years after, in the 
fall of 1823, in company with two other fami- 
lies, they moved to the town of Attica, Wyo- 
ming County, making the journey through the 
woods with horses. The country was wild, 
and deer and other game were plentiful. On 
arriving in Attica, Mr. Lindsey invested in 
si.xty acres of "articled " land, and later added 
fifty more. The improvements on the land 
were few, consisting chiefly of a small clearing 
and a log house and barns. But Mr. Lindsey 
was an energetic man, and well acquainted 
with farm work ; and it was not long before 
the results of his industry were apparent in the 



402 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



changed aspect of the place and the home com- 
forts by which they were gradually surrounded. 
p'our years after arriving in Attica Mr. Lind- 
sey's father, Archibald Lindsey, came to re- 
side with them, and here passed the remainder 
of his days. The new homestead witnessed 
the growth of a large family; for twelve chil- 
dren came to Mr. and Mrs. Lindsey, two of 
whom, however, died in infancy. The other 
ten all reached manhood and womanhood, and 
had families of their own, si.\ of them being 
still alive. The living are as f(dlovvs: Lois, 
wife of William Walbridge, a farmer of At- 
tica; Martin, the subject of this sketch; Will- 
iam R., a farmer near Attica; Eleanor, wife 
of J. P. Washburn, a farmer of Attica; Al- 
mira, who married Lorenzo Burlingame, and 
resides in Holland, Erie County, N.Y. ; and 
C. V. Lindsey, a farmer living in the neigh- 
borhood of his brother Martin. The father 
of these children died in 1S76, at the age of 
eight)'-nine. 

Martin Lindsey was brought up on his 
father's farm, and early became accustomed to 
agricultural work. He acquired a district- 
school education, and on January 31, 1844, 
was married to Miss Lovina Smith, of Attica. 
Mrs. Lindsey's parents were Henry and Lydia 
(Whaley) Smith, the former of whom was 
born in Otsego County, and the latter in Mar- 
cellus, Onondaga County. Mr. Smith came 
to Attica in 18 14, a youth of thirteen years, 
with his parents, Isaac and Hannah (Hawley) 
Smith. Mrs. Lindsey was the eldest of their 
fourteen children, the family consisting of 
five sons and nine daughters. Six of these 
brothers and sisters besides Mrs. Lindsey are 
now living in Wyoming County. Mrs. Lind- 
sey is a lady of well -cultivated mind, having 
received her education in the Attica Semi- 
nary, and having taught school some five terms 
before her marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Lindsey 
have been called to mourn the loss of two chil- 
dren — one a son, who died in infancy; the 
other a daughter, Mary, who was the widow of 
George Matteson. She died in 1882, leaving 
one daughter, Minnie, who resides with her 
grandparents. The living children are: 
Lydia, wife of Franklin J. Eastman, a neigh- 
boring farmer; and John O. , who married 



Zemira Spink, and is also engaged in farming 
in this vicinity. 

Mr. Martin Lindsey has a fine, productive 
farm of one hundred and thirty-five acres, of 
which he purchased seventy-three acres in 
1846 and fifty-two acres in 1865. He built 
both the dwellings and the barns. He is 
engaged in general farming, keeping eighteen 
cows, and taking the milk to the factory. He 
is one of the leading farmers of the county, 
and the most of his present property has been 
acquired by the united industry of himself and 
his faithful wife. They are now enjoying the 
fruits of their labors, are still active and 
strong, and may be fairly described as "youth- 
ful old folks." Mr. Lindsey is a Republican, 
but has not figured much as an office-holder, 
with the exception of serving about three years 
as Assessor. 




RI S. JENKS, an industrious farmer of 
Lima, Livingston County, N.Y., was 
born in Smithfield, R. I., July 20, 
1822. The Jenks family, or Jenckes, as 
spelled by some of its branches, has been 
prominent from Colonial times in "Rhode 
Island and Providence Plantations." In i66g 
one Joseph Jenckes had a grant of land at 
Warwick, R.I., for a saw-mill. His son 
Joseph in 1720 was appointed agent for the 
colony in London, and after that he held vari- 
ous important offices, being Governor of the 
colony six years. About the middle of last 
century several of the name were living in 
Smithfield, which was incorporated in 1730. 
The roll of the "Smithfield Grenadiers," a 
military company chartered in 1791, included 
Nicholas, George, David, and Daniel, and 
Second Lieutenant John Jenckes, Jr. ; while the 
Library Association, formed in 1797, included 
Adam, William, Joshua, and Nicholas Jenckes. 
Members of the Jenks family were among 
the leaders in developing the manufacturing 
industries in that part of the State, Stephen 
Jenks being in 1806 the principal owner of 
the water-power at Central Falls, where a mill 
was built in 1824 by David and George Jenks. 
Stephen Jenks in 181 1 held a government con- 
tract to manufacture ten thousand muskets at 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



403 



eleven dollars and a half each. Stephen Jenks 
was the grandfather of Eri, the subject of the 
present sketch. He died in Rhode Island at 
the age of ninety-four. 

David Jenks, son of Stephen Jenks and his 
wife Ruth, was, of course, a native of Rhode 
Island. He there received his education, and, 
having grown to manhood, was there engaged 
in business for a number of years. In 1812, 
while the last war with England was in prog- 
ress, he was associated with his father and 
brother in the manufacture of muskets. Later 
on he became a cotton manufacturer, and was 
thus employed until 1829, when he went to 
Wrentham, Norfolk County, Mass., and bought 
a farm. His wife was Clarissa Ballon, and 
they spent the rest of their lives on this farm. 
Their children were Nelson, Eri S. , David, 
Henry, and Darius. The last-named died 
February 9, 1894. Henry Jenks lives in 
Franklin, Mass. 

Eri S. Jenks was educated in the common 
and high schools near his home, in what was 
then Rhode Island, now Massachusetts, after 
which he served six years as a clerk. In 1842 
he came to Lima, N. Y., and bought a farm of 
a hundred and seventy-five acres, where he has 
ev^er since resided. He married Elizabeth 
Egert, and they had si.\ children — Frances E. , 
George Stephen, Hannah Duffield, Mary Eliza, 
Eri N. , and Edward C. Jenks. Frances Jenks 
married J. P. Very, and has one son, Samuel 
S. T. Very. George Jenks married Nettie 
McLauren, and has one child, Flora Jenks. 
Hannah Jenks married George Sterling, and 
has one boy, Roy Sterling. Mary Jenks mar- 
ried Charles Egert, and has no children. Eri 
N. Jenks married Amelia Kinney, and has five 
children, four sons and one daughter — Ed- 
ward, Mary, Willie, Herbert, and Freddie. 

Mr. Eri S. Jenks is a supporter of the 
Presbyterian church, which he helped to build. 
Such men are an honor to their day and gener- 
ation. As was said by the great preacher, Dr. 
Hooker, "By the knowledge of truth and exer- 
cise of virtue, man, among the creatures of 
this world, aspireth to the greatest conformity 
with God." In politics Mr. Jenks has always 
been a Democrat, having cast his first vote 
for James K. Polk, of Tennessee, in 1844. 




BEL CLIFTON BARRON, a success- 
ful business man of Livingston 
County, is a well-known contractor, 
and is also the owner of a large 
landed estate. He proudly claims Livingston 
as the county of his birth, which occurred on 
the farm where he now resides, June 17, 1847, 
being a son of Abel Barron, who was born in 
Bellows Falls, Vt., in iSoi. 

His grandfather, Jonathan I^arrmi, was for 
many years a resident of Vermont, and in 1823 
emigrated to this State with his family, mak- 
ing the entire journey with ox teams. He 
was a man of property, and, after making his 
first purchase of land in the southern part of 
Mount Morris, bought a still larger tract of 
land in the town of Nunda. 

Abel Barron was a young man of twent\-two 
years when he came with his parents to this 
county. His father assisted him in the pur- 
chase of eighty acres of land bordering on the 
Creek Road, extending from Mount Morris to 
Nunda. In the small clearing that had been 
already made on the place stood a frame house 
which had formerly been used as a tavern. 
After settling there Mr. Barron began the 
work of clearing the land and tilling the soil, 
and ere his death had a valuable and well-cul- 
tivated farm, on which the improvements 
ranked with the best in the vicinity. He 
married Margaret Norton, a native of Hawley, 
N. Y., who was of New England ancestry, her 
parents, Daniel and Catherine (Burlew) Nor- 
ton, having been of Connecticut birth. They 
were pioneers of Mount Morris, where Mr. 
Norton reclaimed a farm from the wilderness, 
and there passed the declining years of his 
life. His widow, the mother of our subject, 
now makes her home with her daughter, Mrs. 
Catherine Reed. Four children were born to 
Mr. and Mrs. Abel Barron. Harriet L. Bar- 
ron married Michael Dowling, of Nunda. A. 
Clifton is the subject of this brief sketch. 
Thornton M. resides in Mount Morris. Cath- 
erine A. is the wife of Herbert Reed. 

A. Clifton Barron first pursued the j)ath of 
knowledge in the district school of his native 
town, and at the age of seventeen years began 
teaching, continuing his pedagogical career 
three years, his last year being spent as an 



404 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



instructor in the Weston Military Institute at 
Weston, near Norwalk, Conn. Mr. Barron 
then matriculated at Cornell University, en- 
tering with the class of 1869, and remaining 
as a student of that institution three years. 
The following year he resumed his position as 
a teacher in the Military Institute, going 
thence to the Rocky Mountains as a book- 
keeper for a firm of contractors on the Union 
Pacific Railway. It was there that Mr. Bar- 
ron obtained his first insight into his present 
business ; and he soon after became a contrac- 
tor on his own account, continuing this busi- 
ness until the present time, his ability fitting 
him for his position; and his operations ex- 
tend over a large territory, included in many 
different States. Succeeding his father in the 
ownership of the old homestead property, Mr. 
Barron has added to its acreage, so that it now 
contains three hundred acres. He has im- 
proved the buildings and grounds, thus adding 
much to their beauty, and has now one of the 
finest country seats in Livingston County. 

On November 11, 1889, Mr. Barron was 
united in marriage with Harriet Jeanette Row- 
land, who was born in Southport, Conn. Her 
paternal grandfather, Samuel Rowland, was an 
extensive farmer of Weston, Fairfield County, 
Conn., where he spent the entire period of his 
life. He was twice married, the maiden 
name of his first wife being Rachel Coley. 
After her death he married Harriet Sherwood, 
who bore him one son, Samuel S. Rowland, 
the father of Mrs. Barron. Samuel S. inher- 
ited his father's estate, and was for many 
years engaged in general farming. He was an 
enterprising and able business man, and at one 
time was one of the Directors of the Union 
Pacific Railway Company. The later years of 
his life were passed in retirement at South- 
port, Conn., where he died in 1885. Mr. 
Rowland married lunily Colethorpe, a native 
of Southpt)rt, and the daughter of W'alter and 
Hattie (Sherwood) Colethorpe. She was an 
accomplished woman, having received her edu- 
cation at the Holyoke Seminary, from which 
she was graduated in her twentieth year. She 
bore her husband five children — Harriet J., 
Kdith S., Henry L. , Herbert S., and Mary E. 
The two elder daughters were educated at 



Abbott Academy, at Andover, Mass. ; Henry, 
at Yale College; Herbert, at Professor Yates's 
school, in Saratoga; and Mary, in New Haven. 




AYXE J. WOODRUFF belongs to 
a well-known, influential, and es- 
teemed pioneer family of Living- 
ston County, its progenitor, Solomon Wood- 
ruff, from Connecticut, having settled in 
Livonia more than one hundred years ago. 
(For ancestral history see sketch of Buell D. 
Woodruff.) The subject of this biographical 
notice was born in Livonia on the 29th of 
March, 1824. He was educated in the dis- 
trict schools and academy, after which he 
taught school three terms; namely, two terms 
in the adjoining town of Conesus, and one at 
Canadice, Ontario County. Since that time 
he has been a farmer and stockdealer. Mr. 
Woodruff first bought a farm in Conesus, 
which he cultivated for ten years. Selling 
the property at the expiration of that period, 
he returned to Livonia, where he purchased 
the Augustus Gibbs place, upon which he has 
ever since resided. He married Miss Calista 
Chapin, and is the father by that union of two 
children — Fred and Charles. F'red married 
Josie Devenger. They have" five children, 
and live in Livonia. Charles married Miss 
Helen Kellogg, of Rochester, and they have 
two children. Mr. W'oodruff's first wife died, 
and he formed a second marriage with Miss 
Mary Sherwood. Their one daughter, Ger- 
trude, is the wife of Mr. F.. C. Brainard, for- 
merly of Iowa, now living in L'tah. For nine 
years Mr. Wayne J. Woodruff served efficiently 
as Justice of the Peace in Conesus. Beth he 
and his wife are members of the Presbyterian 
church. His first vote was cast for Zachary 
Tavlor in 1848. He has been a loyal adherent 
of the Republican jiarty since its formation. 




FITCH DENTON, of Genesee Falls, 
Wyoming County, now residing on the 
old Bigelow farm, was born in Can- 
andaigua, Ontario County, N.Y., February 
17, 1847. His father, Ezra F. Denton, was 
born February 14, 18 16, and was a native of 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



405 



Goshen, Orange County, where his grand- 
father, Nehemiah, was a resident, belonging to 
the agricultural class. 

Ezra F. Denton was but six weeks old when 
his father died; and the boy thus early left 
fatherless remained with his mother till the 
age of eight years, when he was placed in the 
care of a neighbor. In his new home he was 
expected to make himself useful, but was 
allowed to attend school until the age of 
sixteen, at which time he began to learn the 
carpenter's trade. This he followed for thirty- 
five years, varying it or combining it with 
farming a part of the time. After remaining 
ten years in Canandaigua, where he was mar- 
ried, he removed to Allegany County, where 
he stayed two years. Leaving his family 
there, he went to Illinois, and worked at his 
trade for two years. Returning at the end of 
that time, he then took his family to Oil 
City, Venango County, Pa., remaining there 
ten years. In 1881 he came to the town of 
Genesee Falls, Wyoming County, N.Y., 
and settled in the village of Silver Springs, 
where he is now living retired from active 
life. His wife, Polly R. Fitch, was born 
March 16, 1826, daughter of Joshua Fitch, 
a native of Ontario County. Their one child 
is Ezra Fitch Denton, the special subject of 
this sketch. 

E. Fitch Denton spent his early years with 
his father in Oil City on the Alleghany River, 
Pennsylvania. He attended the schools of 
that place, and when old enough learned his 
father's trade of carpenter, being associated 
with his father in that business and also that 
of farming after the removal of the family to 
Genesee Falls and until his father retired. 
He now carries on successfully two farms, 
aggregating two hundred and ninety-seven 
acres of land, which is in a good state of cul- 
tivation, and is very productive. 

In 1 88 1 Mr. Denton was married to Miss 
Lillian B. Bigelow, born April 15, 1861, 
daughter of Anson Bigelow, a native of Mas- 
sachusetts. Mr. Bigelow was born August 
II, 1792, and at the age of eight years was 
brought by his parents to Montgomery County, 
New York, where he remained until his mar- 
riage to Miss Marian M. Leggett. He came 



to Wyoming County in 1817, and settled on 
the farm now occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Den- 
ton, and here remained until his death, Sep- 
tember II, 1879, at the age of eighty-seven 
years. He was twice married, having five 
children by his first wife, Marian. His second 
marriage, to Olive E. Royce, the mother of 
Mrs. Denton, occurred July 6, 1859. Mrs. 
Olive E. Bigelow was born in Darien, Gen- 
esee County, N.Y., May 4, 1826, and now 
lives with Mr. and Mrs. Denton. Mr. and 
Mrs. E. Fitch Denton have three children; 
namely, Harold A., Ruhama, and Lois E. 
Mrs. Denton's father was one of the original 
founders of the Baptist church of Castile, 
N.Y. Mrs. Denton is a member of the Free 
Will Baptist church in Pike. 

Mr. Denton is a Republican in politics, 
and is a man who takes a keen interest in 
questions of good government, both local and 
national. He possesses a large share of the 
success-compelling qualities of perseverance 
and industry, for which he finds ample scope 
in the management of his farms and other 
business interests. He and his family are 
among the most respected residents of Genesee 
Falls. 



"inx WIGHT C. WELLER, a native of 
I ^=i Livingston County, New York, was 

|}9^ born July 20, 1826. His paternal 

grandfather, Enoch Weller, went 
from Massachusetts to New York before the 
War of 181 2, but returning to the old Bay 
State remained there until after the close of 
the war. In 181 5 he collected his household 
effects, and moved his wife and children to 
York, Livingston County, and built a frame 
house, which is still standing. There he 
passed the remainder of his life. His wife 
was Rhoda Cadwell. She was of Scotch de- 
scent, and survived her husband some years. 
Their son. Perry D., was born in Berkshire 
County, Massachusetts, where he received his 
education, and as soon as able assisted in the 
work on the Livingston County farm, of 
which he became entire owner by purchasing 
the interests of the other heirs after his 
father's death. The homestead consisted of 



4o6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



fifty acres; and, as he liad previously bought 
a tract of the same extent, he thus became the 
owner of one hundred acres. At that time 
Rochester was the market to which all farm 
produce was taken and from which provisions 
were obtained, and thither the lumber was 
drifted down by rafts. 

Perrv D. Weller was twice marrieil, his 
first wife being Miss Delia Crosby, of York, 
who became the mother of four children — 
Dwight C, Nancy, Addison, and Eliza. The 
second Mrs. Weller was Melinda Coif. 
There were three children of this marriage, 
two of whom are living — Henry and Ellen. 
Mr. Weller died on the old homestead in the 
fifty-fifth year of his age. 

IJwight C. Weller, who represents the third 
generation of the Weller family in this local- 
ity, vvas educated in the district schools of 
York, and has always been a farmer. In 1861 
he married Miss Electa Lindsley, a daughter 
of Solomon Lindsley, of Lakeville. Of the 
three children born to this union, but one is 
now living. Willie and Ella died young, the 
latter when a maiden of fourteen years. The 
surviving son, Charles, resides at the old 
home, which was the birthplace of his father, 
and manages the farm. He married Miss Ida 
Dimmick, of Dansville, and has a family of 
four children — Don, Huylar, Mary, and Nel- 
lie. These children are the fifth generation 
of the old and honored name of Weller who 
have lived here, setting a worthy example of 
steadfast thrift and honest worth. 

The present residence of Mr. and Mrs. 
Weller, which adjoins the old place, was 
built by Mr. Weller in 1883. Both he and 
his wife are members of the York Centre Bap- 
tist church, and in his political faith he is a 
Republican. 



'OSIAH C. SHORT, a prosperous agri- 
culturist of Livingston County, New 
York, residing at Hemlock Lake, in 
the town of Livonia, was born in Rich- 
mond, Ontario County, February 8, 1825. 
His ])aternal grandfather, Manasseh Short, 
was a native of Rehoboth, Bristol County, 
Mass. ; and the farm upon which he lived and 



died is still in the possession of the family, 
who have heUl this estate for seven gen- 
erations. 

The father of Mr. Josiah C. Short, who also 
bore the name of Josiah, came in 1S22 to On- 
tario County, New York, where he located a 
farm, and returned to Massachusetts on foot. 
Two years later he came back to Ontario 
County with his young wife and their earthly 
possessions. The journey was made in a 
wagon, and occupied ten days. This farm in 
Richmond was sold by him in 1832; and one 
was bought in Livonia, a border town in the 
adjoining county of Livingston, to which place 
he and his family moved. A frame house was 
erected at the time of the purchase, in which 
the last days of his life were spent. He died 
here at the age of seventy-four years. His 
wife before her marriage was Miss Sarah P. 
Carpenter, of Bristol County, Massachusetts. 
They reared six children, all of whom are liv- 
ing with the exception of one daughter. Mar)-. 
The order of their birth is as follows: Josiah 
C, Orren L., S. T., Anna, Mary, and Lu- 
rana N. 

Josiah C, tlie first-born and tlie original of 
this pen sketch, was educated in the district 
schools, which afforded a good plain education 
to those who were able and willing to study 
intelligently, and at the age of twenty-one 
began to work on a neighboring farm by the 
month. There is a due need of praise ac- 
corded to honest practical effort that does not 
disdain small beginnings and works on 
through the discouragements of apparently 
small returns. This commendation belongs 
justly to Mr. Short, who from a young farm 
laborer has risen to his present place among 
the landed proprietors of his county. In 
185s he bought the farm on which he now re- 
sides, and is the owner of three hundred and 
twenty broad acres of fertile land in Living- 
ston Countv, besides a farm in Cass Countv, 
Michigan. 

Josiah C. Short married Miss Esther E. 
Weller, the daughter of Henry Weller, of 
Pittsfield, Mass.; and the farm upon which he 
now' lives was once the property of his father- 
in-law, who settled upon it in 1S09. The 
old log house which he built here in the early 




JOSIAH C. SHORT. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



409 



years of the century was located near a grand 
old elm-tree, that was associated with the 
Colonial history, and whose historic branches 
cast grateful shadows about the door of the 
humble abode of the newly arrived inhabi- 
tants. To Mr. and Mrs. Short three children 
were born — Amelia E., Weller J., and Mary. 
Weller married Miss Silva McCrossen, and 
lives on his father's farm in Michigan. He 
has one child, Ruth. Mary married J. D. 
Sullivan. They live at Livonia Station, and 
have two children — Gilbert and Mary. 

Mr. Short has not neglected that first duty 
of citizenship, the exercise of the franchise in 
behalf of good government, and is interested 
in the vital'political issues of the times. His 
first Presidential vote was cast in 1848 for the 
hero of Buena Vista, Zachary Taylor; but 
from 1856 he has been a member of the party 
which in that year nominated John C. Fre- 
mont for the Presidency, the Republican. 

A portrait of this worthy rural New Yorker 
of New England ancestry graces another page 
of the "Review," adding unquestionably to 
the interest and value of the foregoing record. 



-OEL \V. BRISTOL, dealer in general 
merchandise at Gainesville, was born 
in that town, December 2, 1835. His 
grandfather, William Bristol, whose 
parents came to this State from Connecticut, 
was born in Canaan, Columbia County. In 
1805, while in the employ of the Holland 
Purchase Company, he located about fifteen 
hundred acres of land, and built a log house 
near the site now occupied by the store of his 
grandson. As the settlement grew, he i)re- 
sented the town with the land for cemetery, 
churches, and school-house sites. He was the 
first Supervisor, one of the first School Com- 
missioners, and in 1823 the representative of 
his district in the State Assembly, being a 
very prominent leader in his day. His wife, 
who before her marriage was Martha .Stevens, 
became the mother of a large family, of whom 
but two are now living — Benjamin ¥. ; and 
William, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere 
in this work. 

Benjamin F. Bristol, father of Joel W. , was 



born June 11, 181 1. His present residence, 
overlooking the beautiful valley of Gainesville, 
stands out with pleasant prominence against the 
rolling background of green and fertile farm 
lands. From the piazza he can look upon the 
house where his grandfather lived and died; 
while just beyond is the home of his childhood, 
where lived his father for more than half of a 
century. I'rom pioneer stock of Puritan com- 
position and characteristics he has by a vigor- 
ous, busy, and most honorable life fulfilled 
the promise of his inheritance. Well equipped 
with undoubted patriotism and sound educa- 
tional requirements, he entered the political 
arena, being an earnest advocate of the princi- 
ples of the Republican party. 

He early took a warm interest in local gov- 
ernment, and his town and county have hon- 
ored him and shown their appreciation of his 
worth by choosing him to many ofifices of trust 
and importance, among them the following: 
Supervisor, Constable, Highway Commis- 
sioner, Railroad Commissioner; and, although 
a Whig in a Democratic town, he was the first 
no-license candidate ever elected Justice of the 
Peace, which office he held for twenty-four 
years. He was also Supervisor of the Poor for 
the County of Wyoming twenty-eight years, 
his sensible views and sound judgment giving 
the most satisfactory results to both the people 
and the dependents. While attending a State 
convention, he introduced the resolution for 
the removal of children from county houses 
throughout the State, which was met with 
approval. He still resides on the old farm in 
Gainesville, now at the advanced age of 
eighty-four years, a well-preserved and active- 
brained old gentleman ; and around him, or 
near by, live his sons and grandchildren, all of 
whom do him honor. Mr. and Mrs. B. F. 
Bristol are both members of the Congrega- 
tional church, and for many years have taken a 
very prominent part in promoting its prosper- 
ity and usefulness. He married Margaret A. 
Davis, daughter of Joel Davis, a native of 
Preble, Onondaga County, N.Y. None in the 
community are more respected than "Uncle 
Ben" — as he is familiarly called — and his 
estimable wife. To Benjamin F. Bristol and 
his wife were born six children — Joel W. ; 



4IO 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



James, a prominent citizen of the town; Cory- 
don D. , deceased ; Theodore, deceased ; Mar- 
tin F. , at present residing at Rochester; and 
Benjamin F., Jr., who remains with the aged 
couple on the old homestead. 

Joel \V. Bristol received his education in 
the district and select schools of Gainesville, 
and at an early age began the mercantile busi- 
ness by entering the store of A. B. Webster at 
Warsaw, where he remained two years. He 
then engaged with Mr. Brownell at East 
Gainesville, with whom he remained two years 
more, and in 1859 went to Minnesota. Upon 
his return East he commenced business on his 
own account, moving in 1866 into the store 
which he now occupies. In 1888 he took in 
partnership Fred M., his eldest .son, a bright 
and capable young man. They have a very 
large and prosperous business ; and the firm of 
J. W. Bristol & Son stands as one of the most 
reliable in the county. Mr. Bristol, like his 
father, is a Republican in politics. He was 
for eighteen years Postmaster, having been 
appointed by Montgomery Blair, First Assist- 
ant Postmaster General under Lincoln's ad- 
ministration, and continuing in the office until 
1882. He was Town Clerk for several years, 
was elected Supervisor in 1894 for two years, 
and has for fifteen years been Notary Public. 
He has been a member of the Republican 
County Committee several years, and is also 
one of the Congressional Committee for the 
Thirty-first District. He is Secretary and 
chairmaa of the Gainesville Salt Company, 
has been Secretary and Trustee of Maple Grove 
Cemetery since its incorporation, and has 
always been a most earnest worker for every- 
thing which had for its object the general 
advancement of his town, the interests of 
education, and the aid of his fellow-men. Mr. 
Bristol was for many years a School Trustee, 
and, while in office, was mainly instrumental 
in having the school changed to a union 
school. He was also chairman of the Execu- 
tive Committee which secured Regents' super- 
vision for the school, the State Board of 
Regents later conferring upon him the honor 
of being Regents' Plxaminer for the school. 

On May II, 1864, Mr. Bristol was united 
in marriage to Mary E. Merrill, daughter of 



Cyrus Merrill, a merchant of Perry. They 
then moved into the house which they now 
occupy, having improved and beautified their 
home as time has blessed them with prosper- 
ity. Of this union four children were born — 
Fred M., in business with his father; Clara 
A. , a graduate of the Geneseo Normal School, 
and now teaching in the high school at War- 
saw; Cyrus W. , who is in the boot and shoe 
business at Gainesville; and Mary E., the 
youngest, who is yet in school. Mr. Bristol 
has a family of which he is and may well be 
proud, and is a worthy descendant of an old 
and honorable ancestry. 




ERNARD HAMSHER OBER- 
DORF, Secretary and Manager of 
Our Home Granula Company and the 
active member of Oberdorf & Ed- 
wards, Insurance and Real Estate Agents, was 
born in the town of Sparta, N.Y., February 
3, 1855. His father, Peter J. Oberdorf, 
was born in the same town; but his grand- 
father, Joseph Oberdorf, was a native of Sun- 
bury, Pa., who settled as a pioneer in the 
early days of Sparta, and cleared up a tract of 
land one mile south of Scottsburg. He fol- 
lowed agricultural pursuits here until he pur- 
chased a farm on what is known as Chestnut 
Ridge, where he died in 185 1, at the age of 
forty-nine years. 

Peter J. Oberdorf, third of si.x children, 
was born November 24, 1828. He passed his 
early days at the homestead of his parents, and 
afterward became an independent farmer, 
occupying and owning several different farms 
in Sparta and West Sparta until i860. At 
the opening of the Rebellion his home was in 
Dansville. Patriotism prompted him to re- 
spond to his country's need, and he enrolled 
as a musician in Company I of the old Thir- 
teenth Regiment of Volunteers. After serv- 
ing three months, the period required by his 
first enlistment, he joined the Twenty-seventh 
New York Infantry in the fall of 1861, and 
served until after the Peninsular campaign in 
1862, when he re-enlisted, this time in the 
Twenty-first New York Cavalry, with which 
he continued until the close of the war. On 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



411 



being mustered out he returned to Dansville. 
Since then he has been a professional musi- 
cian, being well and favorably known as an 
excellent teacher and player. In the spring 
of 1884 Rochester became his home, where, 
active in musical affairs, he is engaged in pro- 
fessional work, being incorporator and Presi- 
dent of the Fifty-fourth Regiment Band and 
ex-President of the Rochester Protective Mu- 
sical Association. 

The maiden name of Mrs. Oberdorf, mother 
of Bernard, was Susannah B. Hamsher, daugh- 
ter of Bernard Hamsher, for whom our sub- 
ject was named. Bernard Hamsher was a 
pioneer of Sparta; and his children were born 
in a log house, which formed his primitive 
dwelling. He was active in religious mat- 
ters, being one of the organizers and first 
officers of St. John's Lutheran Church. Suc- 
cessful in agriculture, he passed his entire 
life upon his farm. Mrs. Oberdorf, the sec- 
ond of six children, and born October 17, 
1828, became the wife of Peter J. Oberdorf 
March 31, 1S53. They reared three out of 
four children born to them — Bernard H. ; 
Ona, who married Robert J. Kelso, of Roch- 
ester, and died July 15, 1893, at the age of 
thirty-five years; and W. S., one of the editors 
and proprietors of the Dansville Advertiser^ 
a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this 
work. Both Mr. and Mrs. P. J. Oberdorf are 
members of the Presbyterian church of Dans- 
ville, with which they united by letter from 
the West Sparta Presl3yterian church in 1861. 
For many years Mr. Oberdorf was leader of 
the choir of this church. 

Bernard H. Oberdorf, the subject of this 
sketch, came to Dansville with his parents at 
the age of six years, where he attended a 
select school and afterward the Dansville 
Seminary. At thirteen he entered the office 
of the Dansville Advertiser as an apprentice, 
where he remained thirteen years. During 
this time not only was the printer's trade 
thoroughly learned, but also considerable ex- 
perience acquired, first as foreman of the 
mechanical department and later at reportorial 
work in the editorial branch of the office. At 
twenty-six his health was so impaired by con- 
stant indoor confinement that for some time 



he was unable to attend to any business; but, 
as soon as health permitted, he undertook in- 
surance as local agent, and later became clerk 
for contractors during the construction of the 
Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad. 
He followed this occupation for some time in 
Dansville and also at Lyons, where he re- 
mained about six months. Then he returned 
to Dansville, and accepted a position with 
Our Home Granula Company, the manufact- 
urers of "granula," a celebrated health food, 
originated by James C. Jackson, the founder 
of the famous Jackson Sanatorium. .Since 
then he has constantly been identified with 
the company, first on salary and afterward as 
one of the partners. Through his untiring 
efforts and progressive ideas the company has 
attained prominence and wide mercantile repu- 
tation. The food called granula is a nutri- 
tious product from wheat. Appreciation of its 
worth and its sales are increasing rapidly over 
an extended territory, which includes almost 
every civilized country. Mr. Oberdorf also 
owns an insurance and real estate business, 
which he conducts under the firm name of 
Oberdorf & Pxlwards, having finely appointed 
offices in the newl)' constructed plant of Our 
Home Granula Company. On January 20, 
1886, he was married to Miss Helen G. 
Grant, daughter of Colonel T. B. Grant, a 
well-known resident and formerly a prominent 
hardware merchant of Dansville, whose family 
occupy a high position in Dansville. A 
sketch of him appears elsewhere in this 
volume. 

Mr. Oberdorf is a member of Phcenix 
Lodge, No. 115, F. & A. M., in which he 
has held various offices and of which he is 
now Treasurer. In Canaseraga Lodge, Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows, No. 123, of 
Dansville, he has held all the principal offices, 
being now a Past Grand. He was an active 
member of Union Hose Company for eleven 
years, serving as Secretary and President, and 
is now an exempt, honorary, and club member 
of that organization. He was a member of 
the Board of Trade, and is connected with 
several social societies, including the Roches- 
ter Whist Club. In politics he is a stanch 
supporter of the Republican party, whose sue- 



412 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



cess he is actively promoting. At tliis time 
he is serving his second year as Trustee of the 
village board. When he was elected, the 
Democratic party in the village was conceded 
a safe majority, and the election of a Repub- 
lican considered difficult. Self-made, capa- 
ble, energetic, shrewd, successful, and un- 
tiring in the interests of those he represents, 
he has acquired a deserved reputation and 
popularity. 




iOLONEL JOHN RORBACH, a prom- 
inent owner of real estate, of Geneseo, 
and before the Rebellion an active 
member of the State militia (being 
Colonel of the Fifty-ninth Regiment at that 
time), was born at Newton, Sussex County, 
N.J., December 8, 1826. His father, Sam- 
uel, was a native of the same town, born Sep- 
tember 25, 1783. His grandfather, George 
Rorbach.was a native of the village of Rohr- 
bach, in the Duchy of Baden, Germany. 

At the age of twelve years George Rorbach 
sailed with his parents for America; but he 
was the only member of the family to reach 
the New World, the others having died dur- 
ing the long passage. He landed at Aniboy, 
N.J., which at that time was a rival of New 
York as a port of entree. Although a poor 
orphan in a strange land, he managed to obtain 
a footing, and learned the trade of a saddler. 
He served in the Revolutionary War, and 
afterward settled in Newton, where he died. 
He married a Miss Fisher, a lady of English 
birth, and by her had eight children. Samuel 
Rorbach succeeded his father in the saddlery 
business, and was a life-long resident of New- 
ton. He was an active and prominent Whig, 
and for many years the party conventions were 
held in his house. He was for twenty-four 
years a Justice of the Peace and Judge of the 
Court of Common Pleas, and died in February, 
185S. He married in 1817 Margaret Morrow, 
of Sparta, N.J., whose parents were born in 
County Antrim, Ireland, and were of Scotch 
ancestry. She was born September 11, 1796, 
her father having been a farmer in .Sparta. 
Their children were as follows: Susan M., 
born December 4, 181 8; Charles P., August 



25, 1820; George M., September 7, 1822; 
Sarah P., August 8, 1824; John, December 
8, 1826; Henrietta, January 10, 1829; Robert 
M., April 23, 1831 ; Emma, January 12, 
1833; and Elizabeth C. , April 29, 1835. 
Emma died aged one year. 

John Rorbach was reared and educated in 
his native town, and in 1843 commenced the 
study of law in the office of David Thompson, 
Esq., at Newton. On January 6, 1848, he 
was admitted to the bar, and began the prac- 
tice of his profession in his native town, which 
he continued until 1850, when he engaged 
with an elder brother in the manufacturing 
business at Newark. There he remained until 
1856, at which time, on account of ill health, 
he was forced to retire after selling his inter- 
est to his brothers. He went to Geneseo, 
where previous to this time he had acquired an 
interest in the hardware business in connection 
with Charles F. Doty, his brother-in-law, but 
took no active part in the enterprise. Imme- 
diately after the breaking out of the Rebellion, 
he was chiefly instrumental in raising a com- 
pany, which he took to Elmira, where it was 
organized and enrolled as Company E, Thirty- 
third Regiment, New York Volunteer Infan- 
try. After the memorable battle of Bull Run, 
at the urgent request of General Wadsworth, 
of Geneseo, who procured Governor Morgan's 
authorization. Colonel Rorbach set about with 
earnest enthusiasm organizing a regiment to 
represent the Genesee valley country ; and his 
efforts were successful, eight hundred men 
being enrolled as the result of his general 
management. 

This regiment was quartered for the time 
at Camp Union, in the village of Geneseo, and 
in February, 1862, was taken to Albany, 
where it was consolidated with some three 
hundred recruits from that city and Troy, and 
became the One Hundred and F"ourth New 
York State Volunteer Infantry. This regi- 
ment was named, in honor of General Wads- 
worth, "The W'adsworth Guards." When the 
regiment was thoroughly organized, Mr. Ror- 
bach was commissioned its Colonel ; and for 
two weeks he had full command of the bar- 
racks at Albany. On the 8th of March, 1862, 
the regiment started for Washington, and was 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



413 



encamped at Kaloramma Heights for three 
weeks; thence it moved to Virginia. Colonel 
Rorbach remained in command until Septem- 
ber, when he was laid low with typhoid fever, 
and was sent from Culpeper to Washington, 
where he lay eight weeks, after which he was 
transferred to his old home in New Jersey. 
His health not being restored after two exten- 
sions of his furlough, he tendered his resigna- 
tion. He was much of an invalid for ten 
years, and, after fully recovering his health, 
devoted his time to the management of his real 
estate and attending to his personal interests, 
besides performing several ofificial duties. 
Soon after his arrival in Geneseo he joined 
the State militia, and was commissioned Cap- 
tain of the Big Tree Artillery, from which he 
was promoted to Colonel of the h'ifty-ninth 
Regiment, New York State Militia. 

In i86g, when a State normal school was 
sought to be established in Geneseo, a larjje 
amount of money was preliminarily required 
by the legislative act, with which to provide a 
suitable location and the necessary buildings 
and equipments. Many opposed the idea on 
that account ; but Colonel Rorbach, seeing the 
advantages to be gained by the village, and as 
a Commissioner appointed therefor by the leg- 
islature, worked diligently toward procuring 
sufficient funds for such purpose, and it was in 
a great measure through his efforts that the 
institution was secured and established. It is 
now the largest normal school in the State, 
and one of the most successful in the United 
States. Colonel Rorbach has always taken an 
active interest in jxilitics from his youth, and, 
when but eighteen years of age, took the stump 
for Henry Clay in 1844. He was a Whig 
until the Republican party was organized, 
since which time he has until within a few 
years most actively supported that party. 

On April 21, 1853, Colonel Rorbach mar- 
ried his first wife, Elizabeth Vance, daughter 
of Charles R. and Sophia (Miller) Vance, of 
Geneseo. She died December 18, 1877. 
Colonel Rorbach has four children b)' this 
marriage — William T., born April 8, 1854; 
Henrietta S., born January 8, 1858; Eliza- 
beth W, born May 30, 1864; and Margaret V., 
born October 8, 1872. He was a second time 



married, but had no issue by that union. The 
Colonel and his family are members of the 
Episcopal church. In 1880 Colonel Rorbach 
resumed the practice of the law, and entered 
into partnership with A. J. and J. B. Abbott, 
with offices in Rochester and Geneseo. He is 
now practising alone. For thirty-seven years 
he has been an active Trustee of the union 
free school and the district school, preceding 
it, at Geneseo, and has but seldom in all that 
time missed a public exercise in the same or 
an opening or closing thereof. Since i860 
Colonel Rorbach has been a Trustee of the 
Wadsworth Eibrary. He was for a number of 
years a Vestryman or a Warden in St. Mi- 
chael's Epi.scopal Church in Geneseo, and 
many times during vacancies in its pa.storate 
acted as Lay Reader. Colonel Rorbach ob- 
tained the act establishing a normal school in 
Geneseo, was a Commissioner to locate and 
construct the same, and has been a Trustee 
ever since. He has filled most of the town and 
village offices, but was never a candidate seek- 
ing any of them. 

Such is a brief outline of the life work of 
one of Geneseo' s most valued citizens. It has 
been a busy one, spent not alone in the for- 
warding of his own private interests, but a 
large portion of it has been passed in rendering 
eminent and valuable service, not only to his 
immediate community, but to the State and 
nation. He is a comrade of A. A. Curtis 
Post, No. 392, Grand Army of the Republic, 
and takes an active interest in all matters per- 
taining to the welfare of his old comrades in 
arms. 




ATTHEW H. KAVANAH, the 
jiresent Postmaster of North Ja\-a, 
Wyoming County, N. Y. , was 
born at Five Corners, in the near 
vicinity of the village in which he now resides, 
July II, 1852. His father, Charles Kavanah, 
was born in County Wexford, Ireland, and 
learned the trade of shoemaking in the city of 
Dublin. The family surname is supposed to 
be of P'rench origin, and in Ireland was first 
known in the fifteenth century. Darby Kava- 
nah, father of Charles, was agent of estates, 



414 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



which he sublet to tenants; and Mr. Matthew 
Kavanah has contracts of his grandfather, dated 
1809, and made in the vicinity of Dublin. 

Charles Kavanah 's wife was Ellen Murphy, 
to whom he was married in Ireland, November 
22, 1837. They arrived in New York City 
on June 19, 1840, and remained there until 
1S46, when the husband visited his beloved 
Erin for si.x months. 0\\ his return to Amer- 
ica he moved his family to Java, where he fol- 
lowed his trade for two years. He then went 
back to New York, but finally settled near 
Java in 1851, ]HHchasing a small farm of 
thirty-five acres at a place known as Eive 
Corners, where the subject of -this sketch 
opened his eyes to the world's light. Here, 
some years later, Charles Kavanah died, 
on Eebruary 6, i860. His widow died in 
North Java, whither she had moved in 1883, 
November 16, 1886, aged seventy years and 
seven months. She was the mother of eleven 
children, of whom those now living are: Mary 
Ann, the wife of John Kerwin, of North Java; 
James, a pro.sperous merchant in Elkhart, 
Ind. ; Thomas, who formerly kept a hotel in 
North Java, and is now engaged in the oil 
trade at Lima, Ohio; Matthew H. ; Charles, a 
blacksmith in North Java; Margaret, a teacher 
in Buffalo; Catherine, the wife of I-'rank 
\\'halen, of Collins, Erie County; and John, a 
broom-corn dealer in Chicago, owning a fine 
property. With two e.xception.s, each of these 
has a family; so there is a large family of 
grandchildren. 

Matthew H., who had a good education, as 
all of the family had, went into the broom 
manufacturing business at twenty years of age, 
and established a factory at Arcade. In 1871 
he went to Iowa in the interest of the manu- 
facture of lime; and eight months later he 
returned to New York, where he became 
a travelling salesman, selling brooms from 
Wellsville. In 1873 he went to Chicago, 
where much of his active life was spent. 
Here he was employed as a buyer, and had the 
territory of Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Kansas, 
and Nebraska under his auspices, and has the 
distinction of being the first salaried buyer of 
broom -corn ever sent out from Chicago. 

In 1878, February 6, he was married to 



Miss Anna Gaffney, of Sheldon. The lady's 
parents, w^ho were both natives of Ireland, 
were married in New York, and came to this 
county in 1850. Her father was a railroad con- 
tractor. Mr. and Mrs. Kavanah began their 
married life on a farm in Java, but five years 
after their marriage moved to Chicago. After 
two years they returnetl to Java; but in 1888 
they .sold their sixty acres of farm, antl made 
a second move to Chicago, where they lived 
until 1890. In this year Mr. Kavanah re- 
turned once more to his native locality, and 
bought out the store, stock, and trade of H. B. 
Rogers, and has since been engaged in general 
merchandise. Three months of each year, 
however, he still devotes to hi.s former occu- 
]iation, buying broom-corn in the West for a 
Chicago firm, John N. Hubbard & Co., in 
which his brother is a partner. 

Mr. Kavanah 's experience and capacity for 
this line of w'ork command a fine salary, and 
the part of the year spent in this wav greatly 
augments his income. Mr. and Mrs. Kavanah 
have lost one child — IClla May, who died July 
4, 1888, aged seven. They have a family of 
si.x bright children, three sons and three 
daughters — Mary Stella, a young girl of fif- 
teen ; Alice, who is remarkably advanced for 
her eleven years ; Anna, aged nine ; Charles, 
who is a year younger; Frank, aged six; and 
Edward, a little irrepressible of two and a half 
years. In religious faith Mr. Kavanah is a 
Roman Catholic, and in political conviction 
he is a loyal Democrat. He is a member of 
the C. M. B. A., of which he is Trustee. 




1I.LI.\:\I A. BRODIE, an influen- 
tial citi/en of Geneseo, agent for 
the estate of William and Herbert 
Wadsworth, also attorney for James S. and 
Craig W. Wadsworth, was born August 9, 
1S41, at Killarcham, Scotland. His paternal 
grandfather, who was a native of that place, 
was for many years proprietor of the \illage 
inn, and therefore a man of considerable noto- 
riety and importance. He raised a large 
family. 

His son William grew to manhood in Kil- 
larcham, where he attended school, and later 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



415 



learned the trade of carpenter and joiner. He 
followed this calling for some time after his 
marriage, and then emigrated to the United 
States, settling in Rochester, N.Y. , and there 
continued to labor at his trade for many years, 
leading an exemj)lary life. About three years 
])revious to his decease he came to (leneseo to 
reside at the home of his son, William A., the 
subject of this sketch, where he died at the 
age of seventy-two. His wife, Mary Wilson, 
daughter of James Wilson, was also a native of 
Killarcham. .She was a worthy Christian 
woman, possessing many sterling qualities, 
and carefully reared a family of five children, 
as follows: William A.; James, a soldier of 
the late war; John, a paper-hanger oi Roches- 
ter; Mary, now the wife of Thomas Mellen, a 
jiainter of the same city ; and McDowell, who 
married James R. Coddington, a merchant of 
Geneseo. Mrs. Mary Wilson Ikodie died at 
the age of forty-one years in Rochester. Both 
she and her husband were members of the 
Ujiited Presbyterian church of that city. 

William A. Brodie spent his boyhood in 
Rochester, where he attended the public 
schools, and at the age of fourteen entered the 
employ of J. Z. Newcomb, in the dry-goods 
business, as a clerk. ffe rapidly rose, dis- 
pla)'ing superior business ability, and gaining 
the entire confidence of his employer, who 
advanced him to the position of cashier, in 
which capacity, and as book- keeper, he con- 
tinued for nine years. At the expiration of 
this period he accepted a position as book- 
keeper with General James A. Wadsworth, of 
Geneseo. Ha\'ing remained thus employed for 
ten years, he became book-kee]ier for the 
estate of William W. Wadsworth for the same 
number of years, when he was advanced to his 
])resent responsible position. In 1862 Mr. 
]5rodie married Laura A. Diver, daughter of 
Warren Diver, of Henrietta, N.Y. .She died 
in Geneseo, March 17, i8<S5, leaving one son, 
Warren J. Mrs. Laura A. Brodie was a mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church. On July 24, 
1889, Mr. l^rodie again married, his second 
wife being Martha A. Woodbury, of Royals- 
ton, Mass., daughter of George Woodbury, of 
that town. 

Many positions of public trust have been 



held by Mr. Brodie with marked ability, 
which has been highly appreciated by the com- 
munity. He was elected County Treasurer in 
1877, and held that office for five consecutive 
terms fjf three years each, is President of the 
Geneseo Gas Company, also the Electric Com- 
pany, Secretary and Treasurer of the Wads- 
worth Library, and Secretary of the local board 
of the State normal school at Geneseo. l^oth 
him.self and wife are very active members of 
the Presbyterian church, of which he has been 
an Elder since 186S, and for many years super- 
intendent of the Sunday-school, in which he is 
also a teacher, having a Bible class of over 
one hundred normal-school students. Mrs. 
Brodie is likewise a teacher in the school. 
He has been both President and Secretary of 
the County Historical Society, in which he 
takes an active interest. Politically, he is a 
Republican and a stanch supporter of the prin- 
ciples of that party. As a member of the 
Masonic fraternity, Mr. lirodie has a national 
reputation. Besides being a member of Gen- 
eseo Lodge, No. 214, he is also a member of 
Hamilton Chapter, R. A., and Sir Knight of 
Monroe Commandery of Rochester. He has 
held all offices in the Blue Lodge, and in 1884 
was elected Grand Master of the Grand Lodge 
of the State of New York. He is one of the 
most active and enthusiastic members of the 
craft, and in 1885 he reached the highest step 
in the fraternity — that of the thirty-third 
degree. 

The following is a record of his work during 
his term as Grand Master. On July 31, 1884, 
he dedicated the new hall of Eortune Lodge, 
No. 778, at North Collins, I':rie County. On 
Augu.st 5, 1884, in response to the invitation 
of the American Committee, he laid the 
corner-stone of the pedestal of the statue of 
Liberty on Bedloe's Island in New York 
Harbor. In closing his address upon this oc- 
casion he .said, "No institution has done more 
to promote liberty and to free men from the 
trammels and chains of ignorance and tyranny 
than Eree Ma.sonry. " On Se])tember 22, 
1884, he laid the corner-stone of the new high 
school building in Ithaca. A hand.some silver 
trowel, suitably engraved, was ])resented to 
the Grand Master by the Board of Education, 



4i6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



as a memento of a very pleasant event in his 
Masonic official life. At the request of the 
State authorities, he laid the corner-stone of 
the drill room annex to the State Arsenal at 
Buffalo, September 29, 1884. On September 
26, 1884, he issued a dispensation to R. H. 
Mclntvre and others to form a new lodge at 
liloomingdale, Essex County; October 6, to 
N. B. Slater, to form a new lodge at Au Sable 
Forks, Clinton County. December 4, 1884, 
he dedicated the new room of Phoenix Lodge, 
No. 662, Gowanda, N.Y. At the time of the 
burning of Carthage, November, 1884, he 
issued to the members of the Masonic frater- 
nity an appeal for funds, which was very gen- 
erously responded to by contributions amount- 
ing to four thousand and seventy-seven dollars 
and thirty-seven cents. On February 21, 
1885, by invitation of the Grand Master of 
Masons in the District of Columbia, he par- 
ticipated in the ceremonies and dedication of 
the Washington Monument. The cjuestion of 
belief in God having arisen in a matter of dis- 
cipline in a Masonic lodge in Toronto, Can- 
ada, in the close of his annual address he said : 

"Free Masonry is neither godless nor anti- 
christian. It embraces in its membership men 
of all creeds and no creed. To the Hebrew 
member it is the God of Israel. To the Mo- 
hammedan God is revealed in the great, open 
book of the starry heavens. To the Christian 
God is the Father of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. 
It has been charged that, had they, the 
Masons, the.courage of their convictions, they 
would pluck the name of the Supreme Being 
out of their ritual. Nothing can be further 
from the truth than this assertion. To elimi- 
nate the name of the Deity from the ritual 
would leave it but an empty shell. Yes, there 
is room within our broad field for all creeds; 
but our doors are not open to the atheist, 
neither is there room within our portals for 
him. " 

Mr. Brodie's successor in office, in his an- 
nual address before the Grand Lodge, said : 

"But what shall I say of my immediate 
predecessor, Mr. William A. Brodie, who, 
relinquishing your highest honors, went out 
into the ranks, and has served in every depart- 
ment of labor with all the zeal of the vouneest 



apprentice, thus furnishing an e.xample which 
I hope may never be forgotten by any of his 
successors.'" 

In 1888 Mr. Brodie visited his native land 
and England, making a special study of I\Ia- 
sonic charities. While abroad he was made a 
senior member of St. Barkam's Lodge, No. 
156, of the Grand Lodge of Scotland in his 
native village, whose charter is dated Novem- 
ber I, 1784. 



'OHN LOGAN, a wealthy and influential 
citizen of Sparta, is prominently con- 
nected with the agricultural, social, 
and financial interests of Livingston 
County, and is a fine representative of the na- 
tive-born element of this section of the State, 
having been born on the farm where he now 
resides, May 25, 1823. He is of Scotch-Irish 
antecedents, being the grandson of one Edward 
Logan, who was born in Scotland, but emi- 
grated to the north of Ireland when about 
twenty-five years of age, thereafter spending 
his life with the sturdy people of that country. 
The father of John Logan, also named Ed- 
ward, claimed County Antrim, Ireland, as the 
place of his nativity, and made that his home 
until after his union with Miss Jennie Boyd, 
a daughter of Thomas Boyd, of Ireland. In 
1819 he left his native country with his wife 
and children, and, crossing the ocean, emi- 
grated to the United States, the desired haven 
of refuge for so many foreign peasants. He 
came directly to this county, locating in 
Sparta, where he took up a tract of partly 
cleared land, on which stood a log house and 
barn. Inheriting the frugality, thrift, and in- 
dustrious habits of his Scotch progenitors, he 
continued the work previously begun, and had 
the satisfaction of watching the gradual trans- 
formation of his woodland to broad and well- 
cultivated fields, on which the golden grain 
waved in the harvest sun. He built a substan- 
tial set of frame buildings in place of the 
primitive ones; and here he and his good wife 
spent their closing years in the enjoyment of a 
comfortable home and all the luxuries that 
they desired, he living to the age of eighty- 
seven years, while she died in her seventy- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



417 



fourth year. They reared seven children; 
namely, Jennie, Edward, Sarah, James, Mary, 
John, and Andrew, the two last mentioned 
being the only ones now living. Both parents 
were strict in their religious beliefs, and hon- 
ored members of the Presbyterian church, in 
which the father served as Elder for many years. 

John Logan was bred to a farmer's life on 
the pleasant old homestcatl of his birth, re- 
maining with his parents until his marriage, 
actively assisting in the management of the 
farm, and in the mean time receiving a practi- 
cal education in the district school. After his 
marriage Mr. Logan took possession of a por- 
tion of the old homestead, removing across the 
road to the commodious house which he now 
occupies, and, clearing off the land, which was 
then heavily timbered, engaged in mixed farm- 
ing. His valuable estate is located near 
Scottsburg, in Sparta, and contains one hun- 
dred and twenty-five acres of arable land ; and 
in addition to this property Mr. Logan also 
owns a valuable farm in Conesus, and a one- 
half interest in a feed and saw mill in Scotts- 
burg. 

An important step in the life of Mr. Logan 
was his marriage, in 1863, with Miss Jennie 
McEetridge, a daughter of Archibald McEet- 
ridge, one of the early settlers of Sparta. In 
her he found a wife who is ever devoted to his 
interests; and their happy married life has 
been brightened by the birth of five children; 
namely, Jessie C., Edward M., Mary A., 
Edith B. , and Bessie E. In the management 
of local affairs Mr. Logan has been prominent, 
his excellent judgment and sound common 
sense rendering him a safe counsellor. Eor 
fourteen years he served as President of the 
Livingston County Fire Insurance Company. 
He has been Collector of Taxes several terms, 
and one year filled the office of Supervisor. 
An evidence of his superior executive ability 
is shown in the fact that he has been appointed 
executor, administrator, and guardian for ten 
estates. 

In politics Mr. Logan is a hearty supporter 
of the policy of the Republican party. He 
and his family are distinguished for their ear- 
nest religious character and firm faith in the 
doctrines of the Presbyterian church, of which 



he has been a Trustee for many years. The 
children are all finely educated, both in the 
common and higher branches of study; and the 
daughters are fine musicians and accomplished 
pianists. 




n.LIAM HENRY WILSON, an 
extensive land owner and enterpris- 
ing business man residing in Ar- 
cade, Wyoming County, N. Y., was born in 
Middlebury, in this county, April 16, 1830. 
His father, Heman Wilson, was born in Or- 
well, Vt. , June I, 1798. The family ancestry 
is traced back in a direct line to Henry, one 
of the original settlers in Dedham, Mass., 
where he resided between the years 1635 and 
1650. The Rev. John Wilson, chronicled in 
history as pastor of the first church in Boston, 
erected in 1632, was one of the colonists who 
first settled in Charlestown, and probably be- 
longed to the same family. After Henry Wil- 
son, living in Dedham, came, successively, 
Michael, born in 1675; Henry, born at Wren- 
tham, Mass., in 1690; Michael, born in 1732, 
and known to have died at ninety-eight years; 
Ebenezer, born in 1754, who died at seventy- 
four years; and Heman, father of William 
Henry of this sketch. The ancestors were 
mostly farmers. The grandfather, Ebenezer, 
came in 1807 from Wrentham to Middlebury 
as a pioneer, and cleared a large tract of land, 
on which he resided during the remainder of 
his life. He brought up a large family of 
thirteen children. His youngest son was 
Colonel Orsamus, of the State militia; and 
another son, Ira, was a Colonel in the United 
States army, and was taken prisoner in the 
War of 1 81 2, and carried to Halifax. 

Heman Wilson was brought up a farmer on 
his father's estate in Middlebury; and, when 
he set out on his own career, he came as a pio- 
neer to the town of China, now Arcade, where 
he bought a tract of nine hundred acres of 
land, which he proceeded to clear and culti- 
vate. This was in the year 1837; and, his 
investment having proved satisfactory, Mr. 
Wilson contiiuied to reside there until 1868, 
after which he spent the remainder of his life 
with his son William H. In addition to farm 



4i8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



work, he interested himself in public matters, 
being a Magistrate in Arcade for thirty-five 
years, a Circuit Judge, also a Supervisor of 
the town (1842-43-53), and for about twenty- 
five years was Postmaster. Heman Wilson 
closed his long and useful life at the age of 
eighty-six years, July 5, 1884. His wife was 
Miss Eleanor Van Epps, a cousin of Martin 
Van Buren. Her death took place in Arcade 
at the age of fifty years. Heman and Eleanor 
Wilson were the parents of seven children, 
four of whom are still living: Zibe, wife of 
Stafford Wade ; Ozro, deceased ; Truman ; 
Harriet, deceased; William Henry; Ellen, 
deceased; and Frank H. Both parents were 
members of the Baptist church, of which 
Heman was Deacon for forty-seven years. 

William H. Wilson was seven years old 
when he came with his father to Arcade, where 
he lived on the farm during his early youth. 
He was educated at the Arcade Seminary and 
at Wyoming Academy, and taught school three 
years, including one at Perry Centre. It was 
his intention to take a collegiate course, and 
he was sufficiently prepared in languages and 
mathematics; but, the failure of his health 
preventing the accomplishment of his plans, 
he contented himself with taking a two years' 
course in Latin and Greek. Resolving then 
that his life should be useful, if not a studious 
one, he has devoted himself to business, in 
which he has been pre-eminently successful. 

Mr. Wilson's first purchase was a farm of 
si.\ hundred acres, where he kept a dairy of 
one hundred and eight cows, and made a spe- 
cialty of cheese, which he shipped to New 
York and other centres of trade. He has 
since made other and larger investments in 
land. In 1870 he went to Nebraska, where he 
purchased five thousand acres of land, and in 
Iowa bought one thousand more. These were 
for the purpose of speculation. In Kansas he 
later bought four thousand acres, which he put 
under cultivation to good advantage, his pro- 
duction in 1894 being thirty five thousand- 
bushels of wheat. He has also fields of oats 
and corn, all together making about thirty- 
seven hundred acres of land under cultivation 
in cereals. Mr. Wilson spends three months in 
every year in superintending his harvests and 



marketing the grain, and generally two trips 
are required every year as far as Kansas. He 
is still the owner of a large stock and grain 
farm in Audubon County, la., to which he 
makes at least one annual visit. The cultiva- 
tion of his land gives employment to several 
hundred men. 

Mr. Wilson has likewise given attention to 
enterprises nearer home. He is the owner of 
a large cheese factory, and takes pride in mak- 
ing some of the best shipping cheese in West- 
ern New York. He is also a very successful 
apiarian, keeping over two hundred and fifty 
colonies of bees at his village home in Arcade. 
For several years he and Mr. Wade were the 
largest country dealers in butter and cheese in 
the United States, buying and shipping over a 
million dollars' worth of cheese alone in a 
single year. Mr. Wilson took an active part 
and spent a good deal of time in securing the 
railroad from Attica to Arcade. He was one 
of the three chosen from the board of directors 
who waited upon William H. and his father, 
Cornelius Vanderbilt, to procure their interest 
in the project. He was largely instrumental 
in getting the Western New York & Pennsyl- 
vania Railroad to run through the town of 
Arcade. He established in Arcade a woollen- 
mill for the manufacture of knitting yarns, 
flannels, jeans, and cassimeres. This has been 
considered the largest mill of its kind in this 
part of the State, keeping about thirty-eight 
hands employed, and shipping goods to Buf- 
falo, Rochester, Chicago, Cleveland, Kansas 
City, St. Louis, and many other large centres 
of trade. Mr. Wilson also erected a saw-mill 
at East Arcade, a grist-mill, and, in connec- 
tion with Silas Clough, has conducted a tan- 
nery. These have all been very profitable to 
the community, keeping up a brisk activity in 
trade, and bringing currency into the local 
markets. But after fifteen years Mr. Wilson 
exchanged his woollen-mill for eighty acres 
of valuable land in the environs of Buffalo, 
and so passed the enterprise on into other 
management. 

Mr. Wilson was Postmaster at East Arcade 
for the years 1859 to 1868. He is a Demo- 
crat in his political principles. He was 
elected, at the age of twenty-two, Superintend- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



419 



ent of ComiiKin Schools, and at twenty-four a 
Magistrate of the town of Eagle. He has been 
Supervisor of the town of Arcade, and served 
two terms (1869-70), and has been a Trustee 
of the School Board for twenty-five years, 
President of the Board of Education, President 
of the A. M. P. Society, President of the Ar- 
cade Oil, Gas, and Salt Corporation, and 
President (jf the Arcade Rural Cemetery Asso- 
ciation, also a Trustee of the Baptist church, 
of which he has been a member since he was 
ten years of age. At the time of the building 
of the new church Mr. Wilson was appointed 
superintendent of the committee, and there- 
fore took entire charge, bringing the work to a 
successful completion. He then went to Bal- 
timore, and purchased the bell which was to 
crown the undertaking. Mr. Wilson and his 
family are active members of this church. In 
his early life he held the office of superintend- 
ent of the Sunday-school for many years, and 
was also Clerk of the church, which office he 
still holds at this writing. 

William Henry Wilson was married, March 
27, 1 861, to Miss Ann S. Clough, daughter of 
Deacon Abel Clough, of Arcade. Her father 
was a native of Fabius, Onondaga County, a 
farmer and lumberman by occupation, whose 
family came as early settlers to Arcade. Mr. 
and Mrs. Wilson have had four children — H. 
Earl, deceased, whose wife, Sabra Twitchell, 
of Rochester, became the mother of one child, 
l""rank Earl; Anna May; Ellen, wife of 
Charles Drake, a farmer of Pike, who has one 
child named May; and O. T. Wilson, who at- 
tended Colgate University, and is now studying 
law. Soon after beginning his career in life, 
Mr. Wilson purchased the old homestead, on 
.which he resided thirteen years. He then 
sold the property, and, moving to the village, 
took up his residence with his family in a 
large and handsome house, which he has con- 
tinued to occupy since that time, a period of 
twenty-three years. Mr. Wilson's career 
strikingly illustrates the truth of the saying, 
"The hand of the diligent maketh rich " ; for 
it is owing to untiring industry, united with 
judgment and a capacity for large undertak- 
ings, that he has achieved such marked success 
in business. 



EROME A. LAKE, formerly a civil 
engineer, but now a prosperous farmer, 
residing in the town of Groveland, was 
born at Mount Morris,' October 5, 1832. 
He is the only son of the Hon. Orrin D. Lake, 
for many years an influential resident of Mount 
Morris, and an extended sketch of whom ap- 
pears in this work. He obtained the primitive 
branches of his education in the district 
schools, and supplemented this with a course 
at the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary in Lima. 
After completing his studies at the latter 
place, he entered the Rochester University, 
after which he engaged with the State engi- 
neers who were constructing the Genesee Val- 
ley Canal, as a civil engineer. He remained 
with them about two years, and then turned 
his attention to farming. 

In 1865 Mr. Lake located upon the farm he 
now owns and occupies, which is exceedingly 
well improved, and ranks as one of the very 
best in the town. It is situated in a com- 
manding position, overlooking the Genesee 
valley and the country beyond, and is unusu- 
ally healthy as well as productive. Mr. Lake 
aims to accomplish the best and most perfect 
results by, the very latest improved methods, 
and in this he is e.xtremely successful. Both 
his stock and farming implements are superior 
in every particular, and his farm has the ap- 
pearance of solid prosperity which is both 
agreeable and satisfactory to the eye of a 
connoisseur. 

In 1862 Mr. Lake was united in marriage 
with Miss Louise M. Curtis, of Groveland, a 
daughter of Hiram and Eunice (Thorp) Curtis. 
Of this union there are three children — Orrin 
C. , Harry P., and Sarah Louise. Mrs. Lake 
departed this life on the 26th of October, 1886. 
She was a sincere Christian, and a devoted 
member of the Baptist church, in which she 
was an active worker. To all worthy enter- 
prises, and especially those of a charitable 
nature, she was ever ready to extend her aid as 
far as lay in her power; and her death was 
deepl}' regretted by the entire community. 

Mr. Lake is a Republican in politics, and a 
stanch supporter of his party's principles. He 
has served as a member of the County Board of 
Supervisors for a number of years. Although 



420 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



he is possessed of high mental attainments, he 
prefers the healthy and independent life of a 
farmer, and his happiest moments are passed 
in cultivating his rich and productive land. 



-AMES W. ROBERTS, a retired farmer, 
is passing the autumn of his long and 
busy life in the town of Nunda, where 
he is enjoying a well-deserved leisure 
from his previous seasons of toil and labor. 

As a faithful and judicious tiller of the soil, 
he has been prospered in every respect, not 
only accumulating a competence, but estab- 
lishing a lasting reputation as an intelligent 
and wise business man, a public-spirited and 
trusted citizen, and a faithful neighbor and 
true friend. He is a native of this county, 
Sparta being the place of his birth, and April 
26, 1822, the date thereof. He comes of ex- 
cellent antecedents, and is descended from a 
well-known New Jersey family, his grand- 
father, Peter Roberts, having been born in 
that State, and having enlisted from there as a 
soldier in the Revolutionary War. 

Silas Roberts, the father of James W. , grew 
to maturity in the State of his nativity, and 
subsequently followed the tide of emigration 
westward, coming with ox teams to this county 
when this part of the State was in its primitive 
condition, its dense forests being populated by 
the wild animals native to this region and the 
untutored savage, who roamed at will wherever 
it pleased him so to do. Boundary lines were 
then unknown ; and the early settlers cut hay 
indiscriminately, and pastured their cattle 
where they found an attractive spot. Mr. 
Roberts located on Knibloe Hill, in the town 
of Sparta, and, building a typical house for 
the shelter of himself and wife, remained on 
his homestead the remainder of his days, oc- 
cupying the humble log cabin until after the 
birth of all his children. He married Sarah 
Hartman ; and to them were born nine chil- 
dren, five of whom are living, as follows: 
John; Jesse; James \V. ; Mary A., Mrs. Har- 
vey Woodruff ; and Spencer. 

James W. Roberts, in common with the ma- 
jority of the sons of the early pioneer, ac- 
quired his education during the winter terms 



of the district schools, and was reared tu the 
pursuit of agriculture. This pleasant and 
health-giving occupation he has pursued 
throughout the years of his active life, and, 
although he has owned and managed several 
different farms, has always made his home 
within the limits of his native county, each 
change that he has made having been an ad- 
vantageous one. He began his independent 
career as a farmer in the old log house in 
which he drew the first breath of life, and 
made his first purchase of land on the old town 
line in Sparta, where he lived in the log 
house, which constituted the principal im- 
provement of the farm, occupying it for two 
years. Selling that, Mr. Roberts bought the 
old McKay homestead, on which he lived for 
four years, in the mean time adding greatly 
to its improvement, and largely increasing its 
value, so that he disposed of it at an advanced 
price. The following two years he owned and 
managed a farm on Mount Morris Ridge. Re- 
ceiving a flattering offer for it, he sold, and 
moved about two miles south, on the Mount 
Morris Road, where he lived five and one-half 
years. He then sold that, and returned to 
the old homestead, where he resided for six 
months. 

Mr. Roberts's next purchase of land was in 
Dansville, where he stayed three years, pros- 
perously engaged in farming. Thence he re- 
moved to Mount Morris, locating on the State 
Road, where he lived four years, adding much 
needed improvements to the farm before dis- 
posing of it. In the town of Mount Morris 
he resided for the next fourteen years, owning 
different places, and winning a substantial 
reputation as an energetic and industrious 
farmer and a shrewd and far-seeing business 
man. Then, after living in the town of Por- 
tage for a year, Mr. Roberts rented his farm 
there, and removed to his present home in the 
town of Nunda, where he is numbered among 
the most respected citizens. 

The maiden name of the w-ife of Mr. Rob- 
erts was Ellen Craig. She is a daughter of 
William and Ellen (Taylor) Craig, and a 
sister of Dr. John Craig, of Geneseo, a sketch 
of whose life appears on another page of this 
volume. Two children were born of the union 





JOHN D. HELMER. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



423 



of Mr. and Mrs. Roberts, both of whom are 
deceased. James C. , the first-born, died un- 
married. Silas C, the younger, married 
Fanny Conkey, who bore him one child, a son 
named James Craig. 

Mr. Roberts, who in his earlier years was a 
Whig, and cast his first Presidential vote for 
Henry Clay in 1844, has been an active Re- 
publican since the formation of the party. 
Both he and his estimable wife are devout 
members of the Presbyterian church of Nunda, 
having united with it many years ago. 



1819. 



-OHN D. HELMER, e.\-President of the 
Vacuum Oil Company of Rochester, 
was born in Canajoharie, Montgomery 
County, N. Y. , on the 4th of March, 
His grandfather, John G. Helmer, 
came from Germany to this country and settled 
in New York State on a farm, where the last 
years of his life were passed. John I. Hel- 
mer, son of John G., was brought up on a farm 
in the Black River country, and was a teacher 
for many years during his youth. When he 
came to the town of Pike, his son, John D. , 
the subject of this memoir, was only three 
years old. A farm just three miles beyond 
the village precincts was ])urchased by the 
father, and here John D. Helmer has lived for 
seventy-two years. Mr. John I. Helmer's 
wife was Miss Betsy Walrath. Of the eleven 
children to whom she gave birth, only three 
are now living. 

At twenty-one years of age John D. Helmer 
began to work on his father's farm at a stated 
rate of wages per month, and earned in three- 
quarters of a year one hundred dollars. Find- 
ing his services valuable, his father agreed to 
give him one hundred and fifty dollars a year 
for his labor; and at the end of eleven years 
he had amassed fifteen hundred dollars. This 
sum he invested in the homestead, which he 
purchased from his father, and to which he 
added one hundred and thirty-five acres after- 
ward. At thirty-two years of age he was 
united in marriage to Miss Lemira Everest, 
a daughter of David Everest, of Pike. Mrs. 
Helmer, who was one of three children of her 
parents, was herself the mother of two children 



— Ella M., who married James A. Jones, a 
farmer of Pike, and became the mother of 
three children — Ernest, Nellie, and Roy, who 
died at the promising age of seventeen years 
seven months, having been asphy.xiated while 
attending the World's Fair at Chicago, where 
he had charge of the Vacuum Oil Company's 
exhibit; and Fred D., who married Miss 
Jennie White, whose father is a real estate 
dealer in Rochester. One child, Harry, is the 
issue of this union. 

Industrious, prudent, and thrifty from his 
youth, Mr. John D. Helmer has by sagacious 
enterprise and close application to business 
become the wealthiest man in Pike. The 
salt developments in this county are princi- 
pally owing to the keen foresight and energetic 
efforts of himself and his brother-in-law, 
Hiram Everest, who sank the first well in 
Wyoming, the germ of the present large works. 
He owned at one time over three hundred acres 
of land where he now resides ; but he sold 
some to Mr. Marble, and deeded to his son-in- 
law, Mr. James A. Jones, about one hundred 
and nine acres, and now retains only one hun- 
dred and thirty acres. After more than thirty 
years of wedded life, Mr. Helmer was called 
to part with his wife, who died on the 24th 
of September, 1886; but his daughter, Mrs. 
Jones, lives on the adjoining farm, and the 
presence of child and grandchildren do much 
to cheer the loneliness of a bereaved old age. 
His son, Frederick Helmer, who is a graduate 
of Yale College, has the management of the 
Western department of the Vacuum Oil Com- 
pany at Chicago. Mr. Helmer is a loyal Re- 
publican. A portrait of this valiant "captain 
of industry," this indefatigable toiler with 
hand and brain, is appropriately placed in the 
"Biographical Review" of Wyoming and Liv- 
ingston Counties. 




IRAM B. RIPPEY, a resident of the 
town of York, was born in Seneca, 
Ontario County, N.Y. , May 6, 
1829. His education was acquired 
in the district schools and at Temple Hill 
Academy in Geneseo, where he was sent after 
having finished the course of study prescribed 



424 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



in the schools. He has been actively em- 
ployed in farm work on the old homestead 
since he has been able to be thus engaged, and 
at his father's death bought out his brother 
James's interest, and became the sole owner. 
This property consists of one hundred and 
ninety acres of land; and on it he lives with 
his sister Priscilla, who keeps house for him, 
and watches his interests with zealous care. 

Their father, Hugh Rippey, was a native- 
born Penn.sylvanian, his father having also 
been born in that State, and having li\-ed there 
during his entire life. Hugh Rippey, who 
was a farmer by education and practical experi- 
ence, as well as by occupation, left his native 
State when a young man, and, coming to the 
State of New York, bought a heavily timbered 
tract of land near Seneca, Ontario County. 
After clearing away the dense forest growth, 
he erected a small frame house, in which he 
lived for twelve years, and then moved to La 
Grange, where he purchased one hundred and 
twenty-six acres, which he materially improved 
by the erection of new buildings. Twelve 
years again elapsed before his final move, 
which was to the town of York, in Livingston 
County, in 1856, where he remained until his 
demise in 1861. His wife was Priscilla Bell, 
of Pennsylvania, who bore him ten children, 
as follows: Mary A., John, William, Matilda, 
Joseph N., Hiram B. , Hugh, Selina, Priscilla, 
and James. The mother of this family died 
at the age of seventy years. 

Hiram B. Rippey, whose nature is averse to 
conspicuous display of any sort, has always 
preferred to live a life of retirement. His 
first Presidential vote was cast for Franklin 
Pierce, in 1852. He is unmarried; and he 
and his sister live alone on the York farm, 
where outside and indoors all is well ordered 
and wisely planned. 



KREDERIC W. MILLER is intimately 
connected with the agricultural inter- 
ests of Livingston County, being the 
possessor of a well-equipped and well-kept 
farm in the town of West Sparta, where his 
ability and skill as a farmer are well known, 
and his merit as a man and a citizen is recog- 



nized. He is a native of this State, Wayiand, 
Steuben County, being the place of his birth, 
which occurred March 2, 1849. 

Mr. Miller is of German origin and jiaren- 
tage, his father, John George Miller, having 
been born in Germany, where he grew to man- 
hood and married. Soon after that important 
event in his career he emigrated to America, 
settling at first in one of the Western States, 
but later spending twelve years in Dansville, 
this county, working the greater part of the 
time as a day laborer. Mr. Miller subse- 
quently bought a farm in the town of Wayiand, 
where he carried on mixed husbandry for more 
than a quarter of a century. Coming then to 
West Sparta, he purchased the farm now 
owned and occupied by his son Frederic, and 
carried it on until 1882, when he removed to 
Dansville, his death occurring there two years 
later, at the good old age of seventy-five years. 
He married Mary B. Schwingel, a native of 
Germany, and the ten children born to them 
were as follows : Catherine, deceased ; Mary, 
the wife of J. A. Schwingel; John; Elizabeth, 
the wife of G. Strobel ; Eva; Barbara, the wife 
of Martin Striker; Sarah, deceased; Frederic 
W'. ; Carrie M. ; and George J. The mother, 
who still lives in Dansville, is a member of 
the German I^utheran church, of which her 
husband was for many years a Trustee and 
Deacon. 

Frederic W. Miller remained with his par- 
ents until attaining his majority, receiving his 
literary education in the district schools, and 
his knowledge of agriculture from his father, 
who kept him busily employed on the farm 
when out of school. The following two years 
he worked for an uncle in Sparta, then re- 
turned to the farm he now owns, and continued 
to work for his father until his marriage, when 
he bought the farm of his parents. This farm 
contains one hundred and ten acres, well 
adapted to general farming purposes; and here 
Mr. Miller carries on a substantial business in 
agriculture. 

On the 1st of February. 1881, Mr. Miller 
formed a matrimonial alliance with Grace A. 
Kennedy, who was one of three children born 
to Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Kennedy, pioneer 
settlers of West Sparta. The happy house- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



425 



hold thus established has been enlarged and 
enlivened by the advent of three bright chil- 
dren ; namely, J. Arthur, Raymond K., and 
Luella M. Mr. Miller has ever been a warm 
advocate of every enterprise tending to promote 
the moral, social, or material interests of the 
town or county, and takes an active part in the 
management of local affairs. I^olitically, he 
is a supporter of the Democratic ticket, and 
has served one term as Assessor and five as 
Inspector of Elections. Socially, he belongs 
to Phalanx Lodge, No. 115, A. V. & A. M., 
of Dansville, and has been Junior Deacon. 
He is an esteemed member of the Lutheran 
church. 




;NRY SIERK, a prosperous farmer 
f the town of Rennington, N.Y., 
was born in Holstein, Germany, 
December 27, 1823. His father, 
Jacob Sierk, was a native of the same province, 
born January 23, 1795, and, receiving a good 
education, became a schoolmaster, relinquish- 
ing that profession in order to engage in agri- 
cultural pursuits, which he successfully con- 
ducted with profit. His comparatively easy 
circumstances enabled him to be of valuable 
assistance to his children. 

Henry Sierk's mother, whose maiden name 
was Wiebke Volkens, bore three sons and three 
daughters, all of whom attained their majority 
except one daughter. Of these, three sons 
and one daughter are living. The parents died 
in Germany, the mother in 1873, at the age of 
seventy-two years, and the father in 1886, at 
the advanced age of ninety years. Jacob Sierk 
was a man of influence in his community, 
holding municipal offices. He died leaving 
not only a good estate, but also an honorable 
record. 

Henry -Sierk first married in 1S51, previous 
to emigrating from Germany, Lena Old- 
schwager, who died, leaving an infant daugh- 
ter, Wiebke C., who is now the wife of 
Anthony Geise, a farmer in Bennington. Mr. 
Sierk came to the United States in 1853, 
bringing his daughter, and was also accom- 
panied by his first wife's sister, Elsabe Old- 
schwager, whom he married in New York 



City, Februarys, 1853. Mrs. Sierk's parents 
soon after emigrated from Germany to the 
LInited States, where they died, her father, 
Marcus, in 1886, and her mother in 1890, at 
eighty-seven. They had two sons and two 
daughters. Their son, John Oldschwager, a 
volunteer soldier in the Civil War, was in- 
stantly killed by being struck with a shell 
while in active service. He was thirty years 
of age, and left a widow. Claus Oldschwager 
is a farmer in Genesee County, Michigan. 

Mr. and Mrs. Sierk have been blessed with 
fifteen children, of whom twelve are li\'ing. 
William died at the age of eight years; John, 
a young man of twenty-one, died in 1880; and 
Mary died in March, 1885, at the age of eigh- 
teen years. The others are: Jacob, a farmer 
residing in Darien, having two sons and one 
daughter; Marcus, a farmer residing in At- 
tica, having three sons; Anna, a widow of 
Peter Van Valkenburg, having one son, Leon ; 
Henry, a farmer of Attica, having three sons 
and one daughter; Claus, a farm laborer, un- 
married ; Ida, wife of John Welker, a farmer 
of Bennington, having six living children ; 
George, who resides at home with his parents, 
having a wife whose maiden name was Edith 
Maxon ; Lena, wife of John Schlenker, a 
farmer residing in Attica, having one daugh- 
ter ; Augusta ; Emma, a young lady at home ; 
Frederick, also residing at home; and Elsie, 
wife of Charles Ripstein, residing at Benning- 
ton, having one son. Mr. Sierk purchased 
his first farm of one hundred and five acres 
in 1853. On his arrival in the United States 
he was possessed of some capital with which 
to start in life, and now has three good farms, 
aggregating in all about three hundred and 
twenty acres. These contain good substan- 
tial buildings, and are well cultivated. He 
erected his present residence in 1872 and 
his large barn in 1874. The latter is forty by 
eighty feet, with stone basement and wagon- 
shop attached. Mr. Sierk keeps thirty cows, 
and ships milk to Buffalo. He formerly paid 
considerable attention to sheep raising, but 
at present is doing general farming. His 
orchard, which consists of some four acres, is 
mostly the work of his own hands. He is a 
model farmer in every respect. 



426 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Mr. Sierk received a classical education, 
but (in account of weak eyes was forced to 
relinquish his intention of entering profes- 
sional life. He has given his children a good 
common-school education. Mr. and Mrs. 
.Sierk are well preserved and active in the 
many cares of life, notwithstanding the fact 
that the labors of farm life are arduous. The 
household duties are made light, however, by 
the assistance of the younger daughters and 
their widowed sister. Although Mr. Sierk is 
exceedingly modest, there are few farmers in 
his locality who are more prosperous, and none 
who are his superior in successful manage- 
ment. He is passing his declining years most 
happily in company with his worthy wife, and 
enjoys the blessings of twelve living children 
and twenty-one grandchildren. In politics he 
is a Democrat, but has never sought office. 
He and his wife are German Protestants. 




SALMON WRIGHT, the much respected 
Commander of J. E. Lee Post, No. 
281, Grand Army of the Republic, 
was born in West Almond, Allegany 
Cdunty, N.Y. , September 14, 1831. His 
grandfather was born September 4, 1769, 
either in Wales or in America of Welsh par- 
ents. Friim Washington County, the home of 
his youth, he removed to Allegany County, 
and traded his farm of one hundred acres in 
the town of Greenwich for eighteen hundred 
acres of heavily timbered land in what is now 
the town of West Almond, where he became 
one of the pioneer settlers. To each one of a 
family of seventeen children he gave fifty acres 
(if land, on which they erected a saw-mill, and 
engaged in the lumber business in addition to 
farming. He resided at this place until his 
death, and was buried on the farm. 

Zalmon Wright, the father of the subject of 
this sketch, and the eldest of the family of 
seventeen, was born in Greenwich, Washing- 
ton County, N. Y., where he was educated and 
married. After his marriage he removed to 
Genesee Countv, making the removal with 
teams, and bought a tract of land in \\'ethers- 
field. Here he erected a log cabin, in the 
construction of which no sawed lumber was 



used. Blankets were hung for doors, with a 
log at the bottom to keep them down; while 
in front of the cabin a continual fire was kept 
burning to frighten away the wolves. As 
there were no railroads or canals for a number 
of years afterward, the inhabitants lived 
chiefly on the products of the land and the wild 
game, which -was abundant. After a few years 
Mr. Wright sold his home, moving to Alle- 
gany County, and locating on land given him 
by his father, where he lived for over thirty 
years. He then moved to Allegany, Catta- 
raugus County, and, having bought a tract of 
land, lived there for a number of years. He 
had the misfortune, however, to lose this farm, 
and after the war came to Livingston County, 
locating in Mount Morris, where he spent the 
rest of his days with his son, dying at the age 
of eighty-seven years. His wife, who died at 
the age of fifty-seven years, was Mary Carter, 
a daughter of Stephen Carter, of Greenwich, 
Washington County, N.Y. Mr. and Mrs. 
Wright were the parents of si.x children — 
Eliza A., Lorinda, P^mery, Laura, Elijah, and 
Zalmon. 

Zalmon Wright, a carpenter and joiner by 
trade, was educated at West Almond, and lived 
with his parents until his marriage, following 
his trade until his enlistment, August 12, 
1 86 1, in Company I, Sixty-fourth New York 
Volunteer Infantry. He served with the reg- 
ular army until 1863, and during that time 
bravely did his duty in the following battles: 
P'air Oaks, seven days' Peninsular campaign, 
Gaines's Mill, Peach Orchard, White Oak 
Swamp, Glendale, Malvern Hill, F"redericks- 
burg, and Gettysburg. He was honorably dis- 
charged in December, 1863, and, coming to 
Mount Morris soon after, worked at his trade a 
short time, and then turned his attention to 
cabinet-making, which he has since followed. 

In 1853 Mr. Wright married Lucretia 
Preice, of Deerfield, Pa., who died in 1866. 
He was again married in 1867, at Springfield, 
Mich., to Phiseria A. Green, a daughter of 
Stephen Kenyon, and widow of Isaac Green, 
who had one son, S. I^llsworth, who has since 
been known by the name of Wright, and of 
whom a sketch appears elsewhere in this work. 
By his second wife Mr. Wright had two chil- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



427 



dren — Laura M. and Jennie A., the latter 
now deceased. 

Mr. and Mrs. Wright are esteemed members 
of the Baptist church, and Mr. Wright is a 
Republican in politics. He was a charter 
member of J. E. Lee Post, No. 281, Grand 
Army of the Republic, in which order he has 
gained much popularity, having most creditably 
filled all the various offices, and is Aide-de- 
camp on the staff of John C. Shotts, Depart- 
ment Commander. He has honorably filled 
the office of Notary Public for the past five 
years, and is well deserving of the respect 
and esteem bestowed upnn him by his fellow- 
citizens. 




OX. OKRIN D. LAKE, a highly re- 
spected citizen of Mount Morris, and 
a former L'nited States official, was 
born in the town of Kortright, 
Delaware County, N. Y. , on the nth of No- 
vember, 1805. His father, the Rev. Warner 
Lake, was born in Connecticut, May 7, 1765. 
After reaching manhood, and having married, 
he emigrated in 1797 to New York State, ac- 
complishing the journey with a cart and a pair 
of steers, and settled upon a tract of land, upon 
it erecting the house in which the subject of 
this sketch was born. He was of the Baptist 
persuasion, and at this time commenced his 
labors as a preacher. In 18 16 he again started 
westward, and moved his family to Cayuga 
County; and, it being in the winter season, 
the journey was made with sleighs. Upon 
arrival there, he located in that part of the 
town of Aurelius which is now the town of 
Springport, upon a tract of land on which were 
log buildings. He managed his farm, and 
also attended to his pastoral duties, residing 
there until 1830, when he removed to the town 
of Mount Morris, purchasing about two hun- 
dred acres of land four miles from the vil- 
lage. He continued to preach for about seven 
years, and resided there until his decease, Sep- 
tember 29, 1848. The maiden name of his 
first wife, the mother of Orrin D., was Eliza- 
beth Williams. She was born in January, 
1765, and died on the 24th of .September, 
1834. She reared nine children, as follows: 



John, Mary, Annis, David, Huldah, Rhoda, 
Sally, Orrin D., and Warner. 

Orrin D. Lake is the only one of the pa- 
rental family now living. He was ten years of 
age when his parents moved to Cayuga County, 
and remembers well the incidents of the jour- 
ney. In those early days that section was far 
removed from a market, and continued so until 
the Erie Canal was completed. He attended 
the pioneer schools, and assisted upon the 
home farm until his marriage, after which he 
located on a small farm of fifty acres given 
him by his father. Upon it he resided until 
1837, then sold, and purchased the old home- 
stead of one hundred and fifty acres, which he 
continued to conduct until 1861, at which time 
he entered the United States civil service as 
Assistant Assessor of Internal Revenue for the 
Twenty-fifth District, comprising the counties 
of Livingston, Ontario, and Yates. This po- 
sition he held for six years, when he was 
appointed Assessor for the same district, con- 
tinuing in that position for four years, when 
the office was abolished. 

Mr. Lake has been a resident of the \illage 
of Mount Morris since 1868, although he still 
owns the old homestead. He was formerly a 
Whig in politics, but has supported the Re- 
publican party since its organization, and has 
held many positions of public trust. He was 
Assessor for a number of years, and in 1837 
was elected Justice of the Peace, serving 
twelve years. He was also a member of the 
County B(jard of Supervisors for seven years, 
and in 1 85 1-52 was a member of the legis- 
lature. In I S3 1 he married his first wife, 
whose maiden name was .Sarah P. Gunn. .She 
died February 26, 1S49; and he married for 
his second wife Martha B. Gunn, a sister of 
his first wife. She died November 9, 1877. 
His third wife was Mrs. Elmira Mead. Mr. 
Lake has one son by his first marriage, Jerome 
A., a .sketch of whom appears in this work. 

Mr. Lake is a representative of that intel- 
lectual class of American country gentlemen 
who are always an honor to the community in 
which they live. He has attained a ripe old 
age, and enjoys not only a well-earned pros- 
perity, but also the esteem and confidence of 
his fellow-townsmen. 



428 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 




RANGE L. TOZIER, an extensive 
farmer of Sheldon, Johnsonsburg, post- 
ofifice, was born at Watertown, Jeffer- 
son County, N. Y., December 2, 1826, 
and when two years of age was brought by his 
parents to Bennington, where they opened a 
farm on the Holland purchase. His father, 
Eber Tozier, was born in Roxbury, N.H., in 
1789, and died in the town of Charlotte, Chau- 
tauxjua County, N. Y., in 1864. Mr. Tozier' s 
paternal grandfather was a native of Erance, 
who became a refugee during the Erench Rev- 
olution, and settled in Roxbury, N. H., where 
he followed agricultural pursuits. At his 
death he left a large estate to three sons and 
three daughters. 

About the year 181 8 I-lbcr Tozier married 
lemima Palmer, a native of Sackett's Harbor, 
daughter of Captain Elijah Wyatt Palmer, who 
wasmade lame for life by a wound received in 
a conflict. Her mother's maiden name was 
Sarah Lee. Mr. and Mrs. Tozier came from 
Sackett's Harbor to Wyoming County in an ox 
wagon, and settled on Bennington Hill, Ben- 
nington, where they purchased sixty-five acres, 
mostly timbered land, which they cleared and 
improved. They resided upon this farm until 
1840, when they sold, renting a farm for one 
year, after which they purchased two hundred 
acres in the valley known as Humphrey Hol- 
low, thus named for Deacon Theophilus 
Humphre}-, who settled there in 181 7 or 1818, 
the first settler in the hollow having been one 
Buell. Eber Tozier died in Charlotte, Chau- 
tauqua County, at the age of seventy-five years. 
His wife died in 1852, at Wellsburg, Erie 
County, Pa. They had eleven children, of 
whom five sons and four daughters attained 
their majority and married. Of these, two 
daughters are now deceased. 

Orange L., the fourth child, was reared to 
agricultural pursuits and attended the district 
schools, finishing his education at a select 
school in Batavia, where he was a classmate of 
Rear Admiral Chandler, of the United States 
navy. He had a scholarship at Alleghany 
College, Meadville, and taught school one 
winter term. He left his home at the age of 
sixteen, and was married in his twenty-first 
year, July 25, 1847, to Miss Harriet H. 



Humphrey, daughter of Lester H. Humphrey. 
After his marriage Mr. Tozier went to Erie 
County, Penn.sylvania, where he farmed and 
lumbered. In the fall of that year he cast his 
first vote, and was elected School Director and 
Inspector of the board. Mr. Tozier' s father 
was a Democrat in [lolitics; but he himself 
joined the Reiiublican party, having been one of 
its organizers in his section. He was elected 
a Justice of the Peace at Orangeville in 1857. 
In i860 he returned to his farm at Sheldon, 
and in 1861 raised a company of one hundred 
men, which he took to Westfield, joining the 
Ninth New York Cavalry as Company G, of 
which he was Captain, and served until July 8, 
1862, when he resigned on account of poor 
health. His regiment was in the Peninsular 
campaign under McClellan, and later with 
Pope in Virginia. At the time of his resigna- 
tion it was serving under General Burnside. 
After some improvement in his health he was 
appointed Assistant Provost Marshal of his 
district, holding that office until the close of 
the war. In 1864 he was elected Supervisor 
from Sheldon, serving two years, and has 
served in the same capacity since. He has 
served as Justice of the Peace four terms, and 
in 1878 was elected to the Assembly, where 
he represented his district two years. He also 
had the honor of assisting in the nomination of 
Governor Cornell at Saratoga. 

Mr. Tozier has lived in Sheldon most of the 
tirtie since the spring of 1841. His farm con- 
sists of about twelve hundred acres, upon which 
he does general farming, managing it him- 
self. He has kept as many as one hundred 
cows, lately having about sixty. He has made 
a specialty of cheese much of the time, but at 
present is giving his attention to fine creamery 
butter, which he produces by the aid of a 
separator. He keeps grade Jersey cows, own- 
ing pure blooded males, and also makes a spe- 
cialty of choice .sheep, of which he keeps an 
average flock of from five hundred to seventeen 
hundred. Besides his farm in this State Mr. 
Tozier owns some valuable land in McLean 
County. Illinois. He is a member of Mount 
Vernon Lodge, No. 263, A. E. & A. M., and 
a comrade of the Grand Army of the Republic, 
Buford Post, Johnsonsburg. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



429 



Mr. and Mrs. Tozier have had eleven chil- 
dren, eight sons and three daughters, of whom 
three sons are now deceased. Charles died at 
the age of two years, Edwin at eleven years, 
in 1862, while Mr. Tozier was serving with 
his regiment, and Lucian died at the age of 
six. The following are now living: Lester 
H., superintendent of the salt works at War- 
saw, having a wife and three daughters; An- 
nette, the wife of Alexander Rood, residing in 
Sinclairville, Chautauqua County, having two 
daughters and one son ; Alice J., wife of Ami 
J. Warren, of Johnsonsburg ; William S. , who 
assists his father, having a wife, three sons, 
and three daughters; Orange L. , Jr., a farmer 
of Pittsfield, Vt. , who has three sons and one 
daughter; Charles M., also of Pittsfield, who 
has two sons, and who, in company with his 
brother, owns fifteen hundred acres of land, 
which they operate jointly; Harriet, wife of 
Edwin Hoy, residing at home, having one son 
and one daughter; and Hayden Humphrey, an 
attorney, who was admitted to the bar at 
Buffalo, January 3, 1894, married, but as yet 
not located, residing at home. 



/f^o 



■<■**»-»■ 



EORGE D. DOOER, a noted farmer 
\ •) I and stock-raiser of Livingston 
County, present President of the vil- 
lage of Avon, is a native of Canandaigua, but 
has resided in Avon practically all his life, 
his folks having removed from Canandaigua to 
Avon shortly after he was born, and he having 
remained there ever since. He is of English 
descent, both his father, George Dooer, and 
his mother having been born in "Merrie 
England." 

The nationality of their first-born child may 
be looked upon as somewhat uncertain from 
one point of view, although it was plain 
enough from a legal standpoint, for he was 
born on the high seas when his parents were 
immigrating from England to this country. 
As his father and his mother were both of 
English birth, and as he was born aboard a 
vessel flying the English flag, he was born an 
English citizen, according to law; but, as he 
was born in no particular country, but on a 
portion of the earth's surface which is com- 



mon to all countries, and as his father and 
mother had practically renounced allegiance 
to P^ngland, although they had not yet be- 
come citizens of the LInited States, it would 
appear to the average man, unlearned in law, 
as if Joseph Dooer was born neither English 
nor American. 

The Dooer family arrived in America in 
1834, and took up their abode at Canan- 
daigua, where Mr. Dooer went to work for 
one of the early settlers and extensive land 
owners, Mr. Gregg, remaining in his employ 
about two years. During this time the sec- 
ond child of the Dooers, George D., the sub- 
ject of our sketch, was born, his birthday 
being July 20, 1836. Near the end of that 
same year the Dooer family removed to Avon, 
and it was in that town that the head of it 
passed the rest of his days. The maiden 
name of the mother of the family was Eliz- 
abeth Shaw; and she gave birth to five chil- 
dren — Joseph, born at sea; George D., born 
at Canandaigua; and Mary E., William B., 
and Jane H., all of whom were born at Avon. 

George D. Dooer was educated at the Avon 
district schools, and since attaining manhood 
has made the butcher's business his chief oc- 
cupation, although he has also carried on 
farming to a considerable extent, and makes 
a specialty of raising stock for the market. 
He has been identified with the butcher's 
business for the past forty years, and some 
idea of the magnitude of his operations and of 
the extent to which he is engaged in stock- 
raising may be gained from the fact that he 
has a tract of two hundred acres in the west- 
ern part of the town devoted exclusively to 
raising stock for the market. He also carries 
on an extensive and highly cultivated farm. 

He was married in 1859, his bride being 
Miss Mary J. Campbell, the daughter of 
Hiram Campbell, of Avon. Eight children 
have been born to them — George E., Will- 
iam J., Herman A., Bessie, Maud E., Mary 
Louise, James S., and Georgiana. Mr. 
Dooer has been a widower for some three 
years, his wife having been removed by death 
January 30, 1892. His daughter, Maud E., 
married A. A. Barnhart, and is a resident of 
Cincinnati, Ohio. She has two children, and 



43° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



named the first one after her father, George 
D. The second one is named Archibald A. 
George E. Dooer married Jessie Knight, and 
has had one child born to him, Onnolee. 

Always an active and stirring man, of quick 
intelligence and decision, Mr. George D. 
Dooer has gained prominence in public as 
well as in business affairs. He held the posi- 
tion of Collector four years, served as Super- 
visor during the years 1872, 1873, 1874, 
1875, 1877, and 1885, has long been a mem- 
ber of the Board of Village Trustees, and at 
the present writing is President of that body. 
He was President of the water-works in 1888. 
Mr. Dooer cast his first vote for President in 
i860, when he voted in favor of Stephen A. 
Douglas 

Being 
and in farming, it naturally follows that Mr 
Dooer is also interested in societies which 
have to do with those occupations. He has 
been awarded many premiums at cattle shows, 
and he believes in encouraging such exhibi- 
tions in every legitimate way; for the way to 
attain the best possible results at the least 
possible expense is to compare notes with 
your neighbor, and that is just what cattle 
shows are for. Mr. Dooer was a director of 
the Western New York Agricultural Society, 
and is Vice-President of the Livingston 
County Agricultural Society. 



keenly interested in stock-raising 



§OHN R. STRANG, a prominent attor- 
ney of Livingston County, residing at 
Geneseo, was born at Gait, Canada, 
January 8, 1840. His father, James 
Strang, was a native of Scotland, where he 
resided until he reached manhood. He was 
well educated, and upon ataining his majority 
decided to enter the ministry of the Presbyte- 
rian church. After graduating from a theo- 
logical seminary, he came to America about 
1830, and for some time supplied various pul- 
pits in the churches of the Associate Presby- 
terian Presbytery of Stamford, which at that 
time included all of Western New York, and 
the eastern part of Canada now known as 
Ontario, spending a number of months in 
York, Livingston County, N.Y. He was 



called to the pastorate of the Associate Pres- 
byterian church at Gait, Canada, in 1833, 
continuing as pastor there until his decease, 
which occurred in October, 1857, at the age 
of sixty-three years, after having preached the 
gospel in one church for a period of twenty- 
four years. The maiden name of his wife was 
Rosanna Innis. She was a daughter of Hugh 
Innis, a farmer, who about 1812 removed 
from Delaware County to York, in Livingston 
County, becoming one of the early settlers of 
that town, and passing the remainder of his 
life there. She married the Rev. James 
Strang in 1838, and resided with him at Gait 
until her decease in 1848. Five children 
were born to them, of whom three are still 
living, namely: John R., the subject of this 
sketch; Hugh, now principal of the Collegiate 
Institute at Goderich, Canada; and James, a 
farmer, also living in Canada. 

John R. Strang attended the schools at 
Gait, and at the age of sixteen commenced 
teaching. He taught one year in the town of 
his residence and two years at Berlin, Canada, 
after which he entered the law school at 
Albany, N.Y., remaining two terms, and 
coming from there to Geneseo for the purpose 
of reading law with Judge Scott Lord. In 
March, 1862, he enlisted in the One Hundred 
and Fourth New York Volunteer Regiment, 
and at its organization, on March 8 of that 
year, was commissioned Second Lieutenant of 
Company G, and immediately went to the 
front with the regiment, remaining with it 
throughout its long service, which closed July 
29, 1S65. During this period he was re- 
peatedly promoted, being commissioned First 
Lieutenant of the company in September, 
1862, Major of the regiment in November, 

1862, and Lieutenant Colonel in December, 

1863. While holding his commission as 
Lieutenant, he also served as Adjutant of the 
regiment for several months and as Assistant 
Adjutant-general on the Brigade Staff for 
some time. After April, 1862, he took part 
in all the engagements of the Army of Vir- 
ginia, to which his regiment was attached, 
closing with the second battle of Manassas; 
and after his regiment was transferred to the 
Army of the Potomac, September 3, 1862, he 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



43' 



participated with it in the battles of South 
Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chan- 
cellorsville, Gettysburg, and most of the en- 
gagements of Grant's campaign in Virginia 
during the summer of 1864, at one period dur- 
ing which his regiment was under fire daily 
for forty successive days. At the battle of 
VVeldon Railroad, August 17, 1864, Colonel 
Strang was severely wounded, and was taken 
prisoner and removed to the Confederate hos- 
pital at Petersburg, Va., from which place he 
was eventually taken to the hospital at the 
famous Libby Prison at Richmond, Va. 
About the last of October he was paroled; 
and in December, having recovered suffi- 
ciently from his wound, he was placed in com- 
mand at Camp Parole, Annapolis, Md., and 
later of the District of Annapolis. He was 
finally exchanged on March 25 of the follow- 
ing year, and about the same time was com- 
missioned Colonel of the One Hundred and 
Fourth Regiment, but was unable to reach 
his troops until three days after Lee's surren- 
der. He remained in command of the regi- 
ment until its final muster out, July 29, 1865. 
After his return to Geneseo he resumed his 
law studies with Judge Lord and also his 
course at the Albany Law School, from which 
he graduated in December, 1865, being ad- 
mitted to the bar in the same month. After 
spending a number of months in the Southern 
States, he returned once more to Geneseo, in 
July, 1866, and began the practice of law, in 
which he has been actively engaged ever 
since. From 1866 to 1876 he was associated 
with James B. Adams as his partner, and 
since January i, 1882, Lockwood R. Doty, 
Esq., has been associated with him under the 
firm name of Strang & Doty. Besides his 
law practice he is engaged in other business 
enterprises, being one of the proprietors of 
the Livingston Republican^ one of the leading 
weekly newspapers published in the county, 
and also serving as executor and trustee of 
large estates. In 1878 Colonel Strang was 
elected District Attorney of Livingston 
County, and held the office for two terms. 
In 1872 he was elected Clerk of the Board of 
Supervisors, serving four years, in 1876, 
1877, 1885, and 1 886 was Supervisor of the 



town of Geneseo, and has been actively inter- 
ested in all local public matters, educational, 
social, and political. In politics he is and 
always has been a pronounced and active Re- 
publican. He has been an active friend of 
the public schools and of higher education, 
was long one of the Trustees of the Geneseo 
Academy, and is now serving as a member of 
the local Board of Trustees of the State normal 
school at Geneseo. 

In 1867 Colonel Strang was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Louise Whitcomb, daughter of 
Walter Whitcomb, a merchant and banker 
of Nunda, N.Y. They have four children — 
Louise, a graduate of the Geneseo Normal 
School, and now a teacher; Walter Whit- 
comb, now attending the College of Physi- 
cians and Surgeons in New York City; Arthur 
Innis, a student in Cornell University; and 
Sophia, who is attending the normal school. 
Both of the sons are graduates of the aca- 
demic department of the Geneseo Normal 
School. 

Colonel Strang has been a Master Mason 
since 1864, and has been Secretary and Junior 
Warden of Geneseo Lodge, No. 214, A. F". 
& A. M. He is a comrade of A. A. Curtis 
Post, No. 392, Grand Army of the Republic, 
of Geneseo, and has been Post Commander for 
four terms, besides holding other offices in 
the same order, and is also a member of the 
Loyal Legion, New York Commandery. He 
is identified with the Presbyterian church, 
being a member of its Board of Trustees, and 
having also been an Elder since 1872. 




'AMUEL B. CARR, a well-known 
and prosperous farmer of Benning- 
ton, and a life-long resident of this 
town, was born upon the farm he 
now occupies, July 6, 1S51. His father, 
Moses Carr, was a native of Connecticut, born 
in 1803, and was the son of David Carr, a sol- 
dier of the War of i8i2, who later in life 
came to New York State, where he died at the 
advanced age of ninety-seven years, smart and 
active both mentally and physically to the day 
of his death. 

Moses Carr and Lucy Coon were married in 



432 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Connecticut in 1824, and came to this State, 
first locating at Bridgevvater in Oneida 
County, from wliich place they removed to 
Orleans County, finally settling in Wyoming 
County about the year 1833 or 1834. Mr. 
Carr purchased a tract of wooded land in Ben- 
nington, which had been improved to the ex- 
tent of having a small log house erected for 
temporar}' habitation. He diligently applied 
himself to work, and in the course of a few 
years cleared over one hundred acres, and 
erected a substantial house and farm build- 
ings, thus establishing a permanent home for 
himself and family. Of the three sons and 
six daughters born to them, two sons and four 
daughters are still living, namely: Sarah, 
wife of Frank Reed, residing in Wisconsin; 
Elizabeth, wife of George W. VV'right, of 
Beloit, Wis. ; Hannah, who married Albert 
Allen, of Orleans County; Sophronia, wife of 
Jacob Suiter, of Genesee County; Marcus, a 
farmer in the vicinity of l^ennington; and 
Samuel B., the subject of this sketch. The 
other son, James Carr, enlisted as a volunteer 
at Union Square, New York City, in 1861, in 
the Eighty-seventh Regiment, New York Ar- 
tillery. He was made a prisoner at the battle 
of Fair Oaks and confined at Hogg Island, 
coming home to die, at twenty-two years of 
age, of blood-poisoning and other bad effects 
caused by ill treatment and exposure. His 
sister Laura, wife of Seymour Lewis, died at 
Palmyra, leaving one son, Charles Lewis. 
The mother died March 12, 1891, aged 
eighty-six, and the father in July, 1894, at 
the advanced age of ninety-one years. 

Samuel B. Carr has been a life-long resi- 
dent of Bennington, never having left his na- 
tive town except for short visits. He received 
his education at the district schools, and ac- 
quired a thorough knowledge of agriculture in 
assisting his father on the home farm. On 
June 16, 1 87 1, he was united in marriage to 
Miss Lina Jones, of Folsomdale, daughter of 
Orson Jones, now deceased, who was an early 
settler in Bennington. Mrs. Carr died March 
12, 1894, at the age of forty-eight, leaving 
three children. The eldest of these, Orson, 
a young man of twenty-two years, who mar- 
ried Ann Rice, resides at home. Warren, 



aged fifteen, and Lucy, in her thirteenth year, 
are attending school. Mrs. Carr left one 
brother, Irving Jones, of Darien, and a sister, 
Mrs. Aurelia Winship, of Ashtabula, Ohio. 

Mr. Carr is a Democrat in politics and an 
admirer of President Cleveland. He has 
served as Highway Commissioner for three 
years. In 1891 he erected his fine barn, a 
structure thirty-two by seventy feet, sixteen- 
feet posts, and in the same year rebuilt his 
residence. He keeps several cows, cheese 
being the principal dairy product. His farm 
is exceedingly fertile and free from weeds and 
brush, as he is an exceptionally neat and par- 
ticular farmer. It is situated upon high 
ground, but is very smooth and level, being 
without doubt one of the most valuable pieces 
of farm property in the town. He has toiled 
incessantly for many years; and the compe- 
tency which is the result of his exertions 
allows him to enjoy a much-needed recreation, 
although he is still strong and robust. In his 
latter years Mr. Carr has travelled consider- 
ably in the West, being absent from home 
during short intervals, but finds no part of the 
country so agreeable to him as his own pleas- 
ant and healthful home in Western New York. 




RS. MARY JACKSON OLIN, a 
highly respected resident of Perry, 
widow of the late German B. 
Olin, was born in that town near 
the village of La Grange, May 31, 1836. 
She was the daughter of John and Esther 
(Tillou) Martin, and grand-daughter of James 
and Mary (Jackson) Martin, the grandfather a 
native of Ireland and the grandmother of 
Scotland. They were married in Ireland, 
came to America, and settled in Scipio, Ca- 
County, N.Y., when the country was 
and reared four children — Mary Ann, 
married Joshua Cornwell; Elizabeth, 
of Junius Butler; William; and John. 
Mr. and Mrs. James Martin, after a long life 
of prosperity, died at an advanced age in 
Scipio. It may be worthy of mention that 
the mother of James Martin lived to reach the 
unusual age of one hundred and one years. 
John Martin was born in Ireland, and at 



yuga 
new, 
who 
wife 




.,«^#4' 




GERMAN B. OLIN. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



435 



the age of one month was brought by his par- 
ents to America. He was educated in Scipio, 
and came to East La Grange when a young 
man, and purchased a large tract of wild land, 
upon which he began a pioneer's life in a log 
cabin. He cleared and improved a valuable 
farm, and later erected a substantial resi- 
dence, which is still standing. Although a 
man of indomitable purpose and iron nerve, 
he was remarkably cheerful and jovial in his 
disposition. He died at the age of fifty-three 
years, leaving a widow, Esther Tillou Martin, 
and three children — Mary J., the subject of 
this sketch; Martha M., born July i6, 1840, 
who married Charles S. Read, residing in 
Perry, having two children; and John J., who 
married Eliza Wiggins. She died, leaving 
two sons — John B. and Charles G., the 
younger of whom his aunt, Mrs. Olin, has 
reared, educated, and started in business. 
John J. Martin married for his second wife 
Mary Keeton, b}' whom he has one son, 
William K. 

Esther Tillou, Mrs. John Martin, was a 
daughter of James Tillou, who was born in 
New York City, November 2, 1766, and died 
in the town of Perry, Wyoming County, near 
Burke Hill. His children were as follows: 
Betsey, Jacob, Sophia, Jane, Phebe, Corn- 
burry, Esther, Ann Maria, Rufus, Mary, 
James, Rachel, Clementine, and John B., by 
first wife, and Mary Frances, by second wife. 
James Tillou's first wife was Fanny Dayton, 
and his second Mary Donaldson, widow of 
^^'illiam Lester. Both wives were born in 
New Paltz, N.Y. 

Mary Jackson was educated in the district 
schools and LeRoy L^niversity. In 1858 she 
was united in marriage to German B. Olin, 
who was born in Perry, April 6, 1837, and 
was a son of Truman and Betsy (Hoyt) Olin, 
grandson of Ezra Olin, great-grandson of John 
Olin, and great-great-grandson of John Olin, 
Sr., who came to America from Great Britain 
in the year 1700, and settled in East Green- 
wich, R.L, where he died June 10, 1745. 
The following are descendants of John, his 
second son, born September 17, 1741, who 
died, leaving nine children. Ezra, second 
son of John, born in Rhode Island, March 23, 



1772, came to Perry in 1S29, where he lo- 
cated in the eastern part of the town on a 
large tract of land, became a very prosperous 
farmer, and died November 5, 1858, having 
had fourteen children. Truman, son of Ezra, 
born in Rhode Island, October 16, 1810, was 
there educated ; and in 1824 he came to Perry, 
where he taught school, and on August 28, 
1834, was married to Betsy Hoyt, who was 
born in Otsego County, April 9, 18 14. He 
was a practical farmer, and by diligence and 
judicious management accumulated quite a 
large fortune. He died March 23, 1882, 
leaving a wife and two children, one having 
preceded him to the other shore, namely — 
Helen, who was born February 9, 1839, ^"cl 
died February 4, 1842; German B. is now 
deceased; Milo H., born December 3, 1842, 
married Mary B. Chapin, resides in Perry, 
and is a banker, having five children — Mary 
E., Carrie A., Walter T., Richard M., and 
German L. 

German B. Olin, whose portrait accom- 
panies these memoirs, was educated in the 
schools of Perry and at Lima Seminary and 
Andover. After completing his studies he 
purchased a farm of one hundred acres, upon 
which he erected a new residence, and remod- 
elled the other buildings. He lived there 
eight years, then sold the place, and moved to 
Perry, where he engaged in mercantile busi- 
ness, which he afterward sold, and purchased 
thirty-five acres of land, located at the north 
end of the village on Main Street. He here 
went into the nursery business, tastefully fit- 
ting up his grounds and establishing a beauti- 
ful home. He later went into partnership 
with W. H. Tuttle and others in manufactur- 
ing the patent spring tooth harrow. In this 
business he continued until 1881, when on 
account of feeble health he went South in 
hope of recovering, but died in Aiken, S.C. 
He was a very active member of the Pres- 
byterian church and a Republican in politics, 
always taking an intelligent and hearty inter- 
est in public affairs. Having no children of 
their own, Mr. and Mrs. Olin adopted Walter 
Weld at the age of eleven years, a relative of 
the family, whom they educated and started 
in life. He is now a railroad agent in De- 



436 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



troit, Mich. He married Minnie Sheldon, 
and has two children — Winifred and Flor- 
ence. Since her husband's decease Mrs. Olin 
has remodelled her house, erected a new and 
well-appointed barn, and made other improve- 
ments. She is an active member of the Pres- 
byterian church. 




HARLES B. McNAIR, a representa- 
tive of one of the earliest settled fam- 
ilies of Livingston County, is a 
practical and progressive agricultur- 
ist, owning and occupying an excellent farm 
in Mount Morris. A native of Livingston 
County, he was born in Groveland, January 
29, 1829, being a son of Robert McNair, who 
was born in Northampton County, Pennsyl- 
vania, May 29, 1793- 

Mr. McNair traces his ancestry back to the 
hardy race of the Scotch-Irish, a people who 
are essentially Scotch in their inherent quali- 
ties of thrift and industry, Ireland having 
been to them but a temporary abiding-place. 
His great-grandfather, John McNair, was born 
in Scotland, and emigrated from there to 
County Donegal, Ireland, in 1690. He re- 
mained in the Emerald Isle until after the 
birth of some of his children, and then in 
1738, desirous of a better field of labor for his 
offspring, came to America, locating in 
Northampton County, Pennsylvania, where he 
spent the remaining days of his life. In 
1794 two of his sons, John and Hugh McNair, 
came to the Genesee valley to assist in the 
survey of this section of the country; and two 
years later another son, William, the grand- 
father of our subject, and a native of County 
Donegal, Ireland, came hither with his fam- 
ily, making the overland journey with teams. 

William McNair located in what is now 
Groveland, Livingston County, but was then 
included in the limits of Ontario County, and 
was one of the actual original settlers of this 
portion of the State. He was an intimate 
friend of Colonel Williamson, the land agent, 
who gave him his choice of land; and he 
selected three hundred acres of heavily tim- 
bered land, for which he paid five dollars per 
acre, and in the dark depths of the primeval 



forest reared a log house, and at once began 
to clear a farm. On that homestead he lived 
until called to his eternal rest, at the extreme 
age of ninety-six years. The maiden name of 
his wife was Sarah Horner, and by her he had 
four children. 

Robert McNair, the father of Charles B. 
McNair, was a small child when he came with 
his parents to this county; and he witnessed 
the wonderful transformation of the wilder- 
ness into a well-developed country, teeming 
with the productions of the farmer, mechanic, 
manufacturer, and merchant. In the days of 
his youth, deer, bears, wolves, and smaller 
game were abundant, and besides furnishing 
sport for the hunter and trapper supplied the 
pioneer with a large part of his subsistence. 
Railways and canals were then unheard of; 
and, markets being far distant and almost in- 
accessible, the early settlers raised their own 
food products, and made sugar from the sap of 
the maple. Robert McNair lived with his 
parents until his marriage, and after that time 
occupied a part of the old homestead. With 
characteristic Scotch energy and industry he 
carried on general farming, and in addition 
thereto dealt extensively in cattle. He was 
prospered in all of his undertakings, added to 
his landed estate, and at the time of his death, 
which occurred when he was seventy -one 
years old, was the owner of upward of two 
thousand acres of land, all lying within this 
county. He married Amelia Warner, a na- 
tive of Richmond, Ontario County, and a 
daughter of William Warner, of Lima. She 
died at the age of sixty-three years, leaving 
nine children, as follows: William R., Sarah 
A., Henry W., Charles B., Miles B., Mary 
J., Amanda W., Emma, and Augusta C. 
One child, Robert Augustus, was drowned at 
the age of eighteen months. 

Charles B. McNair, the subject of this per- 
sonal narrative, received a substantial educa- 
tion in the district school; and this was 
advanced by attendance at Canandaigua Acad- 
emy. He remained an inmate of the parental 
family until 1850, and then went to F"ond du 
Lac, Wis., going via the Lakes, which was 
then the most convenient and expeditious 
route. After remaining there one season, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



437 



Mr. McNair returned to the home of his 
youth, and finally settled on the farm which 
he now owns and occupies, and which he has 
since managed with profitable results. 

On the 19th of October, 1853, he was 
united in marriage with Miss Henrietta P. 
McNair, a native of Groveland, Livingston 
County, and a daughter of William and Sarah 
(Pierpont) McNair; and their union was 
blessed by the birth of the following children: 
Marion became the wife of the Rev. F. P. Gil- 
man, and accompanying him as a missionary 
to Hainan, South China, was the first white 
woman to visit the interior of that country; 
Flora A. is the wife of Professor J. A. Rock- 
fellow, of Cedar Rapids, la. ; Henrietta P. is 
the wife of the Rev. F. E. Bancroft, pastor of 
the First and Second Presbyterian Churches 
of Sparta; Sarah L. is at home; Jean A. is the 
wife of Professor C. W. Taylor, of Northamp- 
ton, Mass.; Caroline W. is at home; Charles 
H. died in September, 1893, aged twenty- 
three years; William W. died in 1863, at the 
age of four years. 

The father of Mrs. McNair was born in 
Northampton County, Pennsylvania, and was 
the son of Hugh McNair and the grandson of 
one William McNair. He was but six years 
old when he came with his parents to this 
county, and having been reared to farming 
pursuits was engaged as a tiller of the soil 
through life. He purchased land from his 
father, and buying other land as his means 
permitted became the possessor of about three 
hundred acres of choice land, the improve- 
ments being the best in the locality. He 
married Sarah Pierpont, a native of Litchfield 
County, Connecticut. She is of distinguished 
English ancestry and a lineal descendant of 
John Pierpont, who emigrated from England 
to America in 1640, and settled in Ro.xbury, 
Mass. The next in line of descent was the 
Rev. James Pierpont, a Congregational min- 
ister of Roxbury, and later of New Haven, 
Conn., where his last years were passed. He 
was one of the founders of Vale College. His 
son James was a life-long resident of Con- 
necticut; and his son, William Pierpont, the 
maternal grandfather of Mrs. McNair, was a 
prominent woollen manufacturer of Plymouth, 



Conn., where he resided until his decease. 
The maiden name of his wife was Huldah 
Ensign. She was a native of Connecticut and 
a life-long resident of that .State. Their 
daughter, Sarah (Pierpont) McNair, now an 
aged woman, resides on the homestead, where 
she is tenderly cared for by her two daughters, 
and is surrounded by all that makes life 
desirable and pleasant. 



fHOMAS BRODIE, of Caledonia, was 
born in Henley-on-Thames, February 
16, 1827, son of William Brodie, who 
was born in Perthshire, Scotland, September 
II, 1790. Leaving his native heathery moors 
at the age of twenty-one, William Brodie, 
who was a skilled botanist, and had taken up 
the profession of scientific gardening, went to 
the quaint old town, Henley-on-Thames, so 
picturesquely described in the article entitled, 
"In the Footsteps of Dickens," in the Cos- 
mopolitan for May, 1893. Here at Fawley 
Court he began his favorite employment, 
being put in charge of the landscape garden- 
ing of a gentleman of rank, who had an impos- 
ing mansion and extensive domain lying along 
the banks of the Thames. With a large force 
of men, some seventy in number, and all 
necessary means for carrying on his work, the 
beautiful grounds, with their patches of wood- 
land and sea-gravelled carriage drives, sloping 
down to the river's edge or winding off to 
some old castle hard by, were soon trans- 
formed under his skilful and artistic hand. A 
collection of ancient maps and plans in ink 
and water-colors, drawn by himself with the 
utmost precision and accuracy, showing the 
location of the various greenhouses, foun- 
tains, miniature lakes, rustic bridges, flower 
plots, serpentine walks, clumps of shrubbery, 
and deer park, are still in possession of the 
family. 

After eleven years' residence in England 
Mr. Brodie was married to Miss Elizabeth 
Avery; and to them were born six children, 
four sons and two daughters; namely, Will- 
iam, Jr., Charles, Thomas, Mary, John, 
Frances. The schools of Scotland being 
thought superior to those of England, Will- 



438 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



iam, Jr., at the age of six and Charles at four 
were sent there to be cared for; and there, 
separated from father and mother for four 
years, they were kept in school until their 
parents were ready to sail for America in the 
summer of 1833. They all embarked at Lon- 
don; and, after six weeks" battling with wind 
and wave, the good old ship "Hannibal" 
brought them safely into port. During the 
passage a violent storm raged for many hours, 
at which time every passenger was confined 
within the hold of the vessel save Mr. Brodie, 
who was permitted to remain on deck with 
the captain, his good judgment and self-pos- 
session giving confidence, and being rather 
reassuring than otherwise. Ten days after 
reaching New York they proceeded up the 
Hudson on a steamboat to Albany. Here 
they were transferred to a canal boat upon the 
Erie Canal, where for one week they slowly 
crept along toward their destination. On 
their way a little incident occurred which 
seems noteworthy. The family had come to 
some distance west of Albany without Mr. 
Brodie, he having tarried behind in New York 
to look after some missing baggage, intend- 
ing to take a packet, which made much 
better time than the ordinary boats, and 
overtake his family before they would reach 
Rochester. One night as Mrs. Brodie was 
anxiously watching amid the darkness packets 
shooting past, as they had frequently done 
before, she said to a neighbor, who had ac- 
companied them across the ocean, as an ap- 
proaching packet drew near, "Brodie is on 
that boat, and I shall shout." The reply was, 
"You might as well shout to the man in the 
moon." Nothing daunted, she shouted at the 
top of her voice, "Brodie!" and the response 
came back, "Aye, aye!" and soon to their 
great joy he was with them. Was this a psy- 
chological phenomenon or a special interposi- 
tion of Providence to relieve a burdened soul? 
Arriving at Rochester, which was then only 
a village, a temporary home was sought and the 
older children immediately placed in school, 
while the father went out to prospect for the 
future home. This he found in the town of 
Riga, Monroe County, where he purchased a 
farm of one hundred and twenty-nine acres. 



well watered by the murky stream known as 
Black Creek, and which bore but faint re- 
semblance to the noble Thames. To this 
place he brought his family, and in time a 
beautiful and tasteful country home was 
created. Choice shrubs and fragrant flowers 
adorned the lawn, fruit-trees yielded their 
abundance of every variety, and productive 
fields rewarded the toils of the pioneer and 
his family. They spun yarn for stockings 
and for the making of the homespun fabrics 
which everybody wore in those days; and they 
made their own clothes, raised their own food, 
and depended on merchants for nothing ex- 
cepting such articles as they could not pos- 
sibly furnish for themselves. Three years 
after this home was established in the new 
country, the fifth son and youngest child was 
born, Wilson being the name, given in honor 
of a particular friend of his father, Dr. John 
Wilson, a Scotch physician of the old school. 
As the years went on in this Scotch-American 
home, the children grew up to fill useful and 
honorable places in society. The eldest son, 
William, Jr., taking high rank as a physician 
and being so widely known, it may not be 
out of place to give an extract which appeared 
in the Therapeutic Gazette, published at De- 
troit, Mich., September, 1890, upon the occa- 
sion of his death, which occurred July 30 
previous : — 

"Dr. William Brodie was born at Fawley 
Court, Buckinghamshire, England, July 28, 
1823, and at the time of his decease had just 
entered upon his sixty-eighth year. In 1833 
he emigrated with his parents to America, 
settling on a farm near Rochester, N.Y. 
Later on he entered and mainly through his 
own efforts maintained himself at Brockport 
College. Here he remained three years, 
graduating with honors. In 1847 he removed 
to Michigan, where in the office of Dr. Wil- 
son, of Pontiac, he began the study of medi- 
cine. He soon afterward returned to the 
East, and entered Berkshire Medical College. 
Later he entered the College of Physicians 
and Surgeons, New York, from which he 
graduated in 1850. Returning to Michigan, 
he settled at Detroit, and at once obtained the 
position of House Surgeon at St. Mary's Hos- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



439 



pital. He was also Examining Physician for 
St. Andrew's and St. George's Societies. In 
1855 and 1856 he was Secretary of the Ameri- 
can Medical Association. At this period he 
edited the Feninsulai- Journal of Medicine. 
At the outbreak of the late Civil War he was 
appointed Surgeon to the First Regiment, 
Michigan Volunteer Infantry. Subsequently 
he was appointed Brigade Surgeon. Return- 
ing to Detroit, Dr. Brodie was for many years 
an efficient member of the Board of Health. 
From 1873 until the time of his death he 
acted as Surgeon to the Fire Department. In 
1885 he was chosen a Trustee of the Detroit 
Medical College, also filling the chair of 
evtcj'itiis professor of the principles and prac- 
tice of medicine and clinical medicine. He 
was at different periods the presiding officer 
of the Michigan State Medical and Wayne 
County Medical Societies. In 18S7 he was 
President of the American Medical Associa- 
tion and the same year first Vice-President of 
the Ninth International Medical Congress." 
Vrom.\.\iS. Medical Age., also published in De- 
troit, we extract the following: "Dr. William 
Brodie was a gentleman well and widely 
known among the profession, and universally 
honored by all. He was exceptionally promi- 
nent and a conspicuous figure in medical so- 
cieties and in all measures of reform. He 
was likewise a profound political factor in his 
adopted city and State; and, though perhaps 
unswerving in matters of national concern, in 
those of local import he was guided entirely 
by the needs of the community, and sought 
only the results best suited to the welfare of 
the public. Possessed of all the pertinacity 
inherent to Scottish blood, he was stern and 
uncompromising in matters of right. Beneath 
an apparently brusque exterior Dr. Brodie pos- 
sessed a warm and kindly heart. His friend- 
ships were ardent and strong. He lived to 
see his adopted city grow from a mere village 
to a wealthy, prosperous corporation of more 
than a quarter of a million of inhabitants; 
and to that prosperity he contributed in no 
small degree. He also aided in lifting medi- 
cal progress and medical education to their 
present standard not only in Michigan but in 
the whole United States. He was a life-long 



member and generous supporter of the Episco- 
pal church. He left a wife, one daughter, 
and two sons, one of whom. Dr. Benjamin P. 
Brodie, of Detroit, will worthily wear the 
mantle of his father." 

Of the remaining brothers, Charles, John, 
and Wilson, it may truthfully be recorded 
they have brought no blot upon the family es- 
cutcheon, but are men of sterling integrity 
and genuine worth, highly esteemed in their 
respective localities, each pursuing the avoca- 
tion of their father upon a farm of his own, 
their respective homes being in the States 
of Missouri, Michigan, and Nebraska. The 
sisters, Mary and Frances, were married, the 
former to Edgar Hale, of Titusville, Pa., lum- 
ber and coal merchant, the latter to Robert 
E. McMath, civil engineer, and a graduate of 
Williams College, who for many years was 
in the government employ, but subsequently 
opened an office for himself and sons at 10 15 
Chestnut Street, St. Louis, Mo., known as 
the R. E. McMath Surveying Company, Sur- 
veyors and Engineers. At present he is the 
President of the Board of Public Improve- 
ments of that city. Mrs. McMath and Mrs. 
Hale have both been dead for some years. 

Thomas, the third son, has been alread)- 
named as the principal subject of this sketch. 
Although an P'nglishman by birth, he is cer- 
tainly an American by everything else; for he 
is a firm believer in and an earnest advocate 
of that true freedom and that perfect equality 
before the law which it is the aim of Republi- 
can institutions to secure, and is an American 
"citizen" in the true sense of a very much 
misused word. He was educated at the dis- 
trict school and at the Riga Academy, living 
and working with his father at the homestead 
until the death of the latter, which occurred 
August II, 1854. In 185 I he was married to 
Miss Mary Orcutt, of Riga, with whom five 
happy years were passed, when her death from 
typhoid fever cast a shadow upon his newly 
made home. In 1859 he was again married, 
to Miss Emily Orcutt, who survived but two 
years, leaving him once more alone. Two 
years thereafter, March 18, 1863, he was 
uhited in marriage to Miss Martha Jane Han- 
nah, eldest daughter of Thomas and Agnes 



44° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



(Kirk) Hannah, of Chili, Monroe County, 
which union has continued until the present, 
they having just celebrated their thirty-second 
anniversary. For nine years they lived upon 
their farm in Riga; and in this home were 
born three children — Mary Agnes, Thomas 
H., and Frances B. The parents of Mrs. 
Brodie, whose home had been in Caledonia, 
were now removed by death ; and to this place 
they came for a second home in the spring of 
1872, hoping thereby to secure better advan- 
tages for their children. Scarcely three 
weeks had passed after making the change, 
when their little ones were stricken with 
spinal meningitis, which fatal malady was 
prevalent as an epidemic, and from which the 
two younger died after a few hours' illness. 
The eldest child recovered after a long and 
painful attack of the same disease. Two 
other children were born to them — Avery 
Kirk and Emile Augustine. Agnes was mar- 
ried in 1889 to Harvey F. Remington, at- 
torney and counsellor-at-law, of Rochester. 
Avery K. is a pharmacist, doing business in 
the same city. Emile resides in Caledonia 
with his parents, and is still in attendance at 
school. 

Their mother was educated at the district 
school in her native town and at the Genesee 
Wesleyan Seminary, Lima, K.V. She has 
one brother, John W. Hannah, who resides at 
Caledonia, and who is engaged in active busi- 
ness for the firm of Cordley & Hays, New 
York. Her sister Elizabeth was one of the 
first to enter the school of trained nurses 
opened in connection with Bellevue Hospital 
nearly a quarter of a century ago. She took a 
special course at the Bethany Institute, New 
York, also at the Brooklyn Maternity. She 
graduated from the Women's Hospital Train- 
ing School, Philadelphia, in 1882. With the 
utmost devotion to her calling as a surgical 
nurse, she has continued her arduous labors 
until recently. Mrs. Brodie's father, Thomas 
Hannah, was born near Londonderry, and her 
mother not far from the city of Belfast, both 
in the northern part of Ireland, whither their 
ancestors had fled from Scotland during the 
bitter persecutions of the Covenanters in the 
seventeenth century. Mrs. Hannah's father. 



James Kirk, was born in 1750, and was mar- 
ried to Jane Dinwiddy in 1775. In 1819 
they emigrated to Montreal, Canada, where 
Agnes, the youngest child, lived until her 
marriage to Mr. Hannah in 1833. 

Mrs. Brodie's paternal grandparents were 
Alexander and Martha (Scott) Hannah, who 
came to Chili, Monroe County, where were 
already located their four sons; namely, John, 
Thomas, Andrew, and Alexander. Their re- 
moval by death occurred in 1840. John and 
Thomas emigrated from their native land in 
1826, the former stopping at Montreal, while 
the latter came to Western New York. He 
was young in years, being but twenty-two, 
friendless and without means ; but with a 
resolute will, keen perceptions, frugal and 
industrious habits, and faith in God he was 
bound to succeed, and he did. His first work 
was the threshing of a quantity of grain with 
the primitive implement called a "flail." 
All of his surplus earnings was invested in 
the purchase of land; in this way he soon be- 
came the owner of a good farm, and at the 
expiration of seven years found himself so 
well equipped for the carrying out of his plans 
that nothing was needed save the helpmeet. 
With no facilities for travelling except what 
he could furnish for himself, Thomas Hannah 
started in February with his own team to 
drive to Montreal, be married, and to bring 
home his wife. The marriage was solemnized 
on March 9 at the residence of Mr. William 
Kirk, a brother of the bride, which was pret- 
tily situated at the foot of Montreal Moun- 
tain. The homeward journey was begun the 
next day; and for six days over ice and snow 
they made their way, stopping at night to rest 
at some country inn or hospitable farm-house. 
Upon reaching the Genesee River, they found 
at the place of crossing a fissure in the ice, 
several feet in width, with a rushing current 
underneath. What was to be done? Their 
home was on the other side, and night was 
approaching. Every moment of delay only 
added to their peril. With the promptness 
and assurance of a courage that knows no de- 
feat, the word of command was given, accom- 
panied by a sharp crack of the whip, and the 
obedient steeds with one fearful leap brought 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



441 



sleigh and occupants safely over; and the 
prayer that trembled in the heart of the bride 
was answered. The home was reached that 
night; and there, amid the rude surround- 
ings, the old story of pioneer life, with its 
joys and sorrows, its successes and failures, 
was begun. The forests were felled, and the 
new ground was tilled. There was no end to 
the chopping and hauling of wood, some of 
which found its way to the market, and some 
of which had to be converted into charcoal 
fires; while the ample hearth of the settler's 
home called for a perpetual supply of "back 
logs." 

All this meant work, early and late, with 
unabated rigor, as the years went on. Farms 
were bought and sold, and speculations entered 
upon, which generally proved advantageous, 
until the old proverb was again verified: 
"The hand of the diligent maketh rich." 
Through all his life Thomas Hannah was a 
liberal supporter of the church and school, and 
a zealous friend of every species of reform, a 
great reader and keen observer of everything 
pertaining to governmental and national 
affairs. In politics he was Republican. At 
an early day he identified himself with the 
Methodist Episcopal church, its aggressive 
spirit and unconventional forms being in keep- 
ing with his taste. He retired from active 
life in the spring of 1867, removing to 
Rochester, but soon after purchased a house 
and lot in Caledonia, and came here with his 
family in the month of November the same 
year. On March 4, 1868, he passed from his 
earthly to his heavenly home. The devoted, 
faithful Christian wife and mother survived 
him three and a half years, passing to her 
reward September 19, 1871, at which time the 
Caledonia homestead became the property of 
Mrs. Rrodie. Here the Brodie family now 
reside. 

Thomas Brodie and his wife are both mem- 
bers of the United Presbyterian church of 
Caledonia, and have long been hearty sup- 
porters of church work. 

Mr. Brodie has always been a retiring man; 
that is to say, he has shunned notoriety, and 
has had no desire to hold public office. It is 
true that he has served on the excise board; 



but he accepted that position from a sense of 
duty, not from any liking for the place, for he 
has decided convictions on the subject of the 
sale and use of into.xicating liquors, as is in- 
dicated by the fact that he finally has joined 
the Prohibition party, after having been iden- 
tified with the Republican party for many 
years. He cast his first Presidential vote in 
1848 in favor of Zachary Taylor. 




Syracuse, 



^RS. CORA A. MORGAN, a resi- 
dent of Silver Springs, town of 
Gainesville, widow of the late 
William A. Morgan, was born at 
N.Y., and is the daughter of Hiram 
Britton, of that city. At the breaking out of 
the Civil War Mr. Britton enlisted as a pri- 
vate in the One Hundred and Twenty-second 
Regiment, New York Volunteers, and was pro- 
moted to be First Lieutenant, and later Cap- 
tain. He served through the entire war, was 
in many of the severe battles, and was slightly 
wounded. At the close of the struggle he re- 
turned to Syracuse, where he still resides in 
retirement. His wife, Rachel Van Valken- 
burgh, daughter of James Van Valkenburgh, a 
salt-mill owner in Syracuse, was born in Ful- 
ton, Oswego County. They had but one child, 
Cora A., Mrs. Morgan. Mrs. Rachel Britton 
died at the age of thirty-one years. 

Cora A. Britton was educated in the public 
schools of Syracuse, was graduated at the high 
school in that city, and afterward taught three 
years in the Townsend School. On December 
28, 1876, she was married to William A. 
Morgan, son of Andrew J. and Fanny (Dun- 
can) Morgan. Andrew J. Morgan was of Eng- 
lish descent. He died in Albany at the early 
age of twenty-seven. His wife, Fanny Dun 
can, who was born in .Scotland, reared but one 
son who attained his majority, William A. 
She died in Binghamton. She was twice mar- 
ried. Her second husband was Joseph Cam- 
eron, of Binghamton, by whom she had one 
daughter, Mary, who married Professor N. H. 
Lewis, principal of the school at Silver 
Springs. 

William A. Morgan was born in .Syracuse, 
and educated in the public schools of that city 



442 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



and Binghamton. He learned the trade of a 
wood-turner, which he followed in Syracuse 
for some time. He afterward was a shipping 
clerk in the employ of the Onondaga Salt 
Company at Syracuse and later at Warsaw. 
Then, removing to Silver Springs, in company 
with his uncle, Mr. J. M. Duncan, who is a 
very prominent man in that locality, he formed 
the Duncan Salt Company, buying the plant of 
the then Silver Springs Company. Mr. Mor- 
gan assumed the position of book-keeper and 
treasurer of the new concern, with whom he re- 
mained until his decease, which occurred July 
2 1, 1 89 1, at the age of thirty-seven years. 
He was a Republican in politics, and held the 
office of School Trustee. He was a member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church, and super- 
intendent of its Sabbath-school, also secretary 
of the Church Board. 

Mrs. Cora A. Britton Morgan has two chil- 
dren — Van Valkenburgh and F"annie Duncan. 
She, like her late husband, is a devoted mem- 
ber of the Methodist church, in which she 
maintains an active interest, and is also a 
teacher in the Sabbath-school. Mrs. Morgan 
is a descendant of highly respectable families. 
Her ancestors, who were prominent in the 
early settlement of the State, on her 
side were Dutch and English, one line 
back to Sir Francis Drake, and 
mother's side, "Mohawk Dutch" and 
east Yankee. " 



father's 
tracing 
on her 
"down- 




NELSON SHATTUCK, an able busi- 
ness man antl highly respected resident 
of the town of York, Wyoming County, 
N.Y., is a native of Pepperell, Middlese.x 
County, Mass., where his family has resided 
for three generations. He was born on the 
28th of November, 1846, being a son of Tim- 
othy R. and grandson of David Shattuck. 
The grandfather lived and died in Pepperell, 
the town of his birth, with the sweet and 
pleasant associations of his childhood close 
about him in his last years. 

Timothy R. Shattuck was a shoemaker, and 
like his father passed his life in his native 
town. He married Miss Mary E. Kendall, of 
the neighboring town of Dunstable, a daugh- 



ter of Timothy Kendall and a niece of Amos 
Kendall, who was Postmaster General of the 
United States in President Jackson's adminis- 
tration, and managed the affairs of that im- 
portant department of the civil service with 
signal ability. To Timothy R. and Mary 
(Kendall) Shattuck si.x children were born — 
T. Nelson; D. Herbert; Alden K., living in 
Pepperell; George H., of the same village; 
Anna C, also of Pepperell; and Carlton F., 
who is dead. 

Mr. T. Nelson Shattuck was educated in 
the common schools and academy of his native 
village. His father, who felt the great im- 
portance of each man's having some sure and 
certain means of support, had him taught the 
shoemaker's trade, by which he earned his 
living until 1868, when he came to York on a 
visit to his maternal grandfather. This visit 
resulted in the formation of a partnership 
between old Mr. Kendall and his grandson, a 
business connection which must have been of 
much advantage to the younger and doubtless 
a particularly happy one to the older man. 
It continued until the death of Timothy Ken- 
dall in 1888. The control of the entire busi- 
ness was now assumed by the grandson. 
During the period of his residence with Mr. 
Kendall, in the year of 1875 and the twen- 
tieth day of October, Mr. Shattuck was mar- 
ried to Miss Evvie A. Kennedy, of York. Of 
this union a daughter, Maud E., has been born. 

Mr. Shattuck has the esteem and confidence 
of the community in which he lives, and his 
neighbors have given evidence of their appre- 
ciation of his worth by electing him to the 
offices of Justice of the Peace and Highway 
Commissioner. He is a conscientious mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church of Piffard, set- 
ting thereby the goodly example of a godly 
and religious life to the younger men of the 
village. He has been loyal to the Republi- 
can party since his first vote was cast for 
General Grant in 1S6S. 



(W^C 



EORGE M. SHULL, editor and pro- 
\ '*) I prietor of the Mount Morris Enter- 
— prise, has ably conducted that paper 
since its establishment, March 4, 1875. He 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



443 



came to Mount Morris, Livingston County, 
N.Y., from Dansville, in which place he was 
born, April ii, 1S46, and where also he was 
reared. His father died in 1861 ; and he, 
the eldest of four children, was thrown largely 
upon his own resources. His early education 
was secured at the country district school and 
the printing-office, he being obliged to dis- 
continue his school studies at the age of thir- 
teen years. In i860 he entered the office of 
the Advertism- at Dansville as "devil," in the 
course of time completed his trade as journey- 
man printer, and afterward worked at it in 
neighboring towns. 

On the breaking out of the war in 1861 he 
twice enlisted, but was rejected on account of 
his youth. A third time, however, in Sep- 
tember, 1864, though still a beardless boy, he 
passed muster, being assigned to Company I, 
One Hundred and Eighty-eighth Regiment, 
New York Volunteers, Fifth Corps, Army of 
the Potomac, and remaining in the service 
until the close of the war, when he was dis- 
charged at Rochester, N.Y. He then returned 
to his native town, and worked at his trade, 
filling the position of foreman of the Living- 
ston Republican at Geneseo for a short time, 
and in 1870 accepted the foremanship of the 
Dansville Express, afterward becoming local 
editor and business manager. 

During Mr. ShuU's twenty years' residence 
in Mount Morris he has taken an active part 
in politics, the Enterprise having been a faith- 
ful and consistent adherent and advocate of 
Democratic principles from its start. Mr. 
Shull has served several years as Secretary of 
the Democratic County Central Committee. 
He was Chairman of this committee when 
Grover Cleveland was elected President for 
the first time. Mr. Shull has been Clerk of 
the village of Mount Morris since 1879, '"'"^ 
is a member of several prominent societies; 
namely. Bell wood Lodge, Independent Order 
of Odd Fellows, J. E. Lee Post, No. 281, 
Grand Army of the Republic; Active Hose 
Company, and Livingston Club. Upon the 
location of the Craig Colony for Epileptics by 
the State Board of Charities and the bill au- 
thorizing the purchase of the Shaker property 
for the State, Mr. Shull was the first one 



named by Governor Flower as one of the five 
forming the Board of Managers for a term of 
five years. Upon the organization of the 
Board he was elected Secretary and a member 
of the Executive Committee. 




ICHAEL D. HYMAN, a well- 
known miller of Strykersville, 
town of Sheldon, and member of 
the firm of C. Hyman & Sons, 
was born in this town, August 6, 1849. His 
father, Conrad Hyman, senior member of the 
above-named firm, and his grandfather, Con- 
rad Hyman, were both natives of Bavaria, 
Germany, where the elder Conrad was born in 
1793. The grandparents came to America in 
1835, bringing their nine children, four sons 
and five daughters. After a voyage of forty- 
three days they landed in New York on July 
4, and immediately started for Buffalo by way 
of the canal, being three weeks on the jour- 
ney. Here the family remained three weeks 
more, while Grandfather Hyman was seeking 
a location. He was provided with small 
means, about four hundred dollars; and he 
purchased about fifty acres of land in Sheldon, 
near the village, upon which a log house had 
already been erected. 

The family moved to this farm, and began 
the work of preparing it for tillage. They 
provided the necessities of life by cutting four- 
foot wood, which they sold to the ashery at 
one dollar per cord, and paid five cents a 
pound for flour. By untiring energy the emi- 
grants succeeded in establishing a home for 
themselves, and later possessed a good farm 
of one hundred and fifty acres. Of the nine 
children who originally came to America all 
but two are living, the oldest being Lena, 
wife of Dominick Cassel, now residing in 
Buffalo at the age of eighty years; and the 
youngest is John Hyman, a resident of Dans- 
ville, who is over sixty years of age. The 
father died in 1859, at the age of sixty-seven, 
and the mother, who survived him, in 1876, 
at seventy-six years. 

The son Conrad, who was born in Bavaria 
in 1824, married Elizabeth Smith, a native of 
Germany, who reared a family of seven chil- 



444 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



dren, five sons and two daughters, all of whom 
are living — Michael D., the subject of this 
sketch; John, who resides at home, and is 
unmarried; Conrad Hyman, Jr., a member of 
the firm of C. Hyman & Sons, having a wife 
and one son; Joseph, a farmer in Sheldon, 
having three children; Mary, wife of Albert 
Muste, also of Sheldon ; Charles, a resident 
of Strykersville, having two daughters; and 
Elizabeth, wife of E. J. Conroy, a farmer and 
produce dealer in Java Centre. The mother 
died in 1884, at the age of fifty-six. 

On October 28, 1873, Michael D. Hyman 
was united in marriage to Miss Lena Myers, 
a daughter of Peter Myers, a farmer of the 
town of Bennington. Mr. Myers was born in 
Prussia, where he also followed agriculture, 
and came to the United States in the year 

1853, at the age of twenty-six or twenty- 
seven. The maiden name of his wife was 
Catherine Kirsh, and they were married in 

1854. Peter Myers died in 1885, at the age 
of sixty-nine years. His widow still survives 
at the age of nearly eighty-two years. She is 
the mother of ten children, six sons and four 
daughters, Mrs. Hyman being her seventh 
child. Mr. and Mrs. Hyman have two 
children — Mary, a young lady residing at 
home, who is diligently pursuing her musical 
studies; and Conrad, a youth of seventeen. 
Mr. Hyman built his present residence, 
which is beautifully finished in hard woods, 
in 1889. Mr. Hyman is a radical Republi- 
can in politics; and, though residing in a 
strongly Democratic town, he has been elected 
Supervisor three consecutive terms, and is 
still in office. Both himself and family are 
German Catholics. His father, Conrad 
Hyman, who is also a Republican in politics, 
has been Highway Commissioner. 

The firm of C. Hyman & Sons consists in- 
dividually of C. Hyman,' Sr., and C. 
Hyman, Jr., and Michael D. Hyman. They 
own and operate a large flouring-mill, to- 
gether with a saw and planing mill attached, 
and are also extensive dealers in agricultural 
implements, carriages, wagons, hides, cement, 
lime, salt, etc. This business, which is on 
a thoroughly solid basis, was established by 
Conrad Hyman, Sr., forty-two years ago; and 



fifteen years ago he admitted his sons into 
partnership. He is also largely engaged in 
the cattle business. The firm own and con- 
duct four farms, aggregating four hundred and 
fifty acres. 




,ETER CAMPBELL. In March, 
1798, a number of married and 
single persons left Broadalbin, 
Perthshire, Scotland, to seek a home 
in America. They' shipped from Greenock, 
landed in New York, and then proceeded 
without delay to Johnstown, Fulton County, 
where they remained for nearly a year, unde- 
termined as to their future location. Colonel 
Williamson, agent of the Pulteney estate, 
hearing of their arrival, journeyed there to see 
them, to induce them to settle on his com- 
pany's land near the Big Springs, then known 
as the town of Northampton, County of Onta- 
rio, which name was subsequently changed to 
Caledonia. He offered them land at three 
dollars per acre, payable in wheat at six shil- 
lings a bushel, and agreed to provide them 
with necessary provisions until they were able 
to provide for themselves. As they had 
expended all of their money for passage to 
America, and were consequently too poor to 
purchase land in Johnstown, Colonel William- 
son's alluring offers were deemed worthy of 
acceptance; but, wiih the habitual shrewdness 
of their race, before giving him a decided 
answer, they sent out five of their number to 
explore the Big Springs country anil report 
the result of their investigations. 

Upon receiving the favorable report of the 
five explorers, a part of the emigrants in 
Johnstown made immediate preparations for 
their journey to the Big Springs country. 
The number of men, women, and children did 
not exceed twenty, including Peter Campbell, 
wife, and child, the subjects of this sketch. 
Mr. Campbell at once set at work to make a 
home for himself and family by purchasing 
one hundred and seventy-five acres of unim- 
proved and heavily timbered land, situated on 
Spring Creek, outlet of the Big Springs 
proper, clearing a small space and erecting a 
I02: cabin thereon. This served him and his 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



44S 



family for some years; but, as soon as he was 
in a position to do so, he built a frame house, 
which, with some alterations and improve- 
ments, is occupied at the present time by 
some of his descendants. 

The early settlers of Caledonia were Chris- 
tian people, and among the first objects of 
their care was the provision for religious ser- 
vice. Accordingly a meeting was held at the 
house of Peter Campbell, November lo, 1802, 
for the purpose of organizing a religious soci- 
ety, to be incorporated under the laws of the 
State. At this meeting they selected the 
name of the Presbyterian Religious Society of 
Caledonia, and at the same time chose five 
Trustees, Peter Campbell being one of the 
number, he afterward becoming a Ruling 
Elder, and remaining so until his demise. 

Peter Campbell was born in Perthshire, 
Scotland, in 1769, and his wife, Catharine, in 
1767, at the same place. They had a family 
of seven children, of whom the eldest, Jen- 
nett, was born in Scotland. The others, who 
were all born in Caledonia, were: Duncan, 
Daniel, Peter P., John P., Alexander, and 
Ann. Peter Campbell died November 9, 
1836, and Catharine, his wife, November 20, 
1 83 1. 

Peter P. Campbell, the third son, who was 
born in 1805, seven years after the arrival of 
the family in Caledonia, inherited the home- 
stead, the tract originally taken up by his 
father. He was educated in the district 
schools, was a farmer by occupation, and re- 
sided at the old homestead all of his life. 
When a young man he was a member of the 
-State militia, belonging to an independent 
company. He was a public-spirited, hard- 
working, and progressive citizen, and proved 
a most valuable and popular member of the 
community, succeeding his father as a Ruling 
Elder in the religious organization of Cale- 
donia. He died August 29, 1884, at the age 
of seventy-nine years. He was twice mar- 
ried, and by his first wife, Elizabeth Stewart, 
who died in 1844, he had five children, 
namely: Catharine, Peter P., who married 
Elizabeth E. McPherson, Jane, wife of Rob- 
ert Ritchie, all residing in Caledonia; Don- 
ald P., a merchant at Mumford, N.Y., who 



died February 26, 1895, aged fifty-three 
years; and James P., a farmer, residing in 
Dakota. 

Mr. Peter P. Campbell's second wife was 
Margaret McKenzie, daughter of Alexander 
and P21izabeth Mclntyre McKenzie. Her 
mother, Elizabeth Mclntyre, was born at 
Appin, Argyleshire, Scotland, November 20, 
1798, came to America in 1805 and to Cale- 
donia in 181 I. Although then but thirteen 
years of age, she kept house for two brothers 
while they cleared the tract of wild land 
which they had taken up. She lived to see 
her great-grandchildren, being in her ninety- 
third year at the time of her death. 

By his second wife, Margaret, Mr. Camp- 
bell had eleven children, namely: Jennett 
Elizabeth, who died in infancy; Margaret A., 
who lives at the homestead; the Rev. John P., 
who married Alice Freeny, and has for the 
past sixteen years been pastor of Faith 
Church, Baltimore, Md. ; Elizabeth, also re- 
siding at the homestead; Jennett, wife of 
James Annin, Jr., residing at Caledonia; 
Alex. P., who married M. Augusta Hannah, 
and at this writing resides at and has charge 
of the homestead; Ellen Mary, now Mrs. 
Hugh Campbell, residence Caledonia; Chris- 
tabel, instructor in public school, Denver, 
Col. ; Florence A., public-school teacher, 
Brooklyn, N.Y. ; Eveline J., artist, at the 
homestead; Dr. Duncan, graduate Hahne- 
mann Medical College, Philadelphia, Pa. 
Mrs. Margaret McKenzie Campbell survived 
her husband nearly ten years, and died May 
21, 1894, aged seventy years. 



<i* ■»► 




RS. CYNTHIA A. MATTHEWS. 
With the exception of about three 
years" residence in the town of 
Wyoming, this estimable and 
highly respected lady has passed her entire 
life at her present home in Genesee Falls, 
where she was born, March 7, 1823, being the 
daughter of a pioneer, who cleared and im- 
proved the farm from the wilderness. Her 
father, Erastus Robbins, was born at Middle- 
bury, Vt., May ii,"l796, her grandfather, 
John Robbins, whose death occurred when she 



446 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



was a child, having been an early settler in 
that State. 

Erastus Robbins was the fourth of seven 
children, all sons except one, Esther Rob- 
bins, who is still residing in the Green 
Mountain State. Erastus was reared to the 
vocation of a farmer, and upon attaining his 
majority journeyed westward in search of a 
suitable place in which to locate. Arriving 
in this region with but one dollar in his pos- 
session, he purchased an axe, and boldly ap- 
plied himself to the task of clearing a farm 
from one hundred acres of wilderness, which 
he had acquired wholly upon credit, includ- 
ing the site of the present home of his daugh- 
ter. He erected a log house, in which he 
and his wife resided for a short time. They 
then journeyed back to Vermont for the pur- 
pose of moving their household effects to the 
new home, which they accomplished with the 
aid of an ox team, and began life in the for- 
est. Little by little the wild lands were 
cleared and became cultivated fields. The 
log shelter was superseded before many years 
by a plank house, in which their children 
were reared; and in course of time the pres- 
ent residence was erected, where the parents 
passed the remainder of their lives. Erastus 
Robbins died at the age of sixty-eight years, 
in very comfortable circumstances, owning a 
farm of two hundred and thirty acres, besides 
having considerable money at interest. His 
wife, Cynthia Burnell, daughter of Samuel 
Burnell, was born February 22, 1794. She 
reared two of her three children — Cynthia, 
Mrs. Matthews; and Clarissa A., born Sep- 
tember 27, 1819, now the widow of David H. 
Warne. The mother died at the age of 
seventy-two years, being, as was her husband 
also, a member of the Presbyterian church. 

Cynthia A. Robbins was carefully reared 
by her parents and trained in the arts of 
housewifery. In January, 1851, she married 
her first husband, William H. Chute, a me- 
chanic, residing in Pike, who was engaged 
with his father, Noah Chute, in manufactur- 
ing pumps. He was a member of the Baptist 
church, and died in 1858. Her second hus- 
band, whom she wedded in June, 1862, was 
Isaac \'. Matthews. He was born in Wash- 



ington County, New York, his father, for 
whom the son was named, being also a native 
of Vermont and a farmer. Young Isaac, on 
reaching his majority, settled in Michigan as 
a merchant, and married Elizabeth Bliss, who 
lived but a few years. After her decease he 
returned to Covington, N.Y., near Wyoming, 
where his father had in the mean time located. 
He subsequently removed to Wyoming, in 
which town he married his second wife, by 
whom he had five children. One of the four 
still surviving is his son, Charles Matthews, 
who has been a candidate for governor on the 
Populist ticket. The second wife of Mr. 
Isaac V. Matthews died after eighteen years 
of wedlock; and the subject of this brief 
record became his third wife, leaving her 
home in Genesee Falls, and residing with her 
husband at Wyoming for a period of three 
years, when they returned to the former place, 
where he remained until his decease, which 
ocurred in 1889, at the age of eighty years. 

Mr. Isaac V. Matthews was prominent in 
local public affairs, serving as Supervisor two 
or three terms and as Justice of the Peace for 
several years, also filling the office of High- 
way Commissioner and other minor posi- 
tions. He was a very active member of the 
Presbyterian church, in which he was an Elder 
and superintendent of the Sunday-school. 
His sons are also active in church affairs, the 
eldest being a lawyer in Chicago. The sec- 
ond, who is a leader in the Populist party, 
is in the oil business; and the third is in real 
estate business, living in Salem, Ore. 

Mrs. Matthews is a bright and interesting 
lady, representing one of the oldest and most 
prominent families in the county. It is evi- 
dent that there have been transmitted to her 
many of those substantial characteristics for 
which the blood of old Vermont is so justly 
celebrated. 



fHADDEUS GERRY, a successful tiller 
of the soil, a useful and esteemed mem- 
ber of society, was born in Avon, 
sixty-two years ago, and has resided here all 
his life. His father, Jonathan H., was a 
native of the old Bay State, born in Hatfield 




MRS. ELiZA WELLES. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



449 



at the beginning of the now almost ended 
century. He came to Livingston County, 
New York, in 1831, when he was just thirty- 
one years of age, and located at Avon ; but a 
number of years elapsed before he bought a 
farm, he renting land at first, and devoting it 
to the cultivation of broom corn. Finally he 
purchased a farm, and lived on it for the re- 
mainder of his days. Jonathan H. Gerry, 
however, was not so much of a farmer as he 
was merchant: and he was largely engaged in 
trade at Avon for about ten years. He was 
the builder of the structure occupied by the 
firm of Allen & Carson as a sanitarium. He 
survived but seventeen years after his arrival 
at Avon, dying in 1848, in the forty-eighth 
year of his age. 

Jonathan H. Gerry married Sarah High- 
land; and they reared six children, of whom 
all but one were boys, their names being as 
follows: Owen, Thaddeus, Houghton, Wells, 
Thomas, and Maria L. Houghton Gerry was 
one of the first to enlist in Captain Sackett's 
company, which was formed at Avon in 1862. 
This company saw a good deal of fighting, 
underwent many hardships, and bore an im- 
portant part in the struggle for the preserva- 
tion of the Union during its three years of 
service. Of the one hundred men who went 
to the front only forty-four returned to be 
mustered out ; and Houghton Gerry was not 
among them, for he had died in a hospital, of 
sickness contracted during service. Mrs. 
Sarah Gerry survived her husband for half a 
century, reaching the age of ninety-four years, 
nearly double the period of his earthly so- 
journ. 

Thaddeus was the second son. He was 
educated at the Avon district schools, and has 
always followed agriculture as an occupation. 
He has resided on his present estate for nearly 
forty years, having bought the place in 1856, 
and having made it his residence ever since. 
Of course he has seen many and radical 
changes occur in Avon and vicinity during 
that long period, has seen what was once 
valuable become worthless and what was once 
worthless become valuable; but he has seen 
no changes take place in what constitutes 
good citizenship, and he has never altered the 



principles that have guided him in the per- 
formance of the duties which cannot be 
slighted by a conscientious man who means 
to be a citizen in fact as well as in name. 
He has served one term as Village Trustee, 
but as a rule has had very little to do with 
public office. 

Thaddeus Gerry cast his first Presidential 
vote for Bell and Everett when he was twenty- 
three years of age, this election occurring in 
1856. He has since been a member of the 
Republican party, never swerving in his alle- 
giance to it, and deeming its past record the 
best possible assurance that could be given of 
its present good faith and its future useful- 
ness. 




,RS. ELIZA WELLES, a venera- 
ble and highly esteemed resident 

of Arcade, widow of Lemuel C. 

Welles, has reached the age of 
eighty-six years, the date of her birth having 
been April 22, 1809. Her parents were John 
and Elizabeth (Seaburn) Miller, of Seneca 
County, where her paternal grandfather, 
Thomas Miller, a native of New Jersey, came 
as a pioneer, and resided considerably more 
than half a century, or until his decease. 
His wife's first name was Rebecca. She 
reared five sons and three daughters, the fam- 
ily being what is known as Low Dutch. John 
Miller was trained to agricultural pursuits, 
and resided in Seneca County until his daugh- 
ter, of whom this is a record, reached the age 
of fifteen years, when he purchased a farm 
situated on Cattaraugus Creek, which he occu- 
pied about fifteen years. Selling it then, he 
removed to Linesville, Pa., residing upon a 
farm there until his death, which occurred at 
the age of seventy-five years. His wife, 
whose maiden name was Elizabeth Seaburn, 
was a daughter of John and Nellie Seaburn. 
She was born in the vicinity of 
X.J., and reared six of her ten 
Eliza, Mrs. Welles, being the only 
living. Mr. and Mrs. John Miller 
members of the Presbyterian church. 

Eliza Miller resided with her parents until 
the year 1826, when she was united in mar- 



Trenton, 
children, 
one now 
were 



45° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



riage to Lemuel C. Welles, a son of Simeon 
and Rhoda Welles, who was born in Sidney, 
Delaware County, and came to Arcade with 
his parents in 1809, when he was eight years 
of age. He was one of eight children, and 
became an old resident of the above-named 
town, his parents having passed the remainder 
of their lives here. Mr. Lemuel C. Welles 
was a thorough agriculturist, and owned the 
farm of two hundred and seventy-five acres 
upon which he settled soon after his marriage, 
and where he lived until his decease, in the 
year 1849, at the age of forty-eight years. 
He was a very successful farmer, thorough- 
ly conscientious and straightforward in all 
business transactions, and a Democrat in 
politics. 

Mrs. Eliza Miller Welles has been the 
mother of eight children, five sons and three 
daughters, namely: Madison J., who married 
Maria Shaw, having one child — Hattie Eliza; 
Betsey Ann, who married Philander Parker, 
and has five children — Luella, Welles A., 
Erastus R., Mary, and Minnie; Harrison, 
who married Nancy Smith, now deceased, and 
had one daughter — Ruth; Lysander; Adelia; 
Martha, who married Stacy W. Robeson, now 
deceased; Volney C, deceased, who married 
Mattie Tisdell, and had three children — 
Lemuel, Raymond, and Carrie; Eastman C, 
also deceased, who married Lizzie Smith, and 
had one daughter, Louie. 

The family is one of high standing in the 
county. Mrs. Welles's daughters were all 
given an academic education, and are ladies 
of superior qualities of mind and character, 
exceedingly active socially and in church 
work, being of the Methodist faith. The ven- 
erable mother, who was born in the first 
decade of the century, and has been a resident 
of \\'yoming County for more than seventy 
)ears, displays even at her present advanced 
age rare intellectual attainments, and is de- 
servedly admired and revered by a large circle 
of acquaintances. 

"She openeth her mouth with wisdom, and 
in her tongue is the law of kindness" — thus 
the ideal woman of the Hebrew Book of Prov- 
erbs, and thus the subject of the foregoing 
sketch and the original of the portrait on 



another page. Happily the "new woman,"' 
so designated of late, began to be long, long 
ago. 




RICHMOND BOSLEY, a farmer 
of Geneseo, a scion of some of the 
best pioneer stock of Livingston 
County, was born in this town, Oc- 
tober 6, 1834. His great-grandfather, John 
Bosley, a native of Maryland, was a lineal 
descendant of Walter Bosley, a native of Eng- 
land, who settled in Baltimore County, Mary- 
land, in 1700, and died in 1715, leaving a 
large estate. In 1792 John Bosley emigrated 
to this State with his family, consisting of 
his wife, three sons, and two daughters, and 
was one of the very first to settle in what is 
now Livingston County, at that time Ontario, 
a vast wilderness, inhabited solely by Indians. 
Mr. Bosley selected a tract of land situated 
at the outlet of Conesus Lake, where was a 
great water-power, which he, being a miller 
by trade, shortly improved by erecting the 
very first mill in these parts. During many 
years the settlers for a distance of twenty-five 
miles brought their grist to his mill upon 
horseback or with ox teams, the long journey 
often making it necessary for them to remain 
over night with the hospitable miller. No 
railways or canals intersected the Empire 
State in these early days, and the nearest 
market available to the pioneers was Albany. 
Consequently they were compelled by force of 
necessity to subsist entirely upon the products 
of their farms. Mr. Bosley had been a slave 
owner in his native State; and he brought his 
slaves with him, but soon after his arrival 
gave them their freedom. The farmers all 
raised flax and kept sheep ; and the women 
spun and wove the stout and durable home- 
spun with which the family were clothed, the 
itinerant shoemaker in his annual visits mak- 
ing the boots and shoes. Mr. Bosley had 
been but three years in his new home when in 
the year 1795 he was suddenly killed by a 
falling limb while walking in the woods. 
His wife, whose maiden name was Hannah 
Bull, was born in England. 

Their son, Edmond Bosley, was but a lad 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



451 



sixteen years of age when he came with his 
parents from Maryland. He succeeded his 
father in the ownership and management of 
the farm, erected a new mill in place of the 
old one, which had been burned, and besides 
operating this engaged in mercantile business, 
continuing this busy employment until 1834, 
when he sold out and moved to Ohio. After 
farming a few years in that State, he finally 
settled in Council Bluffs, la., where he died 
December 15, 1846. His wife, Ann Kelley 
Bosley, died May 12, 1849. She was born 
in Pennsylvania, October 29, 1778. Her 
father was Daniel Kelley, a native of Penn- 
sylvania, who located about the year 1792 in 
what is now the town of Geneseo, N.Y., 
where he became a farmer, and passed the 
remainder of his life. 

Daniel Bosley, son of Edinond and Ann, 
was born in what is now the town of Li- 
vonia, January g, 1805. He was educated in 
his native town, and at the age of fifteen com- 
menced life as a clerk in his father's store. 
Later he served in the same capacity at Avon, 
and in 1831 became a member of the firm of 
Ferman & Hosmer, of Avon. He also ran a 
store in Millville. In 1834 he purchased the' 
interest of his partners, and continued to con- 
duct the business until his decease, which 
occurred in 1884. His wife, Lucia, daughter 
of Brightman Richmond, was born in Livo- 
nia, April 27, 181 1. Her grandfather. Peris 
Richmond, according to the most authentic 
information obtainable, was born in England, 
came to America in Colonial days, and settled 
in New England. 

He married Hannah, daughter of George 
Brightman. Their son, Brightman Rich- 
mond, came to New York State from Connect- 
icut while yet a young man, and visited the 
locality now occupied by the prosperous city 
of Rochester, which then contained but three 
buildings. Considering that situation un- 
healthful, he penetrated the wilderness to Li- 
vonia, and purchasing a tract of timber land 
prepared to clear a farm by first cutting away 
trees enough to make room for a log house, 
which he erected. He resided with a married 
sister for a time, then went back to Connecti- 
cut, where he in May, 1808, married Lucy 



Caldwell Woodruff, daughter of the Rev. 
Hezekiah and Sarah (Caldwell) Woodruff. 
Her father was a Presbyterian minister, who 
preached in different parts of Connecticut and 
New York. Brightman Richmond had been 
educated at Newport, R.I., and was a lawyer 
by profession. Returning with his bride to 
the new home, he immediately entered into 
the practice of law, and at the same time 
superintended the improvement of his farm, 
erecting well-appointed buildings, and resided 
there until his death, which occurred in his 
eighty-fifth year. His wife died at the age of 
sixty-eight. She reared, five children. 

Daniel and ^4ntiadii- ^t^Brightman) Bosley 
reared six children; namely, B. Richmond, 
D. Bradford, William E., George H., Lucia, 
and Ella E. Mrs. Bosley had become a mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church previous to her 
marriage, and her husband united with that 
church at the age of thirty-three years. He 
was formerly a Whig, but later a Republican. 
It will be seen by the above that the ancestors 
of both himself and his wife were among 
the very first settlers in Livingston County. 
They were people of marked ability, unusual 
intelligence, forethought, and courage. 

B. Richmond Bosley was educated in the 
town of his birth, and at a very early age 
began to assist on the farm and in the store. 
Having reached his majority, he began the 
life of an independent farmer upon the prop- 
erty he now owns and occupies. Through his 
untiring exertions this farm, which . consists 
of one hundred and fifty-eight acres, has been 
brought to a high state of cultivation. It is 
situated about five miles from Geneseo, six 
from Avon, and five from Livonia. On Octo- 
ber 22, 1868, Mr. B. Richmond Bosley mar- 
ried Jennie Douglas, a most estimable lady, 
and a native of Caledonia. 

Her father was Alexander Douglas, who 
was born in Cortland County, New York, 
June 9, 18 1 3. His father, Daniel Douglas, 
was born in Argyleshire, Scotland, and waS, as 
far as known, the only member of the family 
that came to America. He resided in Cort- 
land County for a number of years, then went 
to LeRoy, Genesee County, where he stayed 
until about the year 1844, when he finally 



452 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



removed to the then Tcriilory of Wisconsin. 
Alexander Douglas was well educated. In 
early manhood he engaged in the arduous pro- 
fession of school teaching, and later was su- 
perintendent of schools in Caledonia. After 
marriage he there purchased a farm, which he 
occupied till 1863, when he disposed of his 
]iropcrty. and rL-moving to the town of Cali- 
fornia, Branch County, Mich., resided there 
until his death, January 13, 1892, at the age 
of seventy-nine years. His wife, who be- 
fore marriage was Christie McCall, was born 
in Caledonia, May 23, 1S18. She now lives 
with her daughter, Mrs. Bosley. Daniel Mc- 
Call, father of Mrs. Douglas, was born in 
Scotland, and was a son of Duncan McCall. 
He was reared to agriculture, and purchased a 
tract of land in the above-named town, built 
a log-house, and proceeded to clear a farm 
in the wilderness. He lived there until 
his death, at eighty-four years of age. The 
maiden name of his wife was Catherine Mc- 
Call. Mr. and Mrs. Bosley have three chil- 
dren — Edward Richmond, a graduate of 
Yale, class of 1894; Louis Douglas, a grad- 
uate of the Geneseo Normal School, and now a 
teacher ; and Mary C, who lives at home, and is 
attending the Geneseo Normal School. In poli- 
tics Mr. Bosley is a Republican. He and his 
wife are members of the Presbyterian church. 



OHN E. MASON, a prosperous mer- 
chant in North Java, Wyoming County, 
N. v., was born in the neighboring 
town of W'ethersfield on October 25, 
1842. His father, Thomas Mason, was born 
in County Wicklow, Ireland, in 1S07, and 
emigrated to America in 1837. He worked in 
the lead mines of Galena, 111., for two years, 
and then returned to Ireland for his bride, 
Mary A. Kavanah, who came back with him, 
and to whom he was married in New York in 
the spring of 1S40. 

The young couple settled in W'ethersfield on 
a farm of a hundred acres, for which they paid 
nine dollars an acre. More land was added as 
they grew more prosperous, and Mr. Mason 
became a leading farmer of that section before 
many years had elapsed. Mrs. I\Iason, who 



was a native of County Wexford, Ireland, was 
as faithful to her husband as she had been 
loyal to licr absent lover. Seven children 
were Innn to gladden the home and hearts of 
the ixuents, and all grew to maturity; but the 
subsequent brevity of the lives of most of this 
family was pathetic. Thomas, the first-born, 
who was a man of musical intelligence, and a 
very popular teacher in the neighborhood, died 
at thirty-two years of age. James died at 
twenty-one. Mary A., the wife of John Nor- 
ton, died at twenty-two years of age, and was 
buried with the infant daughter whose birth 
had cost her life. Catherine A. died of brain 
fever, aged twenty-two. Elizabeth, wife of 
James Gillespie, was a victim of consumption, 
and died at twenty-two. The youngest-born, 
Charles, who is a merchant and Postmaster in 
Java Centre, and the second child, John E. , of 
this sketch, are the only survivors. Charles 
has a wife, three sons, and two daughters. 
Mr. Thomas Mason died in 1861, aged fifty- 
four years. His widow lived to be sixty-three 
years old, dying in 1873. They were both 
members of the Catholic church. 

John E. Mason's education was somewhat 
meagre, as he had no other opportunities than 
those the district schools of that period af- 
forded. He remained on his father's farm 
until he was twenty-two years of age, when he 
went to Saginaw, IMich., where he secured 
work in a saw-mill. After sixteen months he 
returned to Java, in which place he remained 
until 1S69, when he went to Chicago. He 
there worked as a carpenter and painter for a 
while, and was for a time employed in the 
fancy bakery and confectionery of R. H. 
Fish & Co. in that citv. He was married on 
April 20, 1876, to Miss Eva K. Bald, of Chi- 
cago, and in the following month left the city 
for his native place. Seven years later, in 
18S3, he was bereft of his wife, who died, 
leaving three children- — Nellie B. , Charles 
Edwin, and Catherine. Their respective ages 
now are seventeen, fourteen, and twelve. Mr. 
Mason was married again, the second Mrs. 
Mason being Mary Ann Flattery, a daughter 
of James and Eliza (Glaby) Flattery. The 
offspring of this union are Elizabeth, James, 
and Genevieve. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



453 



Mr. Mason began mercantile business in 
Java in 1877. His first partner in the hard- 
ware store was A. M. Smith, who after three 
years sold his interest to the present firm of 
Mason & Crahan. These gentlemen have es- 
tablished a large and prosperous trade, and 
keep a complete and well-selected assortment 
of all articles in their line. Mr. and Mrs. 
Mason live in their pleasant home, built in 
1884, which is tastefully appointed and well 
ordered. Mr. Mason is a Democrat. He 
served as Postmaster during President Cleve- 
land's first administration. He has been E.k- 
cise Commissioner, and was Supervisor for 
two terms. He is a member of the Catholic 
church, and the erection of the handsome 
new church in Java is largely due to his 
efforts. 



^^♦^» 




)EVI PARSONS, D.D., a scholarly and 
cultured man, was the recipient of an 
excellent education; and this has 
been broadened and increased by 
years of reading and study. For thirty-nine 
consecutive years he has retained the pastorate 
of the Presbyterian church at Mount Morris, 
and during that time has exerted a marked 
beneficial influence over the entire community, 
administering not only to the spiritual needs 
of his flock, but taking an intelligent interest 
in everything tending to elevate the social, 
educational, and moral status of the town or 
county. His .strong personality, innate kind- 
ness of heart, and tender sympathy for all who 
are in affliction or trouble have won for him 
the lasting regard of both old and young, by 
whom he is held in the highest esteem. 

Dr. Parsons is of New England ancestry, 
but a native of York State, his birth having 
occurred in the town of Marcel lus, Onondaga 
County, January 2, 1829. His father, the 
Rev. Levi Parsons, was born in Northampton, 
Mass., August 20, 1779; and his progenitors 
could be traced in the Parsons line to the first 
settlers of that place. He was a young boy 
when his parents removed from Northampton 
to Westhampton, in the same State, where he 
was bred and educated. After completing his 
academical education he entered Williams 



College, from which he was graduated in 
1 801, being class orator on that occasion. 
After two years of teaching in Cornwall, Conn., 
and two years more as a tutor of Williams 
College, he began the study of theology with 
the Rev. Alvin Hyde, D. D., of Lee, Mass., and 
on the completion of his studies was licensed 
to preach at Stockbridge in 1806, He then 
came to Western New York as a missionary, 
and preached in different parts of the State, 
making the journey from place to place on 
horseback, that mode of travelling being in 
wide contrast to the lu.xurious and expeditious 
means employed at the present day. He finally 
located at Marcellus, N.Y., and, being or- 
dained as pa.stor of the Presbyterian church of 
that town, September 16, 1807, there preached 
the gospel for thirty-two years, and remained 
a respected resident of that place until his 
death, November 20, 1864, at the venerable 
age of eighty-five years. The maiden name of 
his wife, to whom he was married October 19, 
1809, was Almira Rice. She was a native of 
Connecticut, and a daughter of Samuel Rice, 
who also was born in Connecticut, the date of 
his birth being October 23, 1751. Mr. Rice 
was an early pioneer of Marcellus, Onondaga 
County, going there in 1795, and purchasing 
a tract of heavily timbered land, by dint of 
steady and persevering labor succeeding in 
hewing out a farm from the primeval forest. 
On the homestead which he improved he and 
his faithful wife passed their remaining days, 
he living to the ripe old age of fourscore and 
four years, while she survived him, living to 
the age of eighty-eight years. Her maiden 
name was Hannah Beach, and she was a native 
of Connecticut. The thrilling scenes through 
which they passed during their years of pio- 
neer life can scarce be imagined by the present 
generation. On their arrival in the county the 
land was little more than a dense wilderness, 
with here and there a clearing, from which the 
smoke from some pioneer's cabin might be 
seen issuing. In subduing the forest and 
watching the growth of the county to a pros- 
perous and wealthy agricultural and manufact- 
uring community, Mr. and Mrs. Rice took 
great delight, and performed their full share. 
Mrs. Parsons died in 1859, at the age of sev- 



454 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



enty-two years, leaving six children; namely, 
Edward, Almira R., Mary A., Israel, Mar- 
garet, and Levi. 

The subject of this brief sketch received 
his early education in the public schools of 
Marcellus, and afterward pursued his studies 
at Moravia Academy. Subsequently, under 
the tutelage of his father, Mr. Parsons was 
prepared for college, and at the age of sixteen 
years entered Hamilton College, from which 
he was graduated with the class of 1849. 
During his college life Mr. Parsons had taught 
school one term ; and after graduation he re- 
sumed his professional career as a teacher at 
East Bloomfield and in the pioneer schools of 
Flint, Mich. In 185 1 he entered Auburn 
Theological Seminary, and was graduated from 
that institution in 1854, having been licensed 
by the Presbytery of Cayuga, June 21, 1853. 
His first settlement as a minister was in 
Otisco, Onondaga County, where he labored 
with zeal and earnestness for a year and a 
half. At the expiration of that time he came 
to Mount Morris, preaching his first sermon 
in February, 1856, and on the loth of July 
following was ordained by the Ontario Presby- 
tery as pastor of the church, a position which 
he has since retained. 

Mr. Parsons has been twice married. His 
union with Miss Mary Wadsworth, a daughter 
of the Rev. Charles Wad.sworth, of Richfield 
Springs, N.Y. , was solemnized in 1854. 
After a brief life of wedded happiness she 
passed to the higher existence, her death oc- 
curring August 2, 1856. She left one son, 
Stoyell C. Parsons. In 1858 Mr. Parsons 
married Miss Harriet M. Pease, of Auburn, 
N.Y. She was born November 5, 1838, on 
the island of Cyprus, where her father, the 
Rev. Lorenzo W. Pease, a Presbyterian mis- 
sionary under the auspices of the American 
Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, 
was stationed for several years, dying in Au- 
gust, 1839. Of this second union nine chil- 
dren have been bom; namely, Elizabeth L. , 
Frederick L., Mary A., Levi E., Harriet M., 
Henry T. , Arthur L. , Gertrude W. , and 
Anna C. 

Dr. Parsons is President of the Board of 
Trustees of the Auburn Theological Seminary, 



and has belonged to the Rochester Presbytery 
twenty-five years, during which he has been 
its stated Clerk. He was Moderator of the 
Synod of New York from October, 1892, to 
October, 1893. 




MMI H. HOSKINS, a retired mer- 
chant and capitalist of Cowlesville, a 
village in Bennington, N. Y., was 
born in this town, October 21, 1826, 
being a son of George Hoskins, who was a 
native of the State of Connecticut, born at 
Windsor in the month of February, 1784. 

George was the son of Augustus Hoskins, 
an humble resident of the town of Windsor, 
Conn., and his wife, Lovisa Parsons Hoskins, 
a native of the same town, born about the year 
1790. Some four years previous to his mar- 
riage George Ho.skins came to Bennington for 
the purpose of locating. He journeyed on 
foot, carrying a pack on his back, and acquired 
a tract of aljout one hundred and fifteen acres 
of wild land, which he commenced to improve; 
and, after cutting down trees and preparing the 
materials, he erected a small frame house, 
thus becoming one of the early settlers of the 
town. 

After remaining two years he returned to 
his former home in New England, and imme- 
diately following his marriage, which occurred 
in 1 8 10, moved with his wife to the new home 
which he had commenced to establish. They 
journeyed to their destination with a hor.se and 
wagon, the property of Mrs. Hoskins's father. 
The house which George Hoskins erected, 
which is the one in which his son Amnii was 
born, is still standing on the old farm, one 
mile west of Bennington. This farm, which 
had been increased to one hundred and ninety- 
two acres, was sold by the subject in 1871 for 
forty dollars per acre. George Hoskins be- 
came a prosperous farmer and a thoroughly up- 
right citizen, dying at the home of his son in 
1873, at the advanced age of eighty-nine 
years, having survived his wife, who died in 
1864, at the age of seventy-four years. 

Ammi H. Hoskins is the youngest of five 
children, two sons and three daughters, of 
whom he is now the only survivor, two sisters 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



455 



having died about the year 1823 or 1824, 
one at the age of four years, and the other ten 
months. His elder sister, Louisa, wife of 
Caleb H. King, died at Cowlesville in 1887, 
aged seventy-five years, leaving one son, 
George H. King, now a resident of Cowles- 
ville. The only brother of Ammi H. was 
George G. Hoskins, born December 13, 1824, 
and died June 12, 1893. He was a well- 
known and highly respected gentleman, and 
an able politician, who served both the State 
and the nation. He resided in Attica, having 
moved from Bennington Centre in 1865. He 
was a Justice of the Peace at Bennington four- 
teen years in succession, and Supervisor two 
terms, although the Republican party was in 
the minority. He was appointed United 
States Internal Revenue Collector, which 
office he resigned when elected a representa- 
tive to Congress in 1870, being re-elected 
in 1872. In 1880 he was elected Lieutenant 
Governor. He was a man of means, having 
been very successful in business as well as in 
politics, and scrupulously honest in both. He 
left an estate of fifty thousand dollars. His 
wife, whose maiden name was Hollenback, 
survives him, with one child, with whom she 
resides — Elvira Georgia, now the wife of 
R. P. Scalt, an attorney at Butler, Pa. Mr. 
Hoskins's parents were Presbyterians, his 
mother having been a devoted member of that 
church. 

Ammi H. Hoskins received his education at 
the district school of Bennington Centre, 
which was supplemented by one year's attend- 
ance at the seminary in Alexander. He was 
trained to farm work, and remained at home 
assisting his father until his marriage, which 
occurred June 2, 1852, to Lodema A. Hollen- 
back, of Darien, daughter of Derrick Hollen- 
back. His wife's father was a farmer, who 
came from Massachusetts, and who died at the 
above-named village in 1866, aged about sev- 
enty years, having reared a family of ten chil- 
dren. Mr. Hoskins commenced mercantile 
pursuits when a young man, at Bennington 
Centre, with his brother, under the firm name 
of B. G. & A. H. Hoskins. He was engaged 
in this, at the same time taking charge of 
his father's farm and business affairs, until 



1864, when he removed to Cowlesville, where 
he became a member of the firm of Hoskins & 
Howes. Ten years later his partner retired, 
and he conducted the business alone two years. 

Mr. Hoskins has been favored with a fair 
degree of prosperity, and, although he has seen 
the ups and downs of life, has gradually ad- 
vanced to a position which, on the whole, 
amounts to a successful and satisfactory busi- 
ness career. He is a radical Republican in 
politics, and has served as Postmaster both at 
Bennington and Cowlesville. He was Super- 
visor at the latter place in 1865-66, handling 
a large amount of funds, and clearing the 
county from its bonded debt of four thousand 
dollars. He was Major and afterward Lieu- 
tenant Colonel of the First Regiment, Na- 
tional Guards, and held the latter rank until 
the regiment was disbanded. 

They reside at their pleasant home in 
Cowlesville, which he erected in 1870. Mr. 
and Mrs. Hoskins have not been blessed with 
children. Of late Mr. Hoskins has been in 
failing health, but still attends to business. 
For the past nineteen years his office has been 
located near his residence; and, although he 
does not claim to be a banker, he acts in that 
capacity, together with the usual business of a 
general capitalist. 



M 



ANIEL LACY is a native of Cale- 
donia, has resided in the State of 
^?> J New York all his life and in the 
town of Avon for about thirty years. 
His father, Ephraim, was also a native of this 
State, he having been born at Goshen, Orange 
County: but his grandfather, William, was 
born in Connecticut, town of Danbury, and 
yet was one of the earliest settlers in Orange 
County, New York. He was a farmer, and 
he cleared and otherwise improved a good deal 
of land in that section. 

Ephraim Lacy removed from Orange County 
with an ox team, coming first to Monroe 
County, and from there to Livingston, where 
he took up a farm in Caledonia. It was part 
of the Holland Purchase, was entirely wild 
land, and had an area of about two hundred 
acres. It is very difficult for the present 



45^ 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



generation to realize that peaceful, prosper- 
ous, and highly civilized New York State was 
the home of "wild" Indians comparatively 
few years ago. Yet the history of the State 
shows such to be the fact, and what brings it 
still nearer home to us is the history of old 
families whom we all know — for instance, 
that of the Lacy family; for, when the father 
of the subject of this sketch took up the farm 
on the Holland Purchase, there were Indians 
in that section. He built a log house; and, 
shortly after he had fairly begun improvement 
of the property, he married Mary Dickinson, 
of Vermont. The sparsely settled nature of 
the country at that time is indicated by the 
fact that the nearest market that Ephraim 
Lacy could find for his wheat was at Han- 
ford's Landing, below Rochester. He and 
his wife had four children — Charlotte, who 
died in 1840; Volney, who died in 1890; 
Mary A.; and Daniel, the subject of this 
sketch. 

Daniel began his education in the district 
schools, and finished it at Canandaigua Acad- 
emy. To the city people of to-day most of 
the district school-houses of the present time 
look small, bare, and inconvenient; but, 
compared with those of Daniel Lacy's boy- 
hood days, they are almost palaces. The 
school-houses he attended were built of logs, 
were equipped with slab seats; and the other 
furnishings were equally crude. But the 
value of a school depends more upon the kind 
of teachers it has than it does upon the kind 
of furnishings it is supplied with; and, judg- 
ing by the record made by those who got all 
their schooling in the old district schools, 
they had many good teachers in those days. 
Our subject chose farming in those days; and, 
when his father divided up his lands among 
his boys, Daniel got the original farm. He 
remained on it until 1865, when he sold out 
to his brother, came to Avon, bought a farm 
of about fifty acres, and now has another farm 
located on the river front. 

Born in 1827, Daniel Lacy was thirty-eight 
years old in 1865, when he came to Avon, 
where he has resided ever since. In October, 
1850, he married Frances Sackett, daughter 
of Colonel Orange Sackett and Amanda 



(Sheldon) Sackett. They have had five chil- 
dren — Harriet H., Samuel S., John J., 
Frances V. Z., and Harry D. Lacy. Harriet 
H. married George W. Carman, of Marine 
City, Mich.; and they have five children — 
Ruth, Frances L., John L., Henry M. Stan- 
ley, Florence. Samuel S. married Lillian 
Stone, of Lima; and they live in Rochester. 
John J. married Emma E. Wallace, of Catta- 
raugus. Frances and Harry D. are at home. 
During his long residence in Avon Mr. 
Lacy has found time to devote to public ser- 
vice, and has held various reponsible public 
offices. He was Highway Commissioner at 
the building of the big bridge at Spencerport 
in 1877, has been Assessor five years in Cale- 
donia and three years in the town of Avon. 
He was School Trustee at the time of the 
organization of the union free school, and 
held that position for eighteen years. Dan- 
iel Lacy cast his first Presidential vote in 
1848 for Zachary Taylor, and has been a 
member of the Republican party from its for- 
mation. He is as consistent in his friend- 
ships as he is in his political views, and is a 
"good neighbor" as well as a public-spirited 
citizen. 




EV. JAMES A. HICKEY, the be- 
loved pastor of St. Mary's Roman 
Id \ Catholic Church, Geneseo, N.Y., 
through whose untiring efforts this 
new and handsome edifice has been completed, 
was born in Weedsport, Cayuga County, 
N.Y., August 19, 1859. His early education 
was obtained in the Weedsport Union School 
and Academy, from which he was graduated 
in June, 1876. He entered St. Andrew's 
preparatory Seminary, Rochester, in Septem- 
ber, 1877, and St. Joseph's Theological Semi- 
nary, Troy, N.Y., in 1878. Upon the 
completion of his course in the latter institu- 
tion he was ordained, July 10, 1882, in St. 
Patrick's Cathedral, Rochester, by the Right 
Rev. B. J. McOuaid. After a short vacation 
his first appointment to official duty was as 
Assistant at St. Mary's Church, Auburn, 
where he remained nearly two years. He was 
then assigned the pastorate of St. John's 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



457 



Church, Spencerport, where he spent four 
years. His association with St. Mary's 
Church, Geneseo, began April 2, 1888, at 
which time he succeeded the Rev. M. D. 
Mussmacher, St. Mary's first resident pastor. 
In Father Hickey's general appearance there 
is much to give assurance of honest frankness 
and winning sympathy and benevolence. 
That he is earnest, zealous, and efficient the 
results of his labor best attest. St. Mary's 
numbers about seven hundred souls, with the 
churches of Fowlerville and Piffard making 
about twelve hundred; and these, with a flour- 
ishing Sunday-school, superintended directly 
by Father Hickey, evidence weighty duties, 
each in turn faithfully and zealously per- 
formed. 

Father Hickey is the son of Patrick 
Hickey, a native of County Limerick, Ire- 
land, and his wife, Ann Griffin, daughter of 
Michael Griffin, of County Clare, Ireland. 
Patrick Hickey was the son of James and 
Catherine Hickey, of Ireland. He was one 
of four or five children, and he reared seven. 
He came to America in 1847, and settled in 
Weedsport, Cayuga County, where he fol- 
lowed the vocation of a maltster, having 
charge of the extensive malt house of Miller, 
Kirby & Co. He became a highly respected 
citizen, and carefully reared his large family, 
as follows: Catherine, who married, and is 
now deceased; James A., the subject of this 
sketch; Mary, who now resides with him; 
Eleanor, widow of the late James H. Managh, 
of Adams Basin, N.Y. ; Michael J., a clerk 
in the employ of the New York Central 
Railroad in New York City; Mary and Lizzie, 
who died while young. 

An upright, broad-minded, kind-hearted 
Christian gentleman, since assuming his du- 
ties at St. Mary's Parish, Father Hickey has 
by his many noble qualities of mind and char- 
acter not only endeared himself to his congre- 
gation, but has won the respect and good will 
of all classes, irrespective of creed or nation- 
ality. Many could readily bear witness, were 
they called upon to do so, to his kindness of 
heart; but the various acts of quiet charity 
performed by him are best known to those 
who have been blessed thereby, and the filial 



love and confiding obedience of the people 
over whom he presides is sufficient testimony 
to his worth as a faithful pastor and guide. 



/STkORGE W. HUNN, a farmer now 
\ '3 I living in retirement at Gainesville, 
N.Y., was born in Ontario County, 
June 3, 1826, being a son of James G. Hunn 
and a grandson of the Rev. Zadoc Hunn, both 
natives of Massachusetts. The grandfather 
was a graduate of Yale College, and studied 
for the ministry. He spent his last years in 
Canandaigua, Ontario County, where he died 
at about fifty-four years of age. He was the 
father of six children, all of whom are now 
deceased. 

James G. Hunn came to Ontario County in 
1793, at the age of seven years, and was bred 
to the life of a farmer. On attaining his ma- 
jority he settled upon part of the tract of land 
which his father had improved, and resided 
there until his decease, at the age of seventy- 
nine. This farm is now owned by a grandson. 

James G. Hunn and his wife, whose maiden 
name was Eliza Gillett, and who was a native 
of Massachusetts, reared eleven children, all 
of whom are now deceased except Thomas and 
George W., the subject of this sketch. Mrs. 
Eliza Gillett Hunn's mother, whose maiden 
name was Mary Morton, was cousin of the 
present Governor of New York State. She 
was born at Granville, Mass., in 1807, and 
died at the old homestead in 1876, aged sixty- 
nine. Mr. Hunn's parents were members of 
the Presbyterian church, and his father was a 
Trustee. 

George W. Hunn passed his earlier years 
in Ontario County, and remained there until 
after his marriage. He was educated in the 
district schools, and was carefully trained by 
his father to the labors of husbandry. After 
attending the Canandaigua Academy two 
terms he assisted his father in the manage- 
ment of the farm, and in 1862 purchased for 
himself a farm in the town of Eagle, where he 
resided about fourteen years. He then sold 
his property, and moved to Dakota, where 
he engaged in farming, having settled upon a 
tract of six hundred and fortv acres of land. 



4S8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



He first went to that State for the purpose of 
accepting a position with a land company, and 
had charge of twenty thousand acres; but 
after three years he relinquished his position, 
and for four years more devoted his time and 
energies to wheat-raising. In this he was 
remarkably successful, raising and shipping 
large quantities. He at length sold his prop- 
erty in the West, and returned to Gainesville, 
where he purchased a house and lot adjoining 
the residence of his daughter, the wife of Dr. 
Frank Button, a very prominent physician in 
this locality. 

In 1852 Mr. Hunn was united in marriage 
to Mary Anson, daughter of Silas Anson, who 
was a son of Jonathan Anson, of Ontario 
County. Her parents died in Michigan. 
Mr. and Mrs. Hunn have two daughters, 
namely: Fannie Morton, who married Dr. 
Frank Dutton, as above-mentioned, and has 
one daughter — Mae Dutton; and Angle, who 
married John Honeyman, a carpenter and 
builder, residing in the West, they having 
four children — Fannie, Arthur, George, and 
Lewis. 

Mr. Hunn is a Republican in politics, and 
has been Excise Commissioner. He and his 
wife are Universal ists in their religious belief 
and members of that church in Perry, holding 
fast the "eternal hope" 

'• that good shall fall 
At last, far off, at last, to all, 
And every winter change to spring." 




kRS. HARRIET G. FRALEY, su- 
perintendent of the department of 
instrumental music at the Gene- 
seo Normal School, is a daughter 
of John Angler, of Nunda, Livingston County, 
N. Y. , who was a native of Keene, N. H., 
where his father, Silas Angier, a farmer, was 
a life-long resident. Mrs. Fraley's father was 
educated in the public schools of his native 
town, and at the age of twenty-seven years 
went to Nunda, where he purchased a farm, 
and also established himself in the boot and 
shoe business, which he conducted in connec- 
tion with farming, but later disposed of his 
mercantile interests in order to devote his en- 



tire attention to agriculture. Mr. Angier still 
resides at Nunda upon his farm, a hale, hearty 
old gentleman, at the age of about eighty 
years ; he has been a very prominent man in all 
public affairs of the town. 

Mrs. Fraley's mother, whose maiden name 
was Mary Rockefellow, was a daughter of 
Samuel Rockefellow, a miller of Delaware. 
She was one of a large family, and became the 
mother of six children, of whom these four 
lived to attain their majority: Althea Angier, 
who married A. J. Knight, a prominent lawyer 
of Arcade, Wyoming County, N. Y. ; Ella, 
wife of O. E. Chittenden, of Batavia; Harriet, 
the subject of this sketch ; and Carrie, who 
married Frank Carter, of Nunda, and now 
resides at the old homestead there. ■ Mrs. 
Angier died at the age of seventy-three years. 
She was a member of the Baptist church, of 
which Mr. Angier has been a Deacon and 
Trustee for thirty years. 

Harriet G. Angier, now Mrs. Fraley, re- 
ceived her general education at the Nunda 
Academy, where she was graduated. She then 
took a thorough course at the Musical Acad- 
emy at Lyons, Wayne County, N. Y. , and 
three years of pianoforte instruction at Roch- 
ester, at the conclusion of which she entered 
the Geneseo Normal School as a teacher of 
instrumental music. After remaining eight 
years at the school, the board having given her 
a year's leave of absence, Mrs. Fraley went 
abroad and pursued a course of advanced musi- 
cal study in Berlin, Germany. Returning to 
Geneseo, she resumed her duties as the head 
of the department of instrumental music in 
the normal school, a position she has now held 
for fifteen years, being the originator of the 
present system of musical training now in 
vogue. Mrs. Fraley's thorough and progres- 
sive methods of instruction have raised the 
musical department of the school to a very 
high standard, and many who have graduated 
from her valuable tuition are now holding 
important positions as teachers. 

Mrs. Fraley is director of music at the 
First Presbyterian Church in Geneseo, and 
also soprano soloist there, in which capacity 
she has oflficiated for fifteen years. In 1876 
she taught instrumental music and sang in the 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



459 



choir at the Congregational church in Jackson, 
Mich., for a short time, but returned East to 
resume her studies. She is now President of 
the New York State Music Teachers' Associa- 
tion for Livingston County, which office she 
has held for three years, having been twice re- 
elected. She appears at a great many con- 
certs, both as a vocal and instrumental soloist, 
being well and favorably known as a musical 
artist throughout Western New York. 

On December 24, 1874, Harriet G. Angier 
was united in marriage to Mr. Joseph L. 
Fraley, a native of Holland, N.J., and son of 
Charles Fraley, who resides at Mount Morris, 
N.J. Joseph L. Fraley was an only son by 
his father's first wife, whose maiden name was 
Anna Lear, and who was a native of Eastern 
Pennsylvania. Mr. Fraley removed with his 
father to Mount Morris, when he was eight 
years of age, and attended school there, after- 
ward entering the State normal school at 
Geneseo. He was for some years manager for 
the Singer Sewing Machine Comijany, but is 
now connected with the Comstock Collecting 
Agency, of Oswego. He was formerly part 
owner and business manager of the Ecjuity 
Flouring Mills of Mount Morris. 

Mr. and Mrs. Fraley have three children — 
Charles J., Allen J., and Blanche Louise, all 
of whom are students at the normal school. 

Mr. Fraley was formerly a member of the 
Ancient Order of United Workmen, but is now 
connected with the North-western Mutual Life 
Insurance Company. Both Mrs. Fraley and 
her husband are prominent members of the 
Baptist church, and closely identified with the 
Sunday-school. 



YJ^ELSON D. PARSONS, proprietor of 
I — # a pleasant and well-kept homestead in 
|is ( the town of Bennington, Wyoming 

^^"^ County, N.Y., was born upon the 
farm which he now owns and occupies, Octo- 
ber 17, 1830, son of Pelatiah Parsons, a native 
of Windsor, Conn. The father's birth was in 
May, 1793. He was the son of a Connecticut 
farmer, who died in middle life, leaving four 
sons and si.\ daughters. 

Pelatiah Parsons moved from his native 



State to Wyoming County, New York, in 
1819, bringing his wife and two children, with 
their effects, in an ox wagon, settling in the 
woods on a small tract of land of about si.xty 
acres, with no neighbors in the immediate 
vicinity. The family were in humble circum- 
stances, but energetic and persevering, and 
eventually cleared and improved a very fine 
farm, attaining to a comfortable degree of 
prosperity as a result of their untiring labor, 
and at one time owned about two hundred 
acres. The maiden name of Mrs. Pelatiah 
Parsons was Lemira Higley; and she reared 
a family of five children, all but one of whom 
are still living — Edward, a resident of Ober- 
lin, Ohio; Clarissa, wife of Albert Cooper, 
residing in Java, Wyoming County; Olive, 
widow of John Cooper, also residing at Java; 
and Nelson D., the subject of this sketch. 
Lorenzo, late of Marengo, 111., is deceased. 
Pelatiah Parsons died in 1879, at the age of 
eighty-five years; and his widow, in 1886, at 
ninety-three, bright and active for one so far 
advanced in age. Both were members of the 
Baptist church. Pelatiah Parsons was a Whig 
and later a Republican in politics, and was in 
every way an upright citizen, of much value 
to the community. 

Nelson D. Parsons attended the district 
school, and assisted his father in his farm work, 
gaining that practical knowledge of agricult- 
ure which has served him so well through life. 
On October 6, 1855, he was united in mar- 
riage to Frances Sherman, of Bennington, 
daughter of Albert C. and Mary Ann (Scot- 
ford) Sherman, the former a native of Connect- 
icut, and the latter of Utica. Mrs. Parsons' s 
father died in September, 1844, at the age of 
thirty-one years, leaving a wife and three chil- 
dren — Frances ; Amanda, wife of Everett 
Brokaw, a resident of Litchfield, Minn. ; and 
L. A. Sherman, of Port Huron, Mich., editor 
and publisher of a Republican journal of that 
city. He served in the Civil War about one 
year, enlisting at seventeen, and was in the 
Chickahominy Swamp under General McClel- 
lan. He was frail, and on that account was 
delegated as mail messenger and hospital stew- 
ard. Mrs. Parsons's mother still survives, at 
the age of eighty-one years, and has the ap- 



460 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



pearance of being much younger, the weight of 
years seeming to have little effect upon her 
either mentally or physically. She resides 
with her daughter at Bennington. 

Mr. and Mrs. Parsons have had si.\ children, 
all of whom are living — Clara, wife of 
Charles Rudd, of Port Huron, Mich., having 
one son ; Clarence Elmer, a hardware dealer 
at Ipswich, S. Dak., having a wife, two sons, 
and one daughter ; Bert, a farmer in the vicin- 
ity of Bennington, who has a wife; Minnie, 
a young lady of intelligence and much prom- 
ise; Sherman, a farmer at Marilla, Erie 
County, who has a wife, two sons, and one 
daughter ; and Everett, a young man at home. 
The sons are all Republican in politics, tem- 
perate, and highly respected. 

Mr. Parsons has a farm of one hundred and 
eighty acres in a high state of cultivation, 
upon which he carries on agriculture in all its 
branches, keeping twenty cows, grade Jerseys, 
and manufacturing butter of a superior quality. 
His comfortable residence was erected soon 
after his marriage; and he built his famous 
barn, the dimensions of which are forty by 
si.xty, with eighteen-feet posts, in 1891. It 
has a stone basement with cement floor. The 
neat appearance of his farm and the well-ap- 
pointed buildings testify to the thoroughness 
of Mr. Parsons's farming qualifications. His 
loyalty to Republican principles is always ap- 
parent, as are also his kindness and generos- 
ity, judging by his life and the reputation he 
enjoys among his neighbors; and he believes 
more in works than in creeds. He and his in- 
telligent wife are still active in the cares of 
life, and they are very happily situated in 
their pleasant home. 




|ATTHEW McCartney, a resi- 
dent of Dansville, was born in 
Sparta, now North Dansville, on 
the i8th of October, 1815. His 
father, William McCartney, left his home, 
"Barlocco," near Kirkcudbright, in the 
south of Scotland, at the age of nineteen to 
accompany Colonel Williamson to this coun- 
try. Colonel Williamson was, as is well 
known, a land agent for a company who owned 



large tracts of land in Steuben and adjacent 
counties in New York. 

William McCartney's was the first marriage 
recorded in the south end of the Genesee 
valley. His wife was a Miss Mary McCurdy, 
and the marriage took place July 14, 1796. 
He was one of the few who assisted in the 
organization of the first Presbyterian church 
in Western New York, located three miles 
north of this village, and was one of its Ruling 
Elders. He held various offices of trust given 
him by the people irrespective of party. He 
was a member of the State legislature and for 
twenty-seven years Supervisor of his town. 
He died in 1831. His wife lived until the 
year 1877. They had thirteen children, four 
of whom still survive, all but one being over 
eighty years of age. Of his grandmother on 
his mother's side, Mrs. McCoy, it is said 
there were few women who could be called 
her superior. Her ancestors were Scotch ; 
but she was born in County Antrim, Ireland, 
in 1782. Her mother's brother was a mem- 
ber of Parliament for a number of years and 
a very wealthy man. Many thrilling episodes 
are related of Mrs. McCoy by the present 
generation, who honor her memory. 

Mr. Matthew McCartney, the subject of 
thissketch, passed his life as a merchant in 
Dansville, retiring from active duties about 
the year 1887. He was married in 1853 
to Miss Frances McNair. They reared one 
daughter, Ellen, who is the wife of Mr. Eu- 
gene Leon Peltier, a lawyer of Troy, N.Y. 
Mr. and Mrs. Peltier have one bright little 
daughter, four years of age, named Margaret 
Eugenia. Mrs. McCartney was a daughter 
of Judge James McNair, and grand-daughter of 
Judge Hugh McNair, of Canandaigua. The 
latter was Clerk of the county when it cm- 
braced Livingston, Monroe, and Ontario. 
Later he was appointed Judge of the County 
Court. Later still he was for five successive 
years a member of the Assembly. 

Judge James McNair, Mrs. McCartney's 
father, enlisted in his country's service in 
1812, and receiving a captain's commission 
had the command of a company of militia 
until the end of the war in 18 14. He was 
called a brave officer. When the county of 




MATTHEW MCCARTNEY. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



463 



Livingston was organized, he was appointed 
one of the Associate Judges, and continued 
to hold that office for ten years. Judge Mc- 
Nair was an Elder in the Presbyterian church 
and a large landholder at the time of his 
death, which occurred in his seventy-third 
year. Mrs. McNair died in her fifty-ninth 
year. 

In a copy of the Kirkcudbrightshire Ad- 
vi-rtisiT, published at Castle Douglas, Scot- 
land, we find some interesting reminiscences 
of the McCartneys, Mr. McCartney's ances- 
tors, who were eminent in early history. 
Alexander McCartney, President of the Bible 
Society, was laird of Barlocco. An uncle of 
his of the same name bought Barlocco. A 
nephew of the last-named was grandfather of 
Sir Samuel Halliday McCartney, the Chinese 
mandarin, and his brother John, prime minis- 
ter to an Indian rajah. Earl McCartney was 
Earl of Auchinleck, which his ancestors ac- 
quired in 1626, as heir of his great-grand- 
father, John Stuart, of Auchinleck. In 1688 
George McCartney proclaimed King William 
and Queen Mary at Belfast at the head of a 
troop of horse, and was attainted in the Dub- 
lin Parliament of James II. The celebrated 
Earl McCartney married a daughter of the 
Earl of Bute. 

In Johnson's Universal Cyclopasdia, vol. 
V. p. 137, may be found the life of Earl Mc- 
Cartney. His memoir, with Journal of the 
Embassy and other writings, was published 
by Sir John Barrow in 1807; and the Ameri- 
can Universal Geography, by Jedidiah Morse, 
D.D., published in Boston, devotes thirty 
pages to a highly interesting narrative de- 
scriptive of Lord McCartney's experiences in 
China during the years 1792-93-94. 

Mr. Matthew McCartney has a document 
deeding the property Barlocco to the above- 
named Alexander McCartney, dated 1774, 
also letters addressed his father from Auchin- 
leck, bearing the date of 1794. 

The summer of 1877 and part of the follow- 
ing winter Mrs. Peltier passed among her 
relatives in Scotland, where she was most 
hospitably entertained by friends of both 
branches of the family. In London she was 
the recipient of kind attentions from Sir Hal- 



liday McCartney, and in Glasgow from Mr. 
Gordon Nairne, his nephew, who is at present 
Deputy Chief Cashier of the Bank of Eng- 
land, and whose wedding was celebrated a few 
months since to Miss Narciza da Costa Ricci, 
fifth daughter of Baron da Costa Ricci, At- 
tache of the Portuguese Legation. 

Mrs. Peltier has in her possession the Mc- 
Cartney coat of arms, which she received 
through the courtesy of Sir Halliday Mc- 
Cartney. 

In this connection the following extract 
from a late copy of the Kirkcudbrightshire 
Advertiser will prove of interest: — 

"The P^mperor of China has by imperial re- 
script raised the ancestors for three genera- 
tions of Sir Halliday McCartney, K.C.M.G., 
the Secretary to the Chinese Legation in Lon- 
don, to the highest rank in the Chinese man- 
darinate. This is in accordance with the 
curious usage of conferring ranks of nobility 
on ancestors rather than descendants. It is 
believed that the only other European on 
whom this strange honor has been bestowed is 
Sir Robert Hart, the inspector-general of 
Chinese maritime customs, whose ancestors 
were similarly ennobled two years ago. It is 
remarkable to note that it is exactly one hun- 
dred years since a member of the same family, 
Lord McCartney, entered Pekin as British 
Ambassador of the Emperor of China, and 
was received by Kien Lung, the greatest 
sovereign of the Manchu dynasty, with a dis- 
tinction which has never since been accorded 
to the representative of any country. Three 
years ago an article appeared describing a 
number of curious and valuable presents to 
Sir Halliday McCartney from the Emperor on 
the retirement of the predecessor of the pres- 
ent Chinese Minister to London." 



(WTo 



EORGE FRIDD, a highly esteemed 
\ '•) I and prosperous faimer of the town of 
Geneseo, Livingston County, N.Y., 
was born upon a farm at Headcorn, County of 
Kent, England, March 29, 1823. His ances- 
tors were all English yeomen as far back as 
known, his father, William P'ridd, having 
been a follower of agricultural pursuits in the 



464 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



above-named county, where he died about the 
year 1831. After his decease his widow, 
whose maiden name was Susanna King, mar- 
ried Robert Hooker, and came to America 
about the year 1854, settling in the town of 
Geneseo, where she continued to reside during 
the remainder of her life. The following are 
the names of her children: Lucy, John, Will- 
iam, Mary, Elizabeth, George, Charles, Amy, 
James, Jabez, and Caleb by her first husband, 
William Fridd, and Annie and Ellen by her 
second, Robert Hooker. 

George Fridd, who appears sixth in the list 
above given, resided in his native place until 
1 841, when he emigrated to America, accom- 
panied by his brothers, William and John, 
sailing from Liverpool in the month of 
November, and arriving in New York after a 
voyage of six weeks and three days. George 
came directly to Livingston County, and im- 
mediately entered school. In the following 
spring he commenced working upon a farm 
at a stipulated amount per month, and was 
thus employed for four years, with the excep- 
tion of the winter seasons, which were passed 
in the accumulation of that knowledge which 
is always an imperative necessity in the real- 
ization of success in the business world. He 
began his career as an independent farmer 
by settling upon about eighty-seven acres of 
land, which forms a part of the farm he now 
owns and occupies. From this modest start 
ill life Mr. Fridd has by steady industry and 
thrift gradually added to his possessions, until 
at the present time his farm consists of one 
hundred and forty acres, and is one of the 
very best-cultivated and most profitable es- 
tates in the county. It is situated three and 
one-half miles from Geneseo and five from 
Avon. 

On January 12, 1848, Mr. Fridd married 
Maria Hubbard, who was born upon the farm 
where he now resides. Her father, Giles 
Hubbard, was a native of Connecticut, who 
removed to New York State, and became one 
of the early settlers of the town of Geneseo, 
where he had acquired a large tract of timber 
land, upon which he erected a log house. He 
cleared and cultivated a farm, and continued 
to reside upon it until he died. Mr. Hub- 



bard's wife, whose maiden name was Ruth 
Carrier, was also a native of Connecticut. 
She survived her husband, and passed the 
remainder of her life upon the same farm. 
Mrs. Fridd died May 3, 1880. Mr. and Mrs. 
Fridd reared but one child, a daughter named 
Ruth Amelia, who married Henry Root, of 
Allegany County, and has two children — 
Jennie and Mary. 

Mr. Fridd is a living example of a self-made 
man, having begun life at the foot of the lad- 
der, and by persistent energy worked his way 
upward. His course has been one of patient 
toil, and his present prosperity has been 
justly won. He is a man of correct habits, 
and possesses a profound faith in the Chris- 
tian religion, being a member of the Presby- 
terian church, as was his wife. He has been 
an Elder of the church for upward of twenty- 
five years. 




J. TILTON, the subject of 
this sketch, resides at Arcade, and is 
a merchant, being the senior mem- 
ber of the firm of Tilton & Francis. 
Mr. Tilton was born in Orangeville, Wyo- 
ming County, August 22, 1847, son of Oba- 
diah and Lois (Stone) Tilton. Both his 
paternal and maternal ancestors were of 
Puritan stock, many of them having been 
prominent figures in early Colonial affairs. 
Cornelius Tilton, great-grandfather of Reu- 
ben J., was for many years a resident of 
Martha's Vineyard, Mass., where was born 
his son, John Tilton, who moved to Kennebec 
County, Maine, and later coming to New 
York State remained in Albany County a 
year, and in 181 1 took up his abode in 
Orangeville. Here Obadiah Tilton was born; 
and here, with the exception of five years 
spent in Indiana, he passed his entire life, 
dying in 1886. 

Russell Stone, great-grandfather of Mr. 
Tilton on his mother's side, was a Revolu- 
tionary patriot, and was wounded in the battle 
of Stillwater. He was a resident of Massa- 
chusetts and a descendant of John Stone, who 
was a member of the Rev. Henry Whitfield's 
famous first Guilford Company, the ship in 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



465 



which they came to this country being the 
first vessel to drop anchor in the harbor of 
New Haven, July, 1639. In 1790, his son 
Reuben being then an infant, Russell Stone 
moved to New York State. When twenty- 
three years of age Reuben Stone settled in 
Orangeville, where he lived until his death, 
in April, 1869. Lois, the wife of Obadiah 
Tilton and mother of Reuben J., was the 
eldest daughter of Reuben Stone. 

At the age of seventeen years Reuben J. 
Tilton, having passed his youth upon the 
farm of his father at Orangeville, enlisted as 
a private in Company G, Ninth New York 
Cavalry, and with that regiment served with 
Sheridan in the memorable campaign of the 
Shenandoah valley. He was made a Cor- 
poral, was mustered out after a year's service, 
and returning home remained there until 
1866, when he removed to Michigan. In 
1870 Mr. Tilton returned to Wyoming 
County, and married Miss Antoinette Royce, 
of Johnsonsburg. In 1883, having up to that 
time engaged in various commercial pursuits, 
Mr. Tilton formed his present partnership 
with James H. Francis, of Arcade. 

Mr. Tilton has always been actively in- 
terested in political affairs, and as a stanch 
Republican has been identified with the promi- 
nent movements of that party in Wyoming 
County. He has represented the Republican 
organization frequently in county, district, 
and State conventions. The characteristics 
of energy, good judgment, and practical 
knowledge of affairs, which have assured his 
success in business, have commended him to 
the favor of his fellow-townsmen ; and he has 
been several times the incumbent of public 
office. In 1886 he was elected Collector of 
Arcade, and three years later was chosen 
President of the village. In 1891 and 1892 
Mr. Tilton represented the Democratic town 
of Arcade upon the Board of Supervisors, 
being with one exception the only Republican 
Supervisor ever elected in this community. 
He was unanimously selected as Chairman of 
the Board at the commencement of his second 
term. His meritorious service in the capac- 
ity of Supervisor, together with his life-long 
and valuable efforts in behalf of the Republi- 



can cause and for the maintenance of party 
principles, rendered him a logical candidate 
for the Assembly nomination in 1893, for 
which office he was nominated and elected by 
an unusual plurality over an exceptionally 
popular opponent. Mr. Tilton was again 
made the party's nominee for member of As- 
sembly in 1894, both times by acclamation, 
and was elected by twenty-four hundred and 
ninety-five plurality, the largest ever given to 
a candidate in Wyoming County. As a mem- 
ber of the legislature he gained recognition as 
an active, earnest worker and a firm advocate 
of good government and of the policies of the 
party. His committee assignments were most 
important, being banks, affairs of villages, 
Indian affairs, and prisons. He was a mem- 
ber of the notable Prison Committee which in 
1894 conducted an elaborate investigation 
into the system, methods, and management of 
the various penal institutions of the State. 

Mr. Tilton is included in the membership 
of several social and fraternal organizations, 
among them being Torbett Post, No. 218, 
Grand Army of the Republic, of which he is 
Past Commander, and the Independent Order 
of Odd Fellows, China Lodge, of Arcade. 
For a period of fourteen years he was a mem- 
ber of a local volunteer fire company, being 
its foreman a number of years, and during his 
service twice represented the department at 
State conventions of the Firemen's Associa- 
tion of New York. Mr. Tilton's lengthy busi- 
ness career, his untiring labors in the sphere 
of politics, his qualities of good sense and fair- 
ness, and his record as a faithful official, have 
given him the confidence of the community; 
and he is regarded as one of the most loyal and 
public-spirited citizens of Wyoming County. 



m 



LLIAM BALLSMITH, a promi- 
nent grocer in Attica, was born in 
Germany, in 1S39, and is the son 
of Christian and Mary (Henschel) Ballsmith. 
Christian Ballsmith was a stone-cutter, and 
died in 1854, leaving his widow with five 
children. After the death of her husband 
Mrs. Ballsmith decided to emigrate to the 
United States, and in 1857 arrived in this 



466 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



country with the subject of this sketch and 
F. C. Ballsmith, another son, who is now a 
resident of Attica. She died in Attica, at 
the age of sixty-three years, in 1863. Her 
first-born, who was a son named John, died in 
Germany at the age of twelve years. Her 
daughter Christina, now a resident of Batavia, 
with her children, came to America with her 
late husband, William Buckholz, in 1S52, 
having been about ten weeks upon the pas- 
sage, which was made in a sailing-vessel. 
Charles Ballsmith, another son, came in 1S55, 
and is now a farmer in Attica. 

William Ballsmith, after leaving school at 
the age of fourteen years, having attained a 
fair education, learned the stone-cutter's 
trade, and on his arrival in America first 
worked for monthly wages on a farm, as the 
family had exhausted their small means de- 
fraying the expenses of the journey to the 
United States. The season following he ob- 
tained employment at his trade in a marble- 
shop in Attica, and later relinquished this to 
accept a position as clerk for John Belden & 
Co., with whom he remained for some years. 
In the spring of 1865 he, in company with 
Timothy Loomis, purchased the business of 
his employers under the firm name of T. 
Loomis & Co. He continued in the above 
partnership until the death of Mr. Loomis, 
when the latter's brother, Mr. James H. 
Loomis, succeeded him, the firm becoming 
William Ballsmith & Co., with Mr. Ball- 
smith as manager. About three years later 
the firm was changed to Ballsmith & Volck- 
ens, which name was retained until 1881, 
when the partnership was dissolved, and Mr. 
Ballsmith was occupied about a year in set- 
tling its affairs. He then engaged as a sales- 
man for Loomis & Tolles in the hardware 
business, remaining with them for three 
years. In 1884 he became a partner with 
Mr. Brechenheisen, who a year later sold his 
interest to Mr. Driker, and the firm became 
Ballsmith & Driker, continuing for two years, 
when Mr. Ballsmith succeeded to the entire 
business. He has continued ever since at the 
old stand. No. 1 1 Main Street, and has a 
prosperous trade, which he has held in the 
face of strong competition. He now carries 



a stock worth about three thousand dollars, 
consisting of groceries, provisions, etc. 

Socially, Mr. Ballsmith is exceedingly pop- 
ular. He is a Master Mason, and has been 
Secretary of the lodge and held other offices. 
In politics he was a Republican until 1868, 
when he espoused the cause of the Prohibi- 
tionists. He was elected Town Clerk in 
1866, and served three years, having been 
twice re-elected. In 1875 he was elected 
Justice of the Peace, and re-elected in 1879, 
serving in all eight years. Mr. Ballsmith 
and family are members of the German Prot- 
estant church, in which he has been an Elder 
for many years. 

On December 16, 1864, Mr. Ballsmith 
married Miss Sophia Dickelman, of Attica, 
who is a native of Germany, but came to 
America at the age of fourteen years with her 
father, Louis Dickelman. Mr. and Mrs. 
Ballsmith have two children — Henry G. and 
Winona. Henry G. Ballsmith is employed 
as a salesman in his father's store, and re- 
cently lost his wife, who was Miss Katie 
Seitz; and Winona Ballsmith is a miss of 
fourteen years. The family reside at their 
comfortable home at No. 1 1 North Street, 
which Mr. Ballsmith purchased in 1881. 



B 



R. JAMES W. COWAN, dentist, 
was born at Guelph, Ontario, Can- 
ada, July 9, 1863. He was grad- 
uated from the Baltimore College of 
Dental Surgery in 1887, since which time he 
has been in constant practice at Geneseo. 

Dr. Cowan was married to Miss Alice M. 
McCurdy, June 25, 1890. They have one 
daughter, Margaret, born June 18, 1892. 



T^HARLES A. STEWART, a native 
I (L' of York, N.Y., in the County of Liv- 
^Hs ingston, was born on the 13th of 

April, 1 8 14. His father, Alex- 
ander Stewart, was a Scotchman, who was 
born in Perthshire, came to America in 1805, 
and settled in Caledonia. He secured a posi- 
tion in Cameron's store as clerk, which he 
held for four years, at the end of which time 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



467 



he married, and took possession of the east 
part of the McBean farm. On this place, 
which comprised one hundred acres, he built 
a log house and barn. After clearing the land 
and putting it into a cultivable condition, 
he sold it, and went to Canada, where he re- 
mained two years. Mr. Stewart was most un- 
fortunate here, and lost all of his accumulated 
earnings. His next purchase was a place 
west of York Centre, where he lived during 
the rest of his life, glad to be in the neigh- 
borhood of so many of his country-people. 
His wife was Miss Isabella McBean, a daugh- 
ter of Francis McBean, one of the first set- 
tlers in this vicinity. Of their five children 
Charles A. Stewart is the only surviving one. 
The father lived to be seventy-three years old. 

Charles A. Stewart was sent to the district 
schools of York, and also mastered the car- 
penter's trade, which he followed industri- 
ously for twelve years. The farm upon which 
he now lives was purchased forty-five years 
ago, and has become endeared by all the ties 
of early association and long residence. 
Here the first years of married happiness were 
passed. Here his children were born, and his 
wife died, March 31, 1882; and here the 
eventide of a placid life has come upon him. 
The family name of his wife, Margaret, was 
the same as his own; and, singularly enough, 
the names of the two fathers were identical. 
Mrs. Charles A. Stewart was a daughter of 
Mr. Alexander Stewart, of York. Their four 
children were: Isabella, Margaret, Elizabeth, 
and Neil. Margaret married Mr. Chester Root, 
of Rochester, and is the mother of two children ; 
Elizabeth is the wife of C. H. McPerson ; 
Neil married Catherine Milroy, and their one 
son bears the name of Milroy N. Stewart. 

Charles A. Stewart has held the office of 
Assessor for two terms. He has l)een a Re- 
publican since the formation of that party, 
casting his first vote in 1836. 



RIX DAVIS, M.D., proprietor of the 
Health Institute at Attica, N.Y., and 
for more than forty years a resident 
physician of this village, was born in 
the town of York, Livingston County, N.Y., 




June 26, 1823, being a son of Asa and Sally 
(Clark) Davis, of Connecticut, who in the year 
1 800 moved to Jefferson County, New York. 

Asa Davis, father of Dr. Davis, was born 
about the year 1773, and married in 1799. 
After his arrival in this State he engaged in 
farming, milling, and distilling. Through his 
willingness to serve friends he became finan- 
cially involved, and in 1816 removed to Liv- 
ingston County, which was at that time being 
reclaimed from the wilderness. Here he 
started anew, following agricultural pursuits. 
He was an honest and conscientious man, 
an Elder in the Presbyterian church at York, 
Livingston County, standing high in the 
estimation of his neighbors, who knew his 
worth and respected him. He and his wife 
raised a family of six children, two sons and 
four daughters, the Doctor being the youngest 
of the family, by twelve years. He was reared in 
the evangelical faith, and early united with the 
Presbyterian church. One daughter, Clarissa, 
married Samuel Dorris, a leading Methodist. 

Orin Davis, who is now sole survivor of the 
family, assisted his father in his early years in 
farm work, when not employed in a nursery. 
Farming, however, was not young Davis's aim 
in life. His natural inclination pointed to 
professional exertion for a livelihood, and at 
the age of nineteen he commenced reading 
medicine with Dr. Durrell, of York. After 
continuing preliminary study for three years, 
he entered the Eclectic Medical Institute at 
Cincinnati, Ohio, where he remained through 
two full courses, and received the degree of 
M. D. Later he returned to the medical col- 
lege, and attended two courses more of medical 
lectures, afterward taught medicine in a medi- 
cal college in Rochester, and also in New York 
City. In 1846 and 1847 he began the practice 
of his profession. 

For more than forty years Dr. Davis has 
been constantly occupied in attending to the 
requirements of his Health Institute at Attica, 
N. Y., and in prescribing and sending out his 
special remedies, known and valued in all 
parts of the United States. The Health Insti- 
tute was originally started in a well-built 
brick house, which the Doctor purchased for 
this purpose. This has been enlarged and re- 



468 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



constructed, so that at the present time he has an 
extensive and commodious establishment, wide- 
ly and favorably known throughout the country. 

Dr. Davis in 1874 delivered a course of 
medical lectures in Eclectic Medical College, 
New York City, and was appointed to a profes- 
sorship of Materia Medica and Therapeutics, 
and has a second time been called to a simi- 
lar position, but declined to accept. 

On August 16, 1843, he married Miss Ruth 
Edson Goddard, daughter of Levi Goddard, of 
Mount Morris, N. Y. ; and they have had four 
children. One son died at the age of eighteen 
months. Sarah Clark Davis is at the present 
time in the Pension Bureau at Washington. 
She was formerly a music teacher at the na- 
tional capital, and is a talented woman. Asa, 
the eldest son, is a mechanical expert and sten- 
ographic reporter at Baltimore, Md., is married, 
and has two children — Orina and Elmer C. 
Another son, Orin Davis, Jr., M.D. , is a te- 
legrapher, resides in St. Louis, Mo., and has 
three children — Bert C. , Edith G. , and John 
Orin. The Doctor's grandson, Elmer C. 
Davis, a young man of twenty-two years, ex- 
cels in outdoor sports, being a proficient 
bicyclist, and has made one of the best twenty- 
four-hour records. 

Dr. Davis has been a Master Mason for more 
than twenty-five years. He has always taken 
a deep interest in church music, and for a 
period of more than fifty years led choirs in 
different churches. 

The Doctor is a genial and kind-hearted 
gentleman, and by his attendance upon patients 
at his Health Institute, as well as through his 
extensive medical correspondence, has been 
able to advise, prescribe, and relieve thousands 
of invalid sufferers living in different States 
and Territories of the L^nion. He has em- 
ployed able assistants in the Scientific Bureau 
of Health in carrying out this important work, 
while he still remains at its head as Physi- 
cian-in-Chief. 



/^TeORGE MATTESOX, well known 
\ [3 1 throughout Wyoming County as a 
capable and practical man of busi- 
ness, is a native of the Prairie State, having 



been born in the town of Guilford, Winne- 
bago County, 111., November 9, 1844, son of 
Noel and Elsie (Spink) Matteson. The first 
of the family of whom there is any record in 
this country was Captain Peleg Matteson (or 
Mattison, the spelling of the name being 
varied at pleasure), who is said to have been 
of Welsh descent, and who moved from Rhode 
Island to Vermont, where he settled with 
three of his brothers — George, Jeremiah, and 
Thomas. They were of a hardy, vigorous, 
and long-lived race. It is said of George, 
who was a small man of one hundred and forty 
to one hundred and forty-five pounds in 
weight, that he once laid a larger stone in a 
stone wall than any other man could be found 
to lift, though many visited the place on pur- 
pose to test their strength. He lived to be a 
very old man; and on one of his latest birth- 
days he milked a fractious cow, remarking 
that she would have to stand where she be- 
longed if he were a hundred years old that 
day. 

Isaac Matteson, son of Captain Peleg, was 
born in Vermont, and married a Miss Phoebe 
Olin, daughter of Jonathan Olin, whose father 
was John Olin. She died while yet a resi- 
dent of the Green Mountain State, leaving 
two sons, Noel and Frank, and five daughters 
— Lurana, Almira, Susan, Genet, and Lucy, 
all of whom, except the eldest daughter, went 
as far west as Illinois, one son, Frank, even 
extending his wanderings to California, 
where all trace of him was lost. After the 
death of his first wife Isaac Matteson married 
again, and moved to Illinois, going first to 
Nauvoo, and later buying a farm on the Du 
Page River, near Joliet, where he settled and 
remained for the rest of his life, dying at an 
advanced age. His daughter Lurana married 
Martin S. Lane, a prosperous farmer of 
Shaftsbury, Vt. Almira became the wife of a 
Mr. Spencer, of Vermont, who removed to 
Will County, Illinois, where he became 
wealthy by holding property bought in Chi- 
cago at an early day, when land was cheap in 
that vicinity. Their only son, Parker Spen- 
cer, was graduated from Oberlin College, 
Ohio, enlisted as a soldier soon after the com- 
mencement of the Civil War, participated in 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



469 



many of tlie hard-fought battles in the West, 
and was killed at the battle of Chickamauga, 
September 19, 1863. Mrs. Spencer had be- 
come a widow previous to the war; and she 
married for the second time Myron Spencer, a 
brother of her first husband. Susan Matteson 
married a Mr. Wagoner, by whom she had one 
son, Frank. She was also left a widow, and 
removed from Ohio to Illinois. Genet mar- 
ried William Blair, and removed to Will 
County, Illinois. Lucy became the wife of a 
Mr. Henry, a railroad man, was early left a 
widow with several children, and made Mor- 
ris, 111., her home. 

Noel Matteson, son of Isaac, inherited the 
physical vigor of his ancestors. It is said of 
him that when a young man he could stand 
on the ground, and spring into the saddle 
squarely at one bound, and when mounted 
could pick up his whip from the ground with 
all the agility of the modern cowboy. It is 
also said that he could jump fourteen feet at 
one jump or thirty-six feet in three jumps, 
and when a string was held as high as his 
head (about six feet) would step back a few 
paces, and leap over it without touching. 
His son James could run and jump twenty- 
two feet on the level. The union of Noel 
Matteson with Elsie Spink, of Vermont, was 
solemnized in Orangeville, Wyoming County, 
N.Y. ; and the young couple soon afterward 
removed to Ohio, where they resided six 
years, and where the birth of their first child, 
Henry, occurred, July 5, 1842. They then 
went to Winnebago County, Illinois, where 
Mr. Matteson engaged in general farming for 
fifteen years. In 1857 he returned to Wyo- 
ming County, New York, and resumed his 
agricultural pursuits in the town of Attica, 
where he became the possessor of a valuable 
farm of two hundred and fifty-four acres, 
which he subsequently sold to his sons, Henry 
and John, for ten thousand dollars. He spent 
his last years in Varysburgh, and died there 
in July, 1892, his wife having died previ- 
ously on their farm in Attica. 

Of the eight children born to them the fol- 
lowing is a brief record : Henry, a resident of 
Syracuse and a clerk in the Railway Postal 
Service, served three years in the late Civil 



War, belonging to Company C, First New 
York Dragoons, in which he was a bugler and 
afterward Orderly Sergeant. He was capt- 
ured near Beaver Dam Station, a base of sup- 
plies for Lee's army, during the Wilderness 
campaign, May 11, 1864, while acting as 
Orderly for Adjutant-general Emmonds, who 
was sent to call in a force which was operat- 
ing against Stuart's cavalry. Mr. Matteson 
was cut off and made prisoner by the rebel 
cavalry, but before being dismounted availed 
himself of an opportunity to escape, and al- 
though taking big chances succeeded, thanks 
to a good horse. The First New York Dra- 
goons took part in the following engagements, 
in nearly all of which Henry Matteson par- 
ticipated: Deserted House, Siege of Suffolk, 
South Quay, Franklin, Baltimore Cross- 
roads, Manassas Plains, Culpeper, Todd's 
Tavern, Yellow Tavern, Meadow Bridge, 
Mechanicsville, Hawes Shop, Old Church, 
Cold Harbor, Cold Harbor second, Trevilian 
Station, Deep Bottom, White Post, New- 
town, Kearneysville, Shepherdstown, Smith- 
field, Opequan (Winchester), Fisher's Hill, 
Mount Jackson, New Market, Port Republic, 
Tom's Brook, New Market Races, Strasburg, 
Liberty Mills, Gordonsville, Dinwiddle Court- 
house, Five Forks, Sutherland Station, 
Amelia Court-house, Sailor's Creek, Appo- 
mattox. During the last five battles Henry 
Matteson was away on a trip to City Point, in 
charge of fifteen men, to bring up one thou- 
sand head of cattle for the Quartermaster's 
department. He has now been employed in 
the Railway Postal Service eighteen years, and 
since the fast mail service began has been on 
one of the New York Central flyers from Syr- 
acuse to New York. The next child of Noel 
Matteson was George, the special subject of 
this article. James is a resident of Varys- 
burg. John is a farmer in Attica. Noel, 
another brother, is engaged in farming near 
Varysburg. Daniel died at the age of eleven 
years. Miriam is the wife of Job T. Peck, a 
miller and farmer at Gainesville. And Arthur 
is a farmer in Sheldon. George Matteson 
had just entered his teens when his parents 
settled in Attica; and his education, begun in 
his Western home, was completed in Wyo- 



47° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ming County, Genesee and Wyoming Semi- 
naries, Alexander, N.Y. He assisted on 
the farm until after attaining his majority, 
when he started in business for himself, en- 
gaging at first in the manufacture of cheese, 
which he afterward carried on for awhile in 
Vermont. Mr. Matteson has built several 
cheese factories, one having been located in 
Attica, two in Darien, Genesee County, and 
one in Benniiigton. He lived three years in 
the town of Perry, where he did an extensive 
business evaporating apples, employing dur- 
ing the last season sixteen hands, and working 
up six thousand bushels of apples. He also 
owned a store, which, after conducting it for 
one year, he exchanged for the mill property 
and fifty acres of timber land in Orangeville, 
fifty-eight and one-half acres in all. 

He came to this place in June, 1885. He 
has a large steam saw-mill, and is engaged in 
the manufacture of lumber, barrel heading, 
etc. 

On July 21, 1875, Mr. Matteson was united 
in marriage to Mrs. Melissa Wilcox Prentice, 
a daughter of Captain A. S. Wilcox; and by 
this marriage five children were born: but the 
Angel of Death has crossed their threshold, 
bearing to heaven four of their little ones; 
namely, an infant daughter, Nellie, Cora, 
and Carl A. They have one son living, Ray 
E., a bright lad of twelve years, whose birth 
occurred November 3, 1882. Both Mr. and 
Mrs. Matteson are valued members of the 
P'irst Baptist Church of Orangeville and active 
members of the Sunday-school, of which Mr. 
Matteson has been superintendent. Socially, 
Mr. Matteson is prominent in the Indepen- 
dent Order of Odd Fellows, and politically is 
an ardent worker in the ranks of the Prohibi- 
tion party, having left the Republican ranks 
in 1884, that he might better advance the 
cause of temperance. 



fRANK SHERMAN PEER, a practical 
farmer and fruit grower of Leicester, 
Livingston County, N.Y., is widely 
known as a speaker at agricultural institutes 
and as an author and inventor. He was born 
in the city of Rochester, N.Y., in 1852. His 



great-great-grandfather, Thomas Peer, came 
to this country in Colonial times with two 
brothers. Thomas settled in New Jersey, 
where he spent the remainder of his life, 
and married Eleanor Heller, of New Jersey. 
John Peer, son of Thomas, made his first 
appearance in this sublunary sphere in 1764, 
at Pequanac, N.J. John's son, Abram Peer, 
was born in Morristown, N.J., in 1797. In 
the course of time Abram came to New 
York State, and was a pioneer in William- 



Dr. 

was 
was 

vote 



son, Wayne County, where his son, 
George W. Peer, father of our subject, 
born in 1820, the year when Monroe 
re-elected President, receiving every 
except one in the electoral college. 

George W. Peer received his early educa- 
tion in the district school, but was graduated 
from Marion Seminary. At the age of 
twenty-five he turned his attention to the 
study of medicine, and was in due time grad- 
uated from the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons, of New York City. Later he 
formed the acquaintance of Dr. Moore, of 
East Palmyra, a homoeopathist. Deciding 
to adopt this school of practice, he was sub- 
sequently graduated from a homceopathic col- 
lege in Philadelphia. Dr. Peer was a sur- 
geon during the war, and attached to the 
Ninth New York Regiment, heavy artillery. 
It was at his suggestion that the Episcopal 
church in Washington, D.C., was converted 
into a hospital, wlierein he served a while; 
and he also had charge of the sick and 
wounded on the steamer "John Brooke," 
which plied between Philadelphia and dif- 
ferent points on the Potomac River. He 
was on duty at the battles of Antietam, 
second Bull Run, Malvern Hill, and Gettys- 
burg. He was with General Hooker at the 
battle of Lookout Mountain, known to history 
as the battle which was fought above the 
clouds. For a year before the close of the 
war he was in charge of Fairfax Seminary 
Hospital at Fairfax Court House, near Wash- 
ington. After the war he returned to Roches- 
ter, and engaged in medical practice until 
his death, which took place in 18S3. 

The Doctor's wife was Emily Sherman, a 
native of East Palmyra, N.Y., where she was 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



47' 



born August 17, 1826. She was a graduate 
of Lima Seminary and a very accomplished 
lady. She was a descendant of Philip 
Sherman, who was born in Dedham, Eng- 
land, in 1610, during the reign of James 
I., came to America in 1633, and settled at 
Roxbury, Mass. During the Puritan persecu- 
tion of the Baptists and Quakers, I^hilip Sher- 
man with others went to Rhode Island, and 
founded the town of Portsmouth. He was 
prominent in public affairs, serving as Secre- 
tary of State under Governor Coddington. 
He married Sarah Odding, and died in 1687. 
Their son Samuel was born in Rhode Island 
in 1648. His wife was Martha Tripp, daugh- 
ter of John and Mary Tripp. Samuel Sherman 
died in 171 7. His son, Ebenezer Sherman, 
was born in Tiverton, R.I., in 1701. He was 
a blacksmith by trade, and was noted for great 
physical strength and endurance. He was a 
member of the Society of Friends, and reared 
his children in that faith. All his life Tiver- 
ton was his home. David Sherman, Ebene- 
zer's son, born in the same town, December 30, 
1733, was a government contractor during the 
Revolution. He received his pay in conti- 
nental scrip, which became worthless, so that 
his expected fortune was not forthcoming. At 
the close of the war, in 1783, David Sherman 
emigrated to Washington County, New York, 
and was a pioneer in the town of Cambridge, 
where he passed the remainder of his days. 

Humphrey Sherman, son of David, was 
born in Tiverton in 1758, during the old 
French War. He was a sailor, and became 
captain of a West Indies trading-vessel. 
Later during the Revolution he commanded 
a privateer, and with his crew, falling into 
the hands of the British, was confined on the 
prison ship "Jersey" in New York Harbor. 
Small-pox broke out, and many of the pris- 
oners died. Captain Sherman, with a com- 
panion named Terry, escaped by dropping 
through a porthole into the water and swim- 
ming ashore. They concealed themselves all 
day in the marsh, their heads only being out 
of the water; but at night they found better 
quarters, and crawled into a warm oven to dry 
their clothes. At last they made their way 
back to Tiverton. Captain Sherman was with 



Sullivan in his expedition to the Genesee 
valley, and was much impressed with the 
beauty and fertility of that region. He 
moved first from Tiverton to Cambridge, N.Y. 
In 1879, in company with John Swift and 
John Jenkins, he started for Western New 
York with a big sled, four oxen, twelve hogs, 
and a large number of farming utensils. 
They purchased a thousand acres of land at 
Mud Creek, now known as East Palmyra. 
Having no fodder, they chopped down maple 
trees, and fed their cattle with the leafy 
tops, while the hogs fed on acorns and 
nuts. The pioneers erected a log cabin, 
and commenced clearing the land. In the 
summer they went to the marsh, where they 
cut and stacked some hay, afterward building 
a high fence around it. They turned the 
oxen into this enclosure for the winter; and, 
after making arrangements with a neighbor to 
occasionally visit their stock, they started on 
foot for home. The next February Captain 
Sherman moved with his family, his brother 
Samuel, and his brother-in-law Durfee, to his 
new home, where, having cleared a large farm 
and erected buildings, he continued living 
until his death. 

By his second wife, Mary Howell, Captain 
Sherman had a son, Samuel Sherman, who was 
born in East Palmyra, N.Y., in February, 
1798. He was reared on the farm, and always 
followed agricultural pursuits, being a life- 
long resident of his native town. He married 
Hannah Tinan ; and they were the parents of 
Emily, who became the wife of Dr. George 
W. Peer and the mother of the subject of this 
sketch. Grandfather Sherman was formerly 
a Whig, but later became a Republican, 
and, like some of his ancestors, was promi- 
nent in public affairs. His wife, Hannah, 
was a daughter of Jeremiah and Abigail 
Moody Tinnan ; and her birthplace was Shap- 
leigh, Me. She was a descendant of the 
celebrated Handkerchief Moody. 

Frank Sherman Peer in his boyhood went 
first to the public schools in East Palmyra 
and Rochester, and afterward attended De 
Graff's Military Institute, where he was First 
Lieutenant of Company A, and served as mili- 
tary instructor in the primary department. 



472 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



His father owned large tracts of timber land in 
Clinton County, Michigan; and in 1869, at 
the early age of seventeen, Frank went there 
to superintend the cutting of this timber, his 
home being a log-cabin in the wilderness. 
He became fond of frontier life; and besides 
superintending the cutting of the timber, he 
cleared sixty acres of land. He remained 
there three years, when he returned to New 
York to take charge of his grandfather Sher- 
man's farm at East Palmyra. That he was 
a progressive man is proved by his interest as 
breeder and importer of live stock. He paid 
considerable attention to the raising of Jersey 
cattle and Cotswold sheep. The number of 
prizes he received at the principal agricultural 
fairs, where his stock was exhibited, indicates 
his great success in stock-raising. While re- 
siding on this farm, he turned his attention to 
the strict soiling system for cattle, and 
erected the first silo in the State, when there 
were only two or three in the United States. 
By adopting this system he was enabled to 
keep thirty-five head of full-grown cattle with 
the produce of thirty acres of land. Mr. Peer 
was the first farmer in Wayne County to start 
a creamery and the manufacture of creamery 
butter from his own herd of Jerseys and for 
which he received fifty cents per pound. On 
this farm he remained until 1878, when he 
entered into a partnership with Colonel Shep- 
ard of Mount Morris, N.Y., for the breeding 
of coach and saddle horses, Jersey cattle, and 
sheep on the Murray Hill farm. 

In 1882 Mr. Frank S. Peer published a 
work on Soiling and Ensilage, and was a 
pioneer advocate of all that pertained to im- 
proved agriculture. He is well known 
throughout the country from his articles on 
agriculture and farm-stock breeding through 
the Country Gentleman^ Rider and Driver, and 
other agricultural papers. Outing has several 
illustrated articles from his pen on travels 
and cross-country riding and yachting. He 
was associated with Colonel Shepard until 
1886, when he purchased two hundred and 
twenty acres of land on Squawkie Hill, 
erected a fine set of buildings, and has 
since continued to raise fine horses, English 
hackney and thorough-breds. The greater 



portion of his land, however, is devoted to 
fruit culture. He first introduced into this 
section of country the custom of raising 
cucumbers under glass, and does this on a 
large scale. He invented a hot-water heater 
for hot-houses which has been generally 
adopted in this section. In 1876 Mr. Peer 
married Harriet A. Reeves, daughter of Nel- 
son and limeline (Foster) Reeves. Her 
birthplace was Palmyra. She was a grand- 
daugliter of General Reeves and a descendant 
of Benjamin Franklin on her mother's side. 
Mr. and Mrs. Peer have two children — Emily 
Maud and Samuel Sherman Peer. 

Mr. Peer has been employed by the State to 
visit various institutes and speak on agri- 
cultural topics. He has also been several 
times commissioned to visit England and 
the Isles of Jersey and Guernsey for the 
purchase of horses and cattle. He is a 
member of both the Livingston County and 
New York State Agricultural societies, and 
President of the Western New York Breeders' 
Association (1892, 1893), life member of the 
New York State Dairymen's Association of 
which he was one of the vice-presidents in 
1886; also member of the Western New York 
Horticultural Society and the Western New 
York Jersey Cattle Breeder's Association. 
For some years he was a member of Newark 
Masonic Lodge, No. 83, and served two terms 
as Master. He is at the present time a mem- 
ber of Mount Morris Lodge, No. 122, where 
he has been one term Master. He is also 
a Royal Arch Mason of Mount Morris Chap- 
ter. He is also a member of the Genesee 
Valley Hunt Club, and is a genuine sports- 
man. He is moreover an enthusiastic yachts- 
man, being a member of the Rochester Yacht 
Club. The versatility of Mr. Peer's genius 
is a result of the push and enterprise of 
several generations. "Blood will tell." 




A. R. 



UGH MILLER, a prosperous dry- 
goods merchant of Attica, was born 
at West Bethany, Genesee County, 
N.Y., in 1867, and is a son of 
Miller, a resident of Attica, now living 



in retirement, who was born at Wales, Erie 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



473 



County, in 1820. Two generations farther 
back was John Miller, a farmer of Onondaga 
County, who died an octogenarian, as did also 
his wife. 

Oliver Miller, of Onondaga County, son of 
John and grandfather of Hugh, settled at 
Wales, Erie County, about the year 18 18; 
and there he cleared and improved a farm, 
upon which his family of seven children were 
born. He and his brothers, Waterbury and 
John, Jr., settled upon the Holland Purchase, 
which was then a wilderness, where they first 
dwelt in log houses, and eventually became 
possessors of fine farms. Oliver married Eu- 
nice Holmes, of Saratoga County, daughter of 
one Trenchard, an Englishman; and their 
three sons and four daughters became heads of 
families. Only one son is now living, A. R. 
Miller, the father of the subject of this 
sketch. The grandfather died at the age of 
fifty-six, and the grandmother at seventy-one. 

In 1 841 A. R. Miller married at Alex- 
ander, Genesee County, Martha Tracy, daugh- 
ter of Alanson Tracy, who was born at Pitts- 
field, Mass., in 1771. He moved in 1791 to 
Scipio, Cayuga County, where she was born 
in 1823. They became the parents of eight 
children, all of whom are still living. Alan- 
son Tracy was a man of sterling character and 
radically upright in his business affairs. He 
became very prosperous, acquiring a hand- 
some fortune by his thrift and industry in 
agricultural pursuits, dying at the age of 
eighty-two in Scipio, he and his wife having 
reared a family of eleven children, of whom 
Martha, Mrs. Miller, and her sister Lenora, 
wife of Robert Masten, now residing in 
Wellsburg, la., are the survivors. 

Mr. A. R. Miller was well educated, and 
taught school before his marriage and the 
winter following in Alexander Seminary. 
His parents were prosperous; and, his wife 
having inherited a considerable sum from her 
fathei, they were placed in easy circum- 
stances. They reared a family of eight chil- 
dren, five daughters and three sons, as fol- 
lows: Amelia, wife of J. O. Nesbitt, of 
Attica; Lucelia, wife of Dr. H. A. Bostwick, 
of Silver Springs; R. T. Miller, a farmer at 
Alexander; Ella, who married E. E. Keller, 



of Pittsburg, Pa., Vice-President of the West- 
inghouse Machine Company: Oliver A. Mil- 
ler, an extensive and prosperous manufacturer 
of shoe machinery in Boston, his large plant, 
covering one block, being located at Brockton, 
Mass. ; Martha T., who has been with Mr. 
Miller since the opening of his business; 
Sara, wife of Bernard Himrod, of Danville 
and Chicago, 111., President of the Pawnee 
Company's Coal Mines; and Hugh, the sub- 
ject of this sketch. 

Young Miller attended the academy at At- 
tica, and at the age of seventeen entered the 
employ of James G. Doty as a clerk. He 
later worked for P. F. Shillinglaw and Alex- 
ander Stewart until 1889, when he went to 
Chicago, securing a position as salesman in 
the extensive store of Mandel Brothers, where 
he remained six months. He then entered 
the employ of Shepard, Norwell & Co., of 
Boston, his special line being underwear and 
hosiery in the wholesale department; and 
here he procured the experience in trade 
which now serves him so well in the manage- 
ment of his present business, which he opened 
May 4, 1 89 1, with a stock of four thousand 
dollars. The growth of his business has been 
steady and rapid. In 1892 he grasped the 
opportunity of purchasing the old dry-goods 
location of Leonidus Doty, the banker, who 
built the store in 1848. 

Mr. Miller is now located in the three-story 
brick block which he erected in 1893 upon the 
above-named site, No. 14 Market Street, 
where he first served as clerk. It is with 
pleasure that we speak of his store. Finished 
in finely polished quartered oak throughout, 
an attractive metal ceiling, a large skylight 
furnishing abundance of light by day, in the 
evening made brilliant by a great number of 
electric lights, a large basement, entered by 
an iron staircase, which is used as the carpet 
department, across the rear of the store plate 
glass mirrors, extending nearly to the ceiling, 
large plate glass show cases — the general 
arrangement throughout deeply impressed the 
writer as a most modern, well-planned, and 
handsome structure. Mr. Miller now carries 
a stock of about eighteen thousand dollars, 
and has stopped the main body of the ebbing 



474 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



tide of shoppers flowing to the city. He is 
a young man of remarkable push and energy, 
being what the Westerners expressively term 
a hustler. 

Mr. Miller was united in marriage Septem- 
ber 20, 1893, to Miss Lillian Chase, of At- 
tica, daughter of J. E. Chase. She is a 
graduate of the Attica Academy, and pos- 
sesses many accomplishments, being a soloist 
at the Presbyterian church. 

Mr. Miller is a fine example of a modern 
business man, and has every reason to look 
forward to a continuance and increase of 
prosperity. 



-OHN H. NEWMAN, an energetic 
farmer of Lima, Livingston County, 
N.Y., was born here, September 11, 
1 8 19, the year of the birth of the poet 
Lowell. His father, Joel Newman, was a na- 
tive of Maryland, but came to Lima in 1808, 
before the roads were made, and took up a 
hundred acres of wild land. He found a log 
cabin on the premises, but soon built a large 
frame house, and was therefore reputed to be 
a man of means. 

Being very industrious, he cleared most of 
the land before his death, on May 29, 1849, 
at the age of seventy-eight, he having been 
born on August 13, 1 771. He married for 
his first wife a Miss Greathouse; and they 
had two sons, Ira and Henry Newman. His 
second wife was Jerusha Jerome. She was 
born April 22, 1780, and became the" mother 
of five children — James S., who died August 
II, 1830; Isaac R. ; Sarah; John; and Ar- 
thur Newman, who died in infancy. Isaac R. 
died September 29, 1885. Sarah married 
Romeo W. Brown, and has three children — 
Jane, Vesta, and Hannah. 

John H. Newman, the fifth son of Joel 
Newman, received his education in the dis- 
trict schools, and has always followed farm- 
ing. His wife, whom he married in 1846, at 
the age of twenty-seven, was Rebecca Becker, 
daughter of John and Lourana Becker, of 
Richmond, Ontario County. Mr. Newman 
worked on the homestead until 1850, but 
bought another farm, which he still occupies, 



in 1854, and thereon erected new buildings. 
His wife died July 20, 1863, leaving no chil- 
dren. Mr. Newman has served one term as 
Excise Commissioner. In politics he was a 
Whig until the formation of the Republican 
party, which he at once joined; but his first 
vote was cast for Henry Clay in 1844. Well 
is it said by Thomas Carlyle: "The latest 
gospel in the world is, Know thy work and 
do it." Either this utterance or the equally 
earnest word of another independent thinker, 
James Russell Lowell, alluded to above, may 
well be used to introduce the accompanying 
portrait of Mr. Newman, as showing some- 
thing of what his life has stood for: — 

■• Xo man is born into the world whose work 
Is not born with him ; there is always work, 
And tools to work withal for those who will. 
And blessed are the hornv hands of toil/" 



/pTTB] 



IDEON BENTLEY, an active and in- 
\ •) I telligent farmer, residing in the vil- 
lage of Arcade, Wyoming County, 
was born at Sand Lake, Albany County, 
N.Y., December 9, 1828. His father, Noah 
Bentlev, was a son of one of three brothers 
who emigrated from England, and settled in 
Vermont. In the course of time Noah Bent- 
ley came to Onondaga County, New York, 
where he resided on a farm until his death, 
which occurred prematurely as the result of an 
accident. He left four children, two of whom 
are now living; namely, Gideon, the subject 
of this article, and Lydia A., widow of Dr. 
Chase, residing in Sterling, 111. The mother, 
.whose maiden name was Sarah Tripp, married 
a second time, and died at the home of her 
daughter in Illinois. 

Gideon Bentley lost his father when but 
four years of age; and his mother, having a 
family of four small children, intrusted Gid- 
eon to the care of a Mr. Orsenus Hills, with 
whom he remained until his marriage. This 
person, however, desiring to profit by the 
lad's capabilities, engrossed his time so com- 
pletely that Gideon found his opportunities 
for securing even a rudimentary education ex- 
tremely limited. He therefore took a decided 
stand, and told his protector that he must 




JOHN H. NEWMAN. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



477 



have a chance of attending school, or he 
would seek another home; and, rather than 
lose his services, Mr. Hills reluctantly con- 
sented. Young Bentley made good use of his 
educational privileges, and fitted himself for 
a teacher. At the age of eighteen he taught 
his first school in the town of Truxton, Cort- 
land County, N.Y. His next school was in 
Truxton village; and after that he taught in 
"Salt Point," now Syracuse, and other places, 
his last school being in Jamesville. He then 
married, and engaged in farming, finding em- 
ployment on Mr. Hills's farm, where he 
remained two years. About this time rumors 
of the gold discoveries in California reached 
the locality; and Mr. Bentley, sharing the 
general desire to acquire a sudden fortune, 
set out for the new El Dorado, which he 
reached safely, and was engaged in mining in 
California for two years with varying success. 
Finding Fortune a fickle goddess, his thoughts 
turned longingly to the home in New York 
State; and he returned via the Isthmus of 
Panama. This was in 1854. Finding his 
wife's family getting ready to remove to Ar- 
cade, he accompanied them to the new home, 
where he has remained ever since. 

Mr. Bentley's first wife, to whom he was 
married in April, 1850, was by maiden name 
Emma H. McClenthen, and was a daughter of 
Thomas McClenthen. She was born in Man- 
lius, Onondaga County, N.Y., and became 
the mother of four children, namely: Orsa 
H. Bentley, ex-State Senator, and now a 
prominent lawyer of Wichita, Kan., his wife 
being formerly Miss Flora Harris; Morris, 
who married Helen Sherwood, has one son, 
Lynn, and resides at the old homestead, which 
he now owns; J. Clifford Bentley, who mar- 
ried Alice Thomas, and is also a lawyer in 
Wichita, Kan., and the father of two sons, 
Ray and Ralph; Mary A., wife of H. S. 
Johnson, a farmer of Sardinia, Erie County, 
N.Y., having one daughter, Nora. The mother 
of these children died March 2, 1879, at the 
age of forty-nine years. On March 3, 1881, 
Mr. Bentley was united in marriage for the 
second time to Miss Martha Sowerby, whose 
cheerful temperament makes the home still 
bright in these his later years. By this mar- 



riage there is one child, D. C. Bentley, now 
a bright boy of twelve years. Mrs. Bentley's 
parents were Jacob and Jane (Blanchard) 
Sowerby, the former of whom was a native of 
Perry, N.Y. They had six children, four 
girls and two boys. 

Mr. Bentley has filled various offices of 
trust since coming to Arcade. His experi- 
ence as a practical instructor rendered him 
peculiarly well fitted for the position of 
Superintendent of Schools, which he formerly 
held. He has also been Highway Commis- 
sioner and Inspector of Elections, and, though 
not a narrow partisan, usually votes with the 
Republican party on all matters of vital con- 
sequence. He is also prominent in various 
social and fraternal societies, being a member 
of the Arcade Lodge of A. F. & A. M., in 
which he was the first person initiated, and in 
which he has during his membership held all 
the offices. He also belongs to the Good 
Templars and to the Sons of Temperance, 
which latter order he joined May 12, 1857. 
Mr. Bentley's career well illustrates the fact 
that will power and perseverance, coupled 
with cleanness of life and honorable purpose, 
can raise a man from small beginnings to a 
place of honor in the community, despite 
obstacles. As experience has often shown, 
he that depends upon his innate resources and 
presses forward with stout heart and firm hand 
is more likely to achieve success than the 
hosts of helpless Micawbers, who are always 
waiting for "something to turn up." 



^TTlbef 



LBERT ELI FARMAN. A Biograph- 
P! ical Review of Wyoming County, pur- 
-^*' I— • porting to be made up of life 
sketches of men of local prominence, would 
be incomplete without a sketch of Elbert Eli 
Farman, who has been an active citizen of 
Warsaw forty years. Mr. Farman was born 
in New Haven, Oswego County, N.Y., April 
23, 183 1. His father, Zadok Farman, was a 
descendant of a family that settled in Mary- 
land, near Annapolis, in 1674. Martha Dix, 
his mother, was born in Wethersfield, Conn. 
She was a descendant of Leonard Dix, who 
was one of the first settlers of that town, in 



478 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



1633. Mr. Farman prepared for college at 
Genesee Wesleyan Seminary at Lima, N.Y., 
and entered Genesee College in 1851, where 
he pursued the classical course until 1S53, 
when he entered Amherst College, where he 
graduated with honor in 1855. His applica- 
tion and force of character gave him rank in a 
class which has furnished an unusual number 
of men who have become leaders in law, 
medicine, politics, and affairs. He received 
the honors of an "oration" at commencement 
and an election to Phi Beta Kappa. In 1855 
he became a law student in the office of 
F. C. D. McKay, of Warsaw, then District 
Attorney of Wyoming County. While a law 
student he attracted attention as a speaker in 
the Fremont campaign of 1856. He ad- 
dressed forty political meetings in Northern 
New York in that memorable canvass. 

On his admission to the bar in 1858 Mr. 
McKay offered him a partnership, and Mr. 
Farman found himself at once entering upon 
a desirable practice. His labors, however, 
were not confined to the growing demands of 
his profession. From 1859 to 1861 Mr. Far- 
man and Augustus Harrington were proprie- 
tors of the Western Ne2v Yorker, a newspaper 
published at Warsaw, Mr. Harrington being 
its editor. Mr. Farman superintended the 
business department of the paper, besides at- 
tending to his law practice. Under this man- 
agement it quadrupled its circulation, and 
soon became, as it since has been, the leading 
Republican journal in its section of the State. 
Mr. McKay removed to Iowa in i860. Dur- 
ing the next five years Mr. Farman devoted 
himself to his profession, and extended its prac- 
tice until it became lucrative and successful. 

Not satisfied, however, with the narrow 
opportunities of a country practice, he sailed 
for Europe in 1865, where he spent two years 
in travel and study. He attended the univer- 
sities of Heidelberg and Berlin, and heard 
lectures on criminal, international, and the 
civil law. He also studied French and Ger- 
man. He travelled through Italy, Holland, 
and Switzerland, and contributed to the West- 
ern A\'w Yorker accounts of the lands and 
peoples he visited. The New York Observer 
and the Utica BeniM copied his letters, and 



commended them as faithful sketches of for- 
eign life and scenes. Mr. Farman returned 
from Europe in the latter part of 1867; and 
Governor Fenton appointed him District At- 
torney of Wyoming County, to fill a vacancy. 
He held this office during that year; and in 
1868 he was nominated by the Republicans 
for the same position, and elected. At the 
expiration of this term he was re-elected. 
The fact that during seven years of official 
service no indictment drawn by him was 
quashed attests his professional fidelity and 
careful learning. In March, 1876, President 
Grant appointed Mr. Farman Agent and Con- 
sul-general of the United States at Cairo, 
Egypt. His appointment was confirmed the 
same day. From the time of his arrival at 
his post, in May following, until July, 1881, 
he held this position, and attended faithfully 
to its duties at Cairo, finding opportunity, 
however, for trips up the Nile, to Sinai, and 
through Palestine. His duties were chiefly 
diplomatic, and as a representative of the 
United States government in Egypt he was 
successful. He received the approval of the 
government and also of the Americans who 
resided in Cairo, as well as those who visited 
that capital for business or pleasure. His 
personal relations with the Khedive and the 
members of his government were friendly. 
This was appreciated by the American colony 
in Cairo. During his absence in 1878 an 
American who then held a high position in 
Egypt wrote of him in the following terms : — 

"Every American here hopes Mr. Farman 
will return. It would be a great mistake in 
the government to send any one else. He 
understands this country and its people. Al- 
ways efficient in protecting every interest 
confided to his care, he has lately done great 
service to his countrymen here, who would 
have been in a pitiable plight without his 
aid." 

The New York Times referred to Mr. Far- 
man in flattering terms. Its correspondent at 
Cairo said: — 

"Though discharged June 13, only one of 
our officers has received his pay. But with 
the valuable assistance of the indefatigable 
and prudent American Consul-general, Mr. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



479 



Farman, of New York, these difficulties are 
likely soon to be adjusted. The zeal and tact 
displayed by him in clearing away misunder- 
standings in the settlement of officers' ac- 
counts explain the success he has achieved. 
In the country where the will of the sovereign 
is law, diplomacy has much to do in all such 
matters. It will be gratifying to all Ameri- 
cans to know that so competent and excellent 
an officer as Mr. Farman is in the service of 
his country." 

Among the negotiations successfully con- 
ducted by Mr. Farman were those for the in- 
crease of the number of American judges in 
the international tribunal of Egypt. By the 
stipulations the United States were author- 
ized to send a third judge. Mr. Farman took 
part in the reception of General Grant on his 
visit to Cairo. He presented the General to 
the Khedive, acted as interpreter at their 
interview, and gave a state dinner on that 
occasion. His speech at the dinner was pub- 
lished in this country, and his conduct of the 
reception warmly commended. He accom- 
panied the General on his Nile voyage. John 
Russell Young wrote to the New York Herald 
from the Egyptian capital that General Grant 
said, "America has in Mr. Farman a most ex- 
cellent representative, who can but do honor 
to our consular service." Mr. Farman's abil- 
ity to speak French added to his usefulness at 
a court where that is the language of official 
intercourse. He did not confine his attention 
to the wants of Americans having claims 
against the Egyptian government, nor devote 
himself exclusively to the service of his coun- 
trymen in Egypt. \\'hile these demands upon 
him received attention, his official reports, 
published in Washington, show that he also 
took an active interest in the welfare of the 
people of the country to which he was ac- 
credited. Mr. F"arman negotiated a treaty 
with Egypt providing for the extinction of the 
slave traffic in that country and its provinces. 
Though completed and assented to on the part 
of the Egyptian government, the treaty was 
never executed on account of the sudden 
change of the ministry. He took a deep in- 
terest in the conditions of the slaves in that 
country; and upon his application at differ- 



ent limes fifteen were liberated by the govern- 
ment on the ground of their ill treatment by 
their owners. The first was a negro boy 
brought by a slave-trader from Soudan, and 
sold at Saccara, a village near the Pyramids. 
The slave was brutally treated, and escaped to 
Cairo, where an American lady brought him 
to the notice of the Consul-general. He 
interested himself in the case, and in June, 
1877, secured an order from the Egyptian 
government, freeing the slave. On another 
occasion he obtained from that government 
papers of manumission for three slave girls. 
The most meagre sketch would be incom- 
plete without mention of Mr. Farman's ser- 
vice in securing the granite obelisk known in 
history as Cleopatra's Needle, which stood so 
long in front of the Temple of Caesar in Alex- 
andria, and is now the most valuable orna- 
ment of Central Park in New York. This 
great monolith, erected in Heliopolis at the 
entrance of the Temple of the Sun about six- 
teen centuries before Christ, was a familiar 
sight to Moses while he was in favor at the 
court of Pharaoh. It was an ancient monu- 
ment, its inscriptions chiselled in a language 
no longer spoken when Alexander the Great, 
pausing in his military conquests after his 
destruction of Tyre, between the sea and Lake 
Mareotis, near the Kanobic mouth of the 
Nile, founded the imperial city bearing his 
name, which became the literary and commer- 
cial centre, the magnificent metropolis of the 
ancient world. More than three centuries 
later, after the last representative of the 
Greek reign in Eygpt had disappeared, this 
obelisk was brought to Alexandria. The pre- 
cise date of its erection in the reign of 
Thothmes III. and of its removal to this city 
by the sea, as well as the name of the ruler 
who moved it, finally faded out of history. 
In 1877 Mr. Dixon and Dr. Neroutsos Bey, 
while making excavations at its base, found 
an inscription, both in Latin and in Greek, 
engraved on a claw of one of the copper crabs 
on which it stood, showing that the monu- 
ment was erected at Alexandria in the eighth 
year of the reign of Augustus Caesar, b.c. 22, 
by the prefect P. Rubrius Barbarus. When 
Commander Gorringe uncovered its base, the 



480 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



discoveries of Mr. Dixon and Neroutsos Bey 
were verified. After the lapse of nineteen 
centuries this obelisk was lowered a second 
time, and removed more than one-fourth the 
distance around the globe to decorate our me- 
tropolis, as Rome and Constantinople and 
Paris and London were successively adorned 
by obelisks hewn in the dawn of history from 
the rose-colored granite of Syene. To the 
zeal and tact of Mr. Farman the city of New 
York is indebted for the gift of this interest- 
ing monument of one of the oldest civiliza- 
tions. For his success in this delicate matter 
he was complimented by the Department of 
State. Secretary Evarts, in his address at 
Central Park on the occasion of the cere- 
monies after the erection of this monument, 
spoke in high terms of Mr. Farman as Consul- 
general and of his efficient services in secur- 
ing the obelisk. 

His legal training gave J\L'. Farman an im- 
portant qualification for his position, as the 
Consular Court over which he presided was 
the only tribunal in Egypt which had power 
to try an American citizen for crime com- 
mitted in that country. It had jurisdiction 
also in other cases not infrequently arising. 
Mr. Farman 's reports to the Department of 
State, which were published in the annual 
volumes of reports upon the commercial and 
diplomatic relations of the United States with 
foreign countries, bear ample testimony to his 
intelligent and painstaking observation of the 
agriculture, commerce, politics, and finance 
of Egypt. His published despatches also 
show that the interests of his countrymen re- 
ceived his judicious and watchful attention, 
and that the public business committed to 
him was well cared for. That the affairs of 
this consulate-general suffered no harm while 
its duties, neither few nor light, were in his 
charge, is evident from the record he made 
during five years of service. July i, 1881, 
President Garfield appointed Mr. Farman 
Judge of the Mixed Tribunals of Egypt, in 
place of the Hon. Philip H. Morgan. This 
promotion was merited by the valuable service 
which Mr. Farman had rendered as diplomatic 
representative of the United States at the 
Court of the Khedive. 



The Mixed or Reform Tribunals of Egypt 
are international. The seven great powers, 
including the United States, are each repre- 
sented by three judges, while the powers of 
the second class have each one or two, and 
Egypt has three-fifths as many as all the 
others. In the Ottoman Empire the Chris- 
tian European powers and the L^nited States 
have by treaty stipulations extra-territorial 
jurisdiction, and govern through their diplo- 
matic and consular officers and by their own 
laws such of their citizens as reside either 
temporarily or permanently in those countries. 
Such citizens are not amenable to local laws 
or authorities, and their right of being gov- 
erned by the representatives of their respec- 
tive countries extends from father to son 
through successive generations. Every case, 
either criminal or civil, against a foreigner, 
must be brought and prosecuted before his 
own consul. The number of foreigners resid- 
ing in Egypt finally became so large, and the 
numerous systems of jurisprudence so cumber- 
some and inconvenient, and so detrimental to 
the commercial interests of the country, that 
some remedy was necessary. After long 
negotiations, at the request of the Egyptian 
government, the powers consented to the for- 
mation of the Mixed Tribunals and to the 
adoption for their use of a code, which was a 
modification of the Code Napoleon. These 
tribunals were given exclusive jurisdiction in 
civil cases between parties of different nation- 
alities. Jurisdiction in criminal cases and in 
civil cases between parties of the same nation- 
ality is still vested, as formerly, in the con- 
sular authorities of the several powers, and in 
the case of Egyptians in their own local 
authorities. As most of the merchants, 
bankers, and business men of Egypt are either 
foreigners or enjoy the protection of foreign 
governments, the Mixed Tribunals constitute 
the principal courts of the country. In fact, 
they determine nearly all cases of importance. 

In the autumn of 1880 Mr. Farman was ap- 
pointed delegate on the part of the United 
States on an International Commission, in- 
stituted to revise the Judicial Code for the 
use of the Mi.xed Tribunals. President Hayes 
in his last annual message said : — 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



4S1 



"A commission for the revision of the 
Judicial Code of the Reform Tribunals of 
Egypt is now in session at Cairo. Mr. Far- 
man, Consul-general, and George S. Batchel- 
ler, Esq., have been appointed as commis- 
sioners to participate in this work." 

In January, 1883, Mr. Farman was desig- 
nated by President Arthur as a member of the 
International Commission organized to fix the 
indemnity to be paid to the people of Alex- 
andria for damages arising from the riots, 
bombardment, burning, and pillage of that 
city in June and July, 1882. In eleven 
months this commission examined over ten 
thousand claims, and awarded upon them over 
twenty million dollars. During this work 
he also performed his judicial duties, usually 
sitting in the court one day every week. The 
judgeship was a life position, with a liberal 
salary from the Egyptian government. In the 
fall of 1884 he resigned, returned, and took 
an active part in the Presidential campaign of 
that year. Mr. Farman represented the 
United States in Egypt during one of the 
most interesting periods of its modern history. 
He was in Cairo through those eventful times 
that led to the dethronement of Khedive Is- 
mail Pasha and the installation of his son, 
Tewfik, as his successor. Afterward he wit- 
nessed the riots in Alexandria and the bom- 
bardment and burning of that city. During 
his residence in Egypt, 1876-84, Mr. Farman 
made interesting collections of ancient coins, 
scarabaeii, bronzes, porcelain, and other antiq- 
uities. Among these is the Farman Loan 
Collection, now on exhibition at the Metro- 
politan Museum in New York. In 1S58 Am- 
herst College conferred upon him the degree 
of M.A., and in 1882 he received the degree 
of LL.D. from the same institution. On 
leaving Egypt, the Khedive made him Grand 
Officer of the Imperial Order of the Mod- 
jedick, a decoration seldom conferred. 

Soon after leaving college, Mr. Farman 
married Lois Parker, a niece of the Rev. Joel 
Parker, D.D., late of New York. She died 
in June, 1881. In 1883 he married Adelaide 
F., daughter of the Hon. David H. Frisbie, 
of Galesburg, 111., by whom he has three chil- 
dren. Mr. Farman has been a Republican 



from the organization of that party. He is a 
member of the Union League Club of New 
York, of the Society of the Sons of the Revo- 
lution, and of the New York State Bar Asso- 
ciation. Since his return from Egypt he has 
delivered some lectures, made occasional 
political speeches, and travelled extensively; 
but he has confined his attention chiefly to 
the management of his diversified business 
interests. 




ARVIN C. ROWLAND, M.D., a 
skilful and successful physician 
and surgeon of Geneseo, Living- 
ston County, N. Y., who died of 
heart disease, January 15, 1895, was born at 
Hartford, Washington County, June 4, 1826. 
Dr. Rowland left a record both as a medical 
practitioner and private citizen of which his 
family may well be proud. He came of an 
ancestry who were noted for their intellectual 
attainments, and he proved himself a worthy 
descendant. 

As near as can be learned from the best 
information at hand. Dr. Rowland's great- 
grandfather was a native of England, who on 
coming to America established for himself a 
residence on Long Island, where his son, the 
Doctor's grandfather, was born. This gentle- 
man afterward became a resident of Dutchess 
County; and there the Doctor's father, Henry 
Rowland, first saw the light of day. The 
stern and systematic grandsire of the Doctor 
required all his sons to learn a trade of some 
kind. Consequently, Henry was apprenticed 
to a tailor, and acquired that calling as a 
means of livelihood. But his intellectual in- 
stincts were stiong within him, and he soon 
abandoned his trade. After pursuing and per- 
fecting his studies, he entered into the prac- 
tice of law. While still a young man, he set- 
tled at Hartford, and there practised his pro- 
fession with success until his decease, which 
occurred in 1841, at the age of forty-nine 
years. 

The maiden name of Mrs. Henry Rowland 
was Betsey Inglesbe. She was a daughter of 
Joseph Inglesbe, of the State of Massachu- 
setts, a soldier of the Revolutionary War. 



482 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



After the death of her husband she came to 
Livingston County to reside, and here passed 
the remainder of her life. Mrs. Rowland was 
a lady who possessed many strong and sterling 
traits. She died at the advanced age of 
eighty-five, having carefully reared nine chil- 
dren. The following are their names: El- 
thusa, Francis, Jo.seph, Hannah, Artemus, 
Marvin C, Henry James, Phcebe, and Mary 
Elizabeth. Phcebe died at the age of eleven. 
Francis served in the late war, in the One 
Hundred and Twenty-sixth Regiment, New 
York Volunteers, and is now deceased. Arte- 
mus died at the age of twenty-seven, being at 
the time of his death Sheriff of Livingston 
County. 

Marvin C. Rowland received his early edu- 
cation in the district schools, afterward at- 
tended the Genesee W'esleyan Seminary in 
Lima, and then entered the University of Ver- 
mont at Burlington. At the age of twenty- 
seven he applied himself to the study of medi- 
cine. He was graduated with honor at the 
University of New York, and located in Wash- 
ington County, where he practised his profes- 
sion with success until 1862, when he entered 
the army as Surgeon of the Sixty-first Regi- 
ment, New Yc«k Volunteers, joining it at 
Harper's Ferry. He served through all its 
campaigns and battles, until the summer of 
1865, when he was mustered out with the 
regiment, and in 1866 resumed the duties of 
his profession in Lakeville. In 1877 he re- 
moved to Geneseo, where he remained in ac- 
tive practice till his decease in the sixty- 
eighth year of his age. 

Dr. Rowland's first wife, whom he married 
in 1850, was Martha W. Livingston, of Fle- 
bron, Washington County, daughter of Joseph 
and Elizabeth (Selfridge) I^ivingston. She 
died in 1853. In 1870 he was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Emily Haynes, of Geneseo, the 
daughter of J. Hunter Haynes, whose father, 
John, and grandfather, James, came from 
Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, the 
latter in 1792. J. Hunter Haynes, who was 
born at Geneseo, October 27, 1809, was a very 
prosperous and successful farmer. He was a 
life-long resident of Geneseo, and a member of 
the Presbyterian church at Lakeville upward 



of forty years. The maiden name of his first 
wife, Mrs. Rowland's mother, was Mary 
Price. She was a daughter of Arthur and 
Agnes (Sinclair) Price. Dr. Rowland had 
one son by his first marriage, LoVette Living- 
ston, and one by the second marriage, Harry 
Haynes. 

The Doctor was a member of the Central 
New York and Livingston County Medical 
Societies. Socially, Dr. Rowland was con- 
nected with the RIasons, Odd P'ellows, and 
the Grand Army Post, each of which organiza- 
tions attended the funeral in a body. The 
pall-bearers were leading medical men of the 
vicinity, namely: Di. Richmond, of Livojiia; 
Dr. Dodge, of Mount Morris ; Dr. Moyer, of 
Moscow; Dr. Filkins, of York; and Drs. 
Green and Lauderdale, of Geneseo. Mrs. 
Rowland is a member of the Presbyterian 
church, with which her husband w-as also con- 
nected. 




ILLIAM H. HAWLEY, Jr., one of 
the most enterprising young busi- 
ness men of Wyoming County, was 
born at Warsaw, April 6, 1862. He is a son 
of William H. and Sarah (Purdy) Hawley, 
and grandson of Colonel -major and Nancy 
(Bronson) Hawley, who were both natives of 
Manchester, Bennington County, Vt. 

Colonel Hawley was born in 1791, and in 
early life was a farmer, dealing extensively in 
live stock. He continued in this business 
until 1848, when he sold his farm, in order to 
pay more close attention to the business of the 
Battankill State Bank at Manchester, of which 
he was a large stockholder and President. 
He held this position until 1872, when he 
retired from the Presidency of the then Bat- 
tankill National Bank, and conducted a marble 
quarry at Dorset, \'t., also being well known 
as a money-lender. He was first a Whig, and 
later a Republican, in his politics. He was 
Overseer of the Poor, Assessor, Selectman of 
his town, judge of court. Representative to 
the legislature, one of the Directors of the 
Bennington & Rutland Railroad, and Colonel 
of the State militia. His death occurred in 
1877. He reared four children, the eldest of 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



483 



whom, W'illmina D., born January 18, 1823, 
died March 14, 1846. Ellen, the second, 
born July 3, 1826, now resides at Manchester, 
\'t. E. J. Hawley, born January 22, 1828, 
also a resident of Manchester, \'t., married 
Francis Walker, and is in the marble busi- 
ness, and is the patentee of the Hawley Sand 
Feed for sawing stone, which is used exten- 
sively in the United States and in foreign 
countries. 

William H. Hawley, Sr. , the youngest son 
of Colonel Hawley, was born October 15, 
1 83 1. He was educated at the Burr and Bur- 
ton Seminary, Manchester, Vt. At the age 
of twenty-four he commenced farming, and 
from 1857 till 1862 was interested in the 
marble business. Moving to Perry Centre, 
N. Y. , during the latter year, on June 2 he 
started a store for the sale of general merchan- 
dise, and here did a large and profitable busi- 
ness for ten years. In 1873 he established a 
boot and shoe store at Perry Centre, in 1876 
put in a full and complete stock of general 
merchandise, and in 1881 took his son, Will- 
iam H. Hawley, Jr., as a partner in the busi- 
ness. They continued together until 1886, 
when he retired from active business, leaving 
his son to continue the trade. Mr. Hawley 
has since dealt quite extensively in real estate, 
of which he owns a considerable amount in 
Warsaw, Perry, and Batavia, consisting of 
village lots and farms. His residence at 
Perry Centre was built in 181 7, and is in 
a fine state of preservation. 

On September 6, i860, William H. Haw- 
ley, Sr. , married Sarah A., daughter of Albert 
and Sarah (Benedict) Purdy, both natives of 
Manchester, Vt. , but after marriage residents 
successively in Perry Centre and in Warsaw. 
In the former place Mr. Purdy carried on a 
general merchandise and tailoring business, 
which he sold in 1854; and in Warsaw he 
engaged in the real estate business, erecting 
and renting many houses, of which he owned 
at one time as many as forty. He was a 
Democrat in politics. He died at the age of 
eighty-one, and his wife at seventy-nine years. 
Three children were born to them : S. D. 
Purdv, who married Minerva Bainbridge, and 
now resides in Rochester, where he is a loan 



broker; Sarah A., Mrs. Hawley, born August 
13, 1836; and Celia, who died in infancy. 
Mr. and Mrs. William H. Hawley, Sr. , have 
had three children, namely: William H., 
subject of this sketch ; Frank, born February, 
1870, who died at the age of seven months; 
and Millie, born February i, 1873. Mr. 
Hawley is a Republican, and has been trustee 
of the town schools and also the Congrega- 
tional church. 

William H. Hawley, Jr., has been in active 
business since he was twenty years old. He 
attended school at Perry Centre, Perry, and 
Warsaw, graduating at the age of eighteen. 
He then opened a cash grocery across the 
street from his father's place of business. At 
the end of one year he sold out, and attended 
Eastman's Business College at Poughkeepsie, 
N. Y. , graduating in April, 1881. In May of 
the same year he entered into a five years' 
partnership with his father. At the expiration 
of that time he purchased his father's interest 
in the business, and, continuing the same, 
added to it the buying of farm products, mak- 
ing a specialty of buying eggs for shipment. 
He personally drove a wagon on the road for 
three years, selling groceries and buying eggs. 
Since then he has bought eggs from the mer- 
chants of the adjoining towns, shipping as 
high as sixty thousand dozens in one season. 
Mr. Hawley is a stanch and loyal Republican. 
He was treasurer of the Perry Centre Repub- 
lican Club of 1880, and one of the organizers 
of the Blaine and Logan Club of 1884; organ- 
ized the Philip H. Sheridan Club in 1888, 
and was elected its President, which ofiice he 
has since held. He was appointed Postmaster 
at Perry Centre April 26, 1889, and held the 
position until August 18, 1893. He has sev- 
eral times been a delegate to the County, 
Senatorial, and Congressional Conventions; 
was a member of the Town Committee from 
1884 to 1889; also a member of the Senatorial 
District Committee in 1886, 1888, 1890; 
member of the Congressional Committee in 
1890, 1892, 1894; delegate to the State Con- 
vention at Albany in 1892, and to the State 
Convention at Saratoga which nominated Mor- 
ton for governor, September 15, 1894. He 
was appointed and served as General Com- 



484 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



mittee Clerk in the New York State Sen- 
ate for 1890-91 ; also received the appoint- 
ment of Index Clerk of the New York State 
Assembly, and held the office for two years, 
1894-95. 

On September 18, 1889, Mr. Hawley was 
united in marriage to Grace Hubbard, of Ful- 
ton, III, daughter of Dr. N. W. and Mary 
(Coe) Hubbard. Her father was born at Ran- 
dolph, Portage County, Ohio, in the year 
1810, and died in Fulton in 1883. His father 
and HKither were Bela and Phcebe (Ward) 
Hubbard, natives of Connecticut, and pioneers 
in the early days of Ohio. Bela Hubbard 
died at the age of ninety-si.\ years. Dr. 
Hubbard graduated from the Columbus Medi- 
cal College, Ohio, and practised medicine in 
Newark and in Elyria, Ohio, from which place 
he removed to Fulton, 111. He was the in- 
ventor of surgical appliances which were of 
great benefit to the profession. His children 
were : Frances, now the widow of H. K. Bel- 
lard; Lester C, who is engaged in journalis- 
tic work in Chicago, 111. ; Frederick H., who 
died in 1888 at Brooklyn, N.Y., being en- 
gaged in the practice of medicine in that city; 
and Grace, wife of Mr. Hawley. Mr. and 
Mrs. Hawley have one child — Frederick \V., 
born January 7, 1893. 



fff]YOHN C. COE, an intelligent and pros- 
perous Livingston County farmer of a 
past generation, was born in Durham, 
Conn., on the 15th of June, 1787. 
His father, Simeon Coe, who was also a native 
of Connecticut, came as an early settler to 
Paris, Oneida County, N. Y., where he pur- 
chased a farm, and remained thereon as long 
as he lived. The son of Simeon and Eunice 
Coe, John C. Coe, who is the subject of this 
sketch, was educated in the common schools of 
Paris and at Fairfield Academy. He began 
life for himself on a farm which he bought in 
that vicinity, but which after a few years 
he sold ; and he then moved to Livingston 
County, in 1815, with a horse and cutter, 
bringing his wife, their three children, and 
a dog. He purchased at first one hundred 
acres of cleared land in Livonia, and afterward 



invested in a farm in .South Livonia. Every 
energy was now employed in the arduous but 
cheerful task of making a home, in which 
effort Mr. Coe was so successful that his es- 
tablishment was counted among the most com- 
fortable and attractive of the county. Here 
he died, aged si.\ty-five years. 

His wife, before marriage Miss Anna Di.\- 
son and a daughter of Robert and Sarah Dix- 
son, was, like himself, a native of Connecti- 
cut. They reared a family of eleven children 
— Almira C, Sarah A., Laura M., George F. , 
Flavins J., Amos D., Mary J., Nancy C, 
Amanda M., Julia C, Helen L. Amos D. 
married Miss Mary J. Jerome, and has two 
children — John F. and Alice C. He is a 
widower, and lives in Conesus, of which town 
he has been Supervisor. Helen L. married 
Peter G. Frutchey, and resides at the paternal 
homestead. P"lavius, who also lives on the 
old homestead, has always been a farmer. 
Laura M. married Solomon Hitchcock, of 
Conesus, and died, leaving one son — Solomon 
E. Hitchcock. Julia C. (deceased) married 
Manson F. Gibbs, of Livonia. She left three 
children — Gardiner A., John M., and Julian 
C. Gibbs. George F. married Alta A. Stone, 
of Livonia. They have three children — Anna 
F., John C. , and PTavius J. — and live in 
Conesus. Anna F. Coe, the grand-daughter, 
married John Webster, and has one child, a 
son, who bears the name of George C. Web- 
ster. Flavins J. Coe has never married. He 
held the office of Supervisor in his town for 
five successive years, from 1887 to 1891 in- 
clusive. He has always been strong in his 
fealty to the Rejaublican party, with whose 
principles he is clearl}' and intelligently con- 
versant. 

The mother of this large family lived to be 
eighty-seven years of age, surviving her hus- 
band for some years . Mr. John C. Coe was 
a supporter of that political party which was 
known in his time under the appellation of the 
Whig party, but which afterward was merged 
into another, bearing a different name and 
distinctive tenets. John C. Coe's life of 
quiet effort and successful fruition is an en- 
couragement as well as an example to those 
who come after him. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



485 



J^AVID PORTER ROOD, a retired 
=1 resident of Johnsonburg, Wyoming 
9V County, and veteran of the Civil 
War, was born in Wethersfield, July 
21, 1829. His father, Eli Rood, was born in 
Vermont, October 1 3, 1 797, and was the son 
of David Rood, a pioneer in Wyoming County, 
who came here with wife and children, set- 
tling at Orangeville, on the line of Johnson- 
burg, in 18 1 7. David Rood was one of the 
early residents who felled trees for the purpose 
of cutting a road from Wethersfield Springs to 
Hall's Corners. By his wife, Sarah Rogers, 
David Rood became the father of four sons and 
three daughters, all of whom attained their 
majority, married, and became heads of fami- 
lies. He improved a good farm in Orange- 
ville, and later moved to Wethersfield Springs, 
where he died about the year 1834, having 
passed beyond the fourscore limit. His widow 
survived him some fourteen }-ears, dying at 
considerably over seventy years. 

Eli Rood married Eliza Tanner, who was 
born at Cooperstown, Otsego County, N.Y., 
in 1805, and removed to Warsaw in 1809. 
Mrs. Eliza T. Rood died October 21, 1840, at 
the age of thirty-five years, leaving two sons 
and one daughter. She was a strong Presby- 
terian, and died firmly adhering to that faith. 
Eli Rood again married, and died at Wethers- 
field Springs in 1877, aged eighty years. A 
Whig, and afterward a Republican, in politics, 
he served forty years as Justice of the Peace — 
consecutively, with the exception of one term — 
and was also County Superintendent of the 
Poor. His children by his first wife were the 
following : Zera Tanner Rood, who was born 
at Wethersfield Springs, Eebruary 21, 1827, 
married Rosetta Brown in 1849, and resides at 
Grand Rapids, Mich., where he is a carpenter 
and millwright, having four children; David 
P. Rood, the subject of this sketch; and 
Helen E. , deceased. 

David Porter Rood was educated at the dis- 
trict school near the home of his boyhood, 
and, when he married at the age of twenty- 
one, began farming on rented land in the 
vicinity. In the fall of 1854 he moved to 
Fort Dodge, la., where he settled upon one 
hundred and forty acres of wild land on the 



Des Moines River, being among the early 
comers, when buffalo, deer, and elk were 
plenty. In 1855 Mr. Reed returned East, 
where he engaged in the sale of the State 
Gazetteer, and later was in the map business. 
Having continued in this and the real estate 
business until the year 1864, he enlisted for 
service in the Civil War, being commissioned 
as Second Lieutenant of Company E, Sixty- 
third Regiment, New York Infantry, in the 
Irish Brigade. He enlisted for three years, 
but was discharged as disabled from the offi- 
cers' hospital at Annapolis, September 16, 
having been severely wounded at the battle of 
Cold Harbor by a bullet which entered his 
forearm. At the battle of Spottsylvania, Va. , 
May 12, 1864, Lieutenant Rood, after charg- 
ing the breastworks, was deployed with a file 
of men to head off the escaping rebels. Leav- 
ing his men to return to his company, alone 
and unaided he captured thirteen rebel sol- 
diers, and marched them in as prisoners. 

On P^ebruary 26, 1850, David P. Rood mar- 
ried Miss Elizabeth Boddy, who died on Octo- 
ber 24, 1855. The fruit of this marriage was 
one son, Eli, who now is a railroad man at 
Niagara Falls, N. Y., having a wife and four 
children. On October 7, 1856, Mr. Rood 
married his second wife, who was Nancy 
Truesdell, of Warsaw, and on September 5, 
1885, was again called upon to mourn the 
death of his consort. She left three children, 
as follows: Mary, wife of Adelbert Cook, a 
farmer at Wethersfield Springs, having three 
children; Dora B., wife of William Burch, of 
Warsaw, having two children; and Lillian A., 
wife of Charles B. Nutting, of Johnsonburg, 
having one son. 

On November 9, 1887, Mr. Rood married 
his present wife, Helen A. Royce, of Orange- 
ville, daughter of Orin and Amanda (Eddy) 
Royce. She was a teacher in the public 
schools eleven terms, and now presides over 
her pleasant, modest home in Johnsonburg 
with that skill and quiet dignity which is the 
result of intellectual cultivation. Mr. Rood's 
last marriage is blessed with one son, a bright 
boy, David Porter Rood, Jr., born in 1888. 

In 1874 he was appointed Deputy Collector 
of customs at Suspension Bridge, N.Y. , and 



486 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



served four years. He also served two terms 
at Wethersfield as Justice of the Peace. Mr. 
Rood owns a farm of twenty-five acres, with 
a feed and saw mill, at what is known as 
Springwater Lake, or Rood's Pond. He owns 
at Warsaw a house and lot, for which he ex- 
changed one of his farms, and also two farms 
near Wethersfield Springs, besides real estate 
in Buffalo and at Niagara Falls. For about 
six years he has now been free from the cares 
of business. He is a comrade of Buford Post, 
No. 238, Grand Army of the Republic, of 
Johnsonburg, in which he has held some of the 
offices, and is a Republican in politics. His 
wife is a member of the Methndist church. 




ICAVlI'LIAM E. HAFL was born in 
North Bloomficld, N.Y. , November 
10, 1810, and died at Avon, De- 
cember 3, 1890, at the age of eighty years, for 
fifty-five of which he had been united in the 
holy bonds of matrimony to Esther M. Mather 
Hall. Nearly five years have passed since he 
was taken away; but he is still severely 
missed by many, and always will be missed 
as long as there remains remembrance of his 
many sterling qualities. He was of New Eng- 
land ancestry, his father having been a Con- 
necticut man by birth, and his grandfather a 
life-long resident of that State. The grand- 
father's name was Abel, and the father's name 
was Isaac; for in those days Biblical names 
were almost universal. Both his father and 
his grandfather were equally unknown person- 
ally to the subject of this sketch, and his 
mother was known to him but little better; 
for he lost his father when he was but three 
years old, lost his mother when he was but 
seven, and had practically no property await- 
ing his coming of age when he went to live 
with his uncle, Mr. Brockaway, who resided 
at Lima. 

William E. Hall received his education in 
the district schools of that town, and was a 
bright, industrious young man, who made good 
use of his opportunities, and proved himself 
at a very early age to be fully capable of shift- 
ing for himself. He quickly learned his trade 
as tanner and currier, and soon set up in that 



business for himself in the town of West 
Bloomfield, where he carried on operations as 
a tanner and currier for about five years, and 
then removed to Avon. He settled on the 
Wadsworth farm, and soon started a saw-mill 
and a wood-turning shop, in addition to his 
tanning and currying business. P'inally, he 
bought the Judge Hosmer place, where he 
passed the rest of his life. Some of the finest 
buildings in the town of Avon were erected 
by Mr. Hall. Unquestionably, the most im- 
porant and the most beneficial occurrence 
during h'is long and busy life was that of 
September 17, 1835, when he was married to 
Esther M. Mather, daughter of Guerdon and 
Eunice M. Mather, of Connecticut. The 
Mather family removed from Connecticut to 
New York State about 181 5, coming in wagons 
laden with all their goods. Mr. Mather took 
up a farm, built him a log house, and lived 
therein about a score of years, when he re- 
moved to Mount Morris, and lived on a farm 
to the south of the village for a considerable 
period, after which the family came to West 
Bloomfield, and settled on a farm, where the 
head of the family died, at the age of forty- 
nine. His widow survived him many years, 
and died at the residence of Mrs. Hall, her 
daughter, in Avon. 

William E. and Esther M. Mather Hall 
had six children — Caroline B. , Sophia P., 
Frances M., William E. , Lizzie, and Charles. 
Caroline B. married Aaron Barber, of Avon 
(a sketch of whom will be found on another 
page of this work). Sophia P. married Will- 
iam Clendenning, and has two children — 
Frank and Eugene. F'rances E. married 
Smith Newman, and resides at Hornellsville. 
Lizzie married George F. Smith, lives at 
home with her mother, and has two children — 
Frances and Elmer. William E. lives at 
Grand Rapids, Mich., and married Edith B. 
Torrance, who has been removed by death. 
She left him two children — Belle and Pliny. 
Charles is not married, and resides at home 
with his mother. In 1885 William E. Hall 
and his wife celebrated their golden wedding; 
and it had proved a "golden wedding" in fact 
as well as in the number of years which they 
had been united, for it was one of those unions 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



487 



in which the greatest possible strength is 
found. Friends came from every section of 
New York State; and children, grandchildren, 
and great-grandchildren were in happy attend- 
ance. Mrs. Hall enjoys the possession of four 
great-grandchildren, who were born to Frank 
and to Eugene, the children of her daughter 
Sophia. Frank married Minnie Andrews, and 
was presented with twin girls — Edith and 
Ina. Eugene married Mary Dwyer, and has 
two children — Sophia and Claribel. 

Mrs. Hall is a member of the Presbyterian 
church at Avon; and her husband, the subject 
of this sketch, was also deeply interested in 
the Presbyterian faith. And it was but nat- 
ural that such should be the case ; for he came 
from sturdy Presbyterian stock, that played 
a most important part in the development of 
this country. Both his parents were descend- 
ants of old English families, who came to the 
New World between the time of the landing of 
the Pilgrim Fathers at Plymouth, Mass., and 
the great uprising of the English people which 
resulted in Oliver Cromwell being placed in 
full possession of the executive powers of the 
government of England. Mr. Hall's father 
was an earnest adherent to and advocate of the 
Presbyterian doctrines. His grandfather was 
a Deacon in the Presbyterian Church. In 
fact, the farther back his ancestry is traced, 
the more evident it becomes that inherited 
nature, habit of thought, and what may be 
called pre-natal training combined to make 
the subject of our sketch a consistent member 
of the Presbyterian church, and helped him 
greatly in the courageous and successful strug- 
gle for a living into which he was obliged to 
enter at so early an age. 




»RS. JULIA M. LOOMIS, an es- 
teemed resident of Bennington, 
N.Y., was born in the adjoining 
town of Sheldon. Her parents. 
Dr. Benjamin and Phebe (P2astman) Potter, 
who were both natives of Oneida County, and 
were there married in 1806, came to Wyoming 
County in 1808, and, after sojourning for two 
years in Attica, removed to Sheldon in 1810. 
Dr. Benjamin Potter was educated at Fairfield 



Medical College, was a physician of high 
repute, and served as a surgeon in the War of 
1812. He had a large practice, and died at 
the age of forty years, leaving a widow, four 
sons, and one daughter, the subject of this 
sketch. Two of his sons, Lindorff and Milton 
E. Potter, were physicians of Varysburg and 
Attica, and are now deceased. Philo W. Pot- 
ter was a merchant in the town of Java, where 
he died in 1890. The other son, Myron P. 
Potter, also deceased, was a merchant in FAg\n 
and Algonquin, 111. 

Julia M. Potter, having in her younger days 
attended the district schools of Sheldon, spent 
a year studying the higher branches of learn- 
ing at the Attica Seminary. She taught 
school three terms previous to her marriage 
to John LooniLs, which occurred October 17, 
1 84 1, at the age of eighteen years. After a 
wedded life of more than half a century her 
husband died, March 12, 1893. John Loom is 
was born upon the farm where his widow now 
resides, his father, Justin Loomi.s, having cut 
the first tree thereon in 1807. It was after 
the death of their father, who was a farmer in 
the town of Windsor, Conn., that Justin 
Loom is and his brother Chauncey, with their 
widowed mother, came to Wyoming Countv, 
making the long journey in a wagon drawn by 
horses, travelling together with two other fam- 
ilies named Hoskins and Case. The two 
brothers purchased jointly several hundred 
acres of wild land of the Holland Company, 
having brought with them, as is said, more 
than ten thousand dollars apiece for the pur- 
pose of investing in real estate and establish- 
ing homes for themsehx's. 

Justin Loomis married Polly Rolfh, of 
Sheldon, daughter of Dr. Rolfh, who came to 
Sheldon from Canandaigua, Ontario County, 
about the time the Loomises arrived there, in 
1807. Ju.stin Loomis and Miss Rolfh were 
married in 1808, and three of their children 
were born previous to 1812. The brothers 
and sisters of Mr. John Loomis who attained 
their majority were as follows: Justin, an 
octogenarian, a resident of Lewisburg, Pa., 
nominally retired from the Presidency of the 
Bucknell University; Mary O., who married 
Charles Throop, both of whom are now de- 



488 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ceased; Lucy, who married the Rev. Alvin 
Plumley, both also now deceased. The home 
farm of four hundred and forty acres was a part 
of the original large tract which the Loomis 
brothers purchased jointly at one dollar per 
acre, and from which were sold many of the 
now flourishing farms in the section. Chaun- 
cey Loomis was married to Rachel Evans, a 
sister of the Hon. David Evans, of Batavia, 
and was appointed a judge in 1809. 

Since her marriage Mrs. Loomis has lived 
upon the farm she now owns and conducts, the 
present comfortable residence, which is one of 
the most attract i\-e houses in the town, having 
been planned and erected by her late husband 
in i860. The Loomis farm, which consists 
of three hundred and si.xteen acres, is in two 
parts ; namely, two hundred and eight acres in 
the homestead lot, occupied by Mrs. Loomis, 
and one hundred and eight acres across the 
way. Mrs. Loomis keeps about seventeen 
cows, which is one-half the former number, 
and carries on a very fine dairy. 

The first-born child of Mrs. Loomis, Milton 
P. Loomis, died at the age of seven months. 
She has two children living, both of whom are 
married, namely: Myron A. Loomis, who is 
a resident of Weems, Lancaster County, Va., 
and is in the oyster and canning business; and 
Jennie C, wife of P. S. Tyler, a musician 
and music-dealer, residing on their farm 
opposite, and having four children — John 
Loomis, aged thirteen ; Augusta, aged eleven ; 
Margaret, aged two years; and William Gregg, 
an infant son. Mrs. Loomis is a lady of 
energy and prompt decision, which enables her 
to successfully conduct her farm in a manner 
both creditable and profitable. She is a mem- 
ber of the Baptist church. 



IRVING B. SMITH, who has been Prin- 
cipal of the Warsaw Union School 
and Academy for the past ten years, 
was born in Attica, N. Y. , September 
30, 1845. 

Mr. Smith's grandfather, Isaac Smith, was 
born in 1763, and enlisted while yet a mere 
lad in the Continental Army during the Revo- 
lutionary War. He was army cook for one 



year, but before age would properly admit 
went into the ranks, exchanging soup-ladle and 
frying-pan for a musket, which he wielded 
with equal facility and far more fatal results. 
When an old man, he was fond of relating his 
experiences, which were full of interest to 
patriotic young Americans who used to gather 
about his knees during the long winter even- 
ings, eager to hear the reminiscences of 1776. 
He died in 1856, aged ninety-three years. 
His wife, who was a Miss Hawley, bore him 
seven sons and three daughters, of whom Haw- 
ley Smith, born in Oneida County in 1805, 
was the youngest child but two. The grand- 
mother died at eighty years of age, between 
1840 and 1845. 

Mr. Hawley Smith, the father oi Irving B. , 
was married at the early age of eighteen, 
while his child wife was but sixteen. Her 
maiden name was Eanny Bailey ; and she was 
a daughter of Aaron Bailey, whose wife was 
a Wallingsford. This youthful union was a 
happy one, and extended over sixty years, 
spent, for the most part, in Attica and Middle- 
bury, where he followed the carpenter's trade, 
and where she was faithful in the love of hus- 
band and children and in the discharge of 
wifely duty and maternal cares. The shadow 
of death often darkened their home, for seven 
of their children died before reaching seven 
years of age. Of those who survived are 
Betsey, who was the first-born of the family 
and twenty years older than her brother Irving, 
the wife of Judson Kelley, a farmer of Middle- 
bury ; Roena, the widow of Howel Jones, 
also of Middlebury; Edwin S. , a school- 
teacher, a School Commissioner, and a car- 
penter, of the same place; and Ir\ing B. 
There is a touching beauty and pathos in the 
life-story of the father and mother, who have 
spent the spring and autumn of life together, 
and whose lives ended almost simultaneously. 
For manv months Mrs. Smith had been ill of 
creeping parah'sis, and only lived a day and a 
half after her husband's sudden death from 
pneumonia. Both bodies were buried in one 
grave. 

Irving B. Smith began working out upon 
a farm at fourteen years of age — compensa- 
tion, six dollars per month — and had an ample 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



4S9 



opportunity of testing Mr. Carnegie's theory 
that "poverty is a young man's best legacy." 
The boy showed an indomitable determination 
to acquire an education; for, after studying in 
the district schools, he entered the Wyoming 
Academy, si.\ miles distant, at first taking a 
week's supply of food at a time upon his arm, 
and afterward working twenty hours a week 
in Professor Morse's garden for his board. 
Between the school terms he taught, which 
was, perhaps, the best sort of education in 
itself. At Middlebury Academy, which was 
one of the earliest and most popular schools of 
Western New York, he received, under Profes- 
sor Monroe Weed, ideas of education and dis- 
cipline which were of great value to him in 
after life. From this academy many brave 
soldiers enlisted in New York's muster rolls 
during the Civil War; and it was from the 
class-rooms to the ranks that Irving B. Smith 
went when he joined the Eighteenth New 
York Independent Battery — "Mack's Black 
Horse Battery" — in 1864, not yet having 
completed his nineteenth year. During his 
one year's service he participated in some of 
the military events of the war in the far 
South — the capture of Mobile, the siege of 
Spanish Fort, and the capture of Fort Blakely. 
After receiving an honorable discharge at 
Rochester, he entered Hillsdale College in 
Michigan in the autumn of 1866; and there 
he remained until 1868. He then taught the 
Middlebury academy for three years, returning 
at the end of that time to college with one 
un.shaken and inflexible purpose — to win a 
diploma. This end was attained in 1873, in 
which year he graduated. His first work was 
to fill the pastorate of the Free-will Baptist 
church in Pike, where he also became Princi- 
pal of Pike Seminary, a position he held for 
eight years, a part of which time he was still 
engaged in ministerial work. He was elected 
School Commissioner of the First District of 
Wyoming County in 1881. 

On the 3d of December, 1869, he was united 
in marriage to Miss Amelia R. Miller, a 
daughter of Hiram Miller. Mrs. Smith's 
family on both sides belonged to the early set- 
tlers of Middlebury. Her mother's maiden 
name was Deborah Howes, The father and 



mother passed their many years of married life 
upon the old farm on "Miller Hill," and were 
taken to their last resting-place from the old 
homestead now owned by Mr. Smith, which 
was bought from the Holland Company by 
Mrs. Smith's father. Mr. and Mr.s. Smith 
have lost two children — Nellie Amelia, an 
infant; and Alice Dott, a child of two years. 
The surviving children are: Monroe Weed 
.Smith, now a student in Williams College, 
class of 1895, a young man of promise; Fan- 
nie May, a girl of eleven; and Irving Blaine, 
a precocious little boy, who has as yet only 
counted three birthdays. 

Mr. Smith is a member of Gibbs Post, 
Grand Army of the Republic; and Mrs. 
Smith, a member of the Relief Corps. They 
attend church services at the Congregational 
church of Warsaw, where M. Weed and Fan- 
nie are members, while the parents hold their 
old membership at Dale. Mr. Smith some- 
times yields to invitations to fill vacant pul- 
pits of the different denominations of Warsaw 
and vicinity when school duties are not too 
pressing. 




LOYD W. CROSSETT, a retired drug- 
gist of Geneseo, N.Y. , the esteemed 
representative of one of the early 
pioneers of Livingston County, was 
born upon the old family homestead, which is 
situated about one mile south of the village, 
October 5, 1847. His father, John Crossett, 
also a native of Geneseo, having been born 
here February 13, 1817, was a son of William 
Crossett, born in County Antrim, Ireland, in 
1763, who came to America in 1794. He es- 
tablished a store in Geneseo for the sale of 
general merchandise, and traded with the Ind- 
ians. 

Mr. John Crossett at an early age became 
a farmer, and after the death of his parents 
retained for himself a portion of the land that 
had belonged to them. At a later period he 
purchased the homestead now owned and occu- 
pied by his son, and resided here until his 
decease, which occurred F'ebruary 11, 1890, at 
the age of seventy-two. The maiden name of 
his wife was Jane Leonard. She was a native 



490 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



of Sparta; and sho reared three children, two 
of whom are now deceased, she herself dying 
at the age of fifty-five years. John Crossett 
was a member and a Deacon of the Presbyte- 
rian church. 

The bovhood of Lloyd \V. Crossett was 
passed at the parental home. He learned his 
earlv lessons at the district school, pursued 
the higher branches at Temple Hill Academy, 
and between terms assisted his father in the 
work of the farm. Later he continued his 
studies for a time at Ann Arbor, Mich., but 
on account of failing health was obliged 
shortly to return to his home. 

After a season of rest, his health having 
improved, he purchased a drug store in Gen- 
eseo, and went into business, taking as partner 
a gentleman who had worked under the former 
proprietor as -a clerk, the firm being known as 
Crossett & Knowles. About four years later 
the firm was changed to Crossett & Sherwood ; 
and they continued to successfully conduct the 
store until i88o, when Mr. Sherwood disposed 
of his interest to Mr. Crossett, who remained 
in business alone for a period of ten years, re- 
tiring in 1890. 

In 18S0 Mr. Crossett married Miss Cath- 
erine Doty, daughter of William Doty, a dry- 
goods merchant, and a very prominent busi- 
ness man in Geneseo. Mr. and Mrs. Crossett 
have one child — Mary Emma. Mr. Crossett 
is a member of Geneseo Lodge, No. 214, 
A. F". &. A. M., and takes much interest in 
Masonic affairs. He is a Democrat in poli- 
tics, though liberal in his political views. 
He attends the Presbyterian cluu-ch, of which 
his wife is a member. 

As a business man, Mr. Crossett has been 
active and painstaking, and very successful, 
serving the public with a carefulness and 
promptness that could not fail to give satisfac- 
tion. 

The family has been well and favorably 
known in the locality since 1794; and Mr. 
Crossett is naturally much interested in the 
preservation of its record, as was also his late 
father, a fine portrait and authentic sketch of 
whose career may be found on page 404 of 
the "I-ivingston County History," issued in 
iSSo. 




\T)Ki;W KUDER, a volunteer in the 
late war, who rose to the rank of Cap- 
tain, nciw a thriving farmer of the 
border town of Conesus, Livingston 
Countv, X.V., was born in Groveland, near 
the centre of the county, on November 11, 
1S38. His paternal grandfather, George, 
came from Germany, and settled in Pennsyl- 
vania, where his father, John, was burn in 
1802. John Kuder, who was a farmer, came 
to Sparta, N. V., and from there to Groveland, 
where he bought a farm of one hundred and 
si.xtv acres of land, upon which he lived dur- 
ing the remainder of his life. He married 
Miss Catherine Lorish, of Pennsylvania; and 
si.x children w^ere born to them, all of whom 
are still living. The mother has completed 
her eighty-eighth year. 

Andrew Kuder, who was the fourth child, 
was educated in the district schools at Grove- 
land and the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary of 
Lima. .After completing his education, he 
taught school for one term in Michigan, and 
then returned to New York. In 1S62 he en- 
listed in the Eighth New York Volunteer 
Cavalry as a private, and was in the Federal 
senice until the close of the Civil War. An- 
drew Kuder's military record was a brilliant 
one, in which his descendants may feel just 
pride. He fought through many of the most 
important battles of the war, and was promoted 
successively to be Corporal, Sergeant, First 
Lieutenant, and Captain. With the last com- 
mission he was discharged, June 27, 1865, at 
Rochester. He was presented by Congress 
with a medal of honor for distinguished brav- 
ery during the war. The occasion was his 
capture of a standard of colors from a division 
of Jubal l-larly's raiders in the Shenandoah 
Valley. The medal specifies the valorous 
deed for which it was awarded, and is es- 
teemed a family treasure, one to be cherished 
as an heirloom by future generations of patri- 
otic Kuders. 

In the autumn of 1865 Captain Kuder 
bought the Hitchcock homestead, and married 
Miss Mary L. Hitchcock, the daughter of 
Hector and Mary (Loomis) Hitchcock, the 
former owners of the property. The Hitch- 
cocks are descended from three brothers, who 



1^ 







ANDREW KUDER. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



493 



came from Wales to America in 1635, and 
founded the town of l^ast Haven, Conn. To 
Captain and Mrs. Kuder three children have 
been born — Halcyone, Dwight H., and Kath- 
erine. 

Captain Kuder is a member of the Masonic 
Lodge, No. 778, of Livonia Station. He is 
also a member of Post 382, Grand Army of 
the Republic, of which he has been Com- 
mander. He has always been a Democrat in 
political creed, and cast his first Presidential 
vote in i860 for Stephen A. Douglas. He 
has held the office of Assessor of this town, 
and was President of the Hemlock Agricult- 
ural Society for two years. Shortly after he 
returned from the stirring scenes of warfare, 
with the memories of drum-beat and bugle- 
call, bivouac and march, still fresh in his 
mind, he engaged in the peaceful pursuits of 
husbandry, U> which he has since continued to 
devote himself with intelligent and unwearied 
activity. A portrait of this true-hearted son 
of the soil, whose spurs were nobly won in 
defending the Union, will attract the attention 
of the reader on another page of the "Re- 
view. " 



/pTrr, 



ILBERT MELVEN, who resides upon 
\ [>) I a fine farm situated four miles west 

— of Attica, in the town of Bennington, 
was born in New Hampshire, August 3, 1818, 
son of Andrew B. Melven, who was born at 
the town of Groton, in the same State, De- 
cember 13, 1782. Mr. Melven's paternal 
grandparents, libenezer and Joanna (Bailey) 
Melven, were New Hampshire farmers, and 
reared a very large family, dying at a ripe old 
age. 

Mr. Melven's mother, whose maiden name 
was Nancy Heath, was born in New Hamp- 
shire, December 20, 1782. His parents were 
married September 17, 1806, and came to 
Wayne County with a family of seven chil- 
dren about the year 1823, making the journey 
by canal and team. Three years later they 
moved to Attica Centre, where they resided 
three years, and then moved to Bennington in 
1829, where Andrew B. Melven acquired a 
piece of timber land. He was a hatter by 



trade, and followed that calling in his native 
State. His first wife died May 8, 1836; and 
he was married on April 22, 1837, to his sec- 
ond, Lydia Pari.sh, daughter of John Howe, a 
wealthy pioneer. There are now two living 
children by this marriage — John E. Melven, 
a farmer, residing at Eerry, Mich. ; and 
Charles Wellington Melven, living in the 
vicinity of Bennington. 

Mr. Melven has but two sisters living — 
Nancy, wife of Elkanah Brown, of Attica; and 
Susan, widow of Harlow Dudley, a volunteer 
soldier in the Civil War, who, after serving 
about eighteen months and passing through 
several battles, died of disease at Chattanooga, 
and fills an unknown grave. He was a true 
patriot, having at the call of country left his 
wife and three children, who now receive the 
very meagre sum of one hundred dollars per 
year in return for a life which otherwise would 
have been devoted to their support. Mr. Mel- 
ven had one other brother, Rodney, a carriage- 
maker, blacksmith, and hotel-keeper at 
Howell, Mich., who died March 30, 1872. 
Their father, Andrew B. Melven, successfully 
conducted a farm of fifty acres, and died June 
5, 1850, at the age of sixty-eight years. 

Gilbert Melven attended the district .schools, 
and at the age of twenty years commenced life 
for himself by working at the cooper's trade 
and farming. A year or two later he pur- 
chased a part of his present farm, consisting 
of one hundred and thirty-three acres, with a 
small clearing and a log house. On July 4, 
1854, he married Miss Emeline Fenton, 
daughter of Stephen Fenton, of Delaware 
County. She died about two years after mar- 
riage, leaving one daughter, Lillie Amanda, 
who also died, at the age of eight years. Mr. 
Melven married for his .second wife Phebe 
Ann Fenton, a si.ster of his finst wife. Mr. 
and Mrs. Melven lo.st their first two children 
— Willie G., at the age of si.x ; and Emeline 
A., at the age of three years. Their living 
children are as follows: Andrew B., now a 
farmer, residing near his parents, having a 
wife and five children; Ida, wife of George 
Frounick, a farmer in the vicinity, and having 
three children; Darwin S., a farmer in Ben- 
nington, who has a wife and two children ; and 



494 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Ora Luella, a young lady, residing at home, 
who is an accomplished and skilful music- 
teacher. 

Mr. Melven is an extensive land-holder, 
owning four fine farms, aggregating five hun- 
dred acres, which are occupied by himself and 
his children. When he purchased his first 
farm in 1S40, one hundred and thirty acres, 
he started with five dollars. His home farm 
consists of about one hundred and ninety acres, 
all of w-hich is tillable with the exception of 
about thirty acres. When he came into pos- 
session of it, there were but ten acres cleared. 
Mr. Melven erected his large and well-ap- 
pointed barn, which is forty by eighty feet, 
with twenty-foot posts and stone basement, in 
1893. The fine new residence occupied by 
his son Andrew was built in 1884; and in 
1886 was put up a new and commodious barn, 
forty b}' seventy feet. The buildings upon all 
his farms have been erected by hiniself, and 
are substantial and in good repair. "Sir. Mel- 
ven pays special attention to dairy farming. 
From ten to twelve cows are kept at his home 
farm, and a like number at the others. He 
has been extensively engaged in sheep-raising, 
having as many as five or six hundred at one 
time. 

Mr. Melven is thoroughly acquainted with 
agriculture in all its branches, and has made it 
a pronounced success. He is small in stature, 
but strong and active, having worked hard 
during his whole life. He has owned other 
farms, and dealt considerably in real estate, but 
has realized the most of his wealth by steady 
and unceasing toil. In politics he is a Re- 
publican, but has not sought official notoriety, 
being a resident of a Democratic town. He 
is not a member of any church, but attends 
and assists in the support of the Methodists. 



-ACOB STULL GALENTINE is a 
prominent citizen of Lima, Livingston 
County, N.Y., but was born in Rush 
township, Monroe County, on August 
12, 1835, not long before the Seminole War 
in Florida. His father, John Galentine, a 
native of Monroe County, then Ontario 
County, born 1803, during the war with Tri- 



poli, was a leading man in Monroe County for 
many years, serving as Justice of Peace and 
Deputy Sheriff. In early life he worked on a 
farm, but later helped to construct the Erie 
Canal. His wife was Isabel Stull, daughter 
of Jacob Stull, one of the earliest settlers of 
Western New York. Her brother, John P. 
Stull, was distinguished as being the first 
white child born east of the Genesee River, 
in what was then Ontario County. Mr. and 
Mrs. John Galentine had four children — 
Edwin J., Augusta Jane, Mary, and Jacob S., 
our subject. Edwin Galentine resides in 
Rochester, N.Y. Mary Galentine is the 
widow of the Rev. Frank Fenner, and resides 
at Jordan, Onondaga County. Augusta Gal- 
entine married General H. S. Hall, who lost 
an arm in the service of his country at the 
siege of Petersburg during the Civil War; 
and they now reside at Lawrence, Kan. 

Jacob Stull Galentine was educated at the 
district school in Rush and at the Genesee 
Wesleyan Seminary of Lima. He became a 
teacher in Michigan at the age of seventeen, 
and taught in Rush two terms. In 1862 he 
enlisted in the One Hundred and Thirty-sixth 
New York Infantry as a private, but was pro- 
moted to be Quartermaster of the regiment, 
and detached from field service to take charge 
of the transportation of troops at Nashville, 
Tenn. He was discharged September 16, 
1S65, at Rochester, having served in a num- 
ber of battles, including second Fredericks- 
burg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Lookout 
Mountain and Mission Ridge, Resaca, and 
Atlanta. John Galentine died, aged sixty- 
eight, in 1 87 1. In 1854 Mr. Jacob S. Galen- 
tine married for his first wife Anna Calligan, 
of Toledo, Ohio. She died in 1870; and two 
children, Isabel and John, both died at the 
age of eighteen. His second wife was Mary 
Couch, a native of Steuben County, New 
York, who died in 1886. 

Mr. Galentine certainly has the entire con- 
fidence of the people, having been an office- 
holder for twenty-four years, serving as 
Justice of Peace, Assessor, and Supervisor. 
He is a member of Union Masonic Lodge, 
No. 45, and also belongs to the Grand Army 
of the Republic, Lewis Gates Post, of Hon- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



495 



eoye Falls. In politics Mr. Galentine was 
a Democrat until Cleveland's second term, 
when he became a Republican, and has since 
voted with that party. He cast his first 
Presidential vote for Stephen A. Douglas in 
i860. Our subject's prosperity has partly 
arisen from his appreciation of what the great 
Roman philosopher and emperor, Marcus Au- 
relius, has said : — 

"Forward, as occasion offers. Never look 
around to see whether any shall note it. Be 
satisfied with success in even the smallest 
matter, and think that even such a result is 
no trifle." 



James 



-AMES W. IVES, a miller and at one 
time merchant of the village of Java, 
N.Y., was born at Strykersville in 
1837. Dr. James Ives, the father of 
W., was born in Vermont in i8io, 
from which State his father moved about the 
year 1820 to Aurora, Erie County, N.Y., 
where he was a prominent business man. 
The grandparents, James and Lucy (Brewer^ 
Ives, reared three sons and as many daugh- 
ters, who all grew to maturity, and became 
heads of families in turn. Neither the grand- 
father nor the grandmother lived to be old, 
the former dying in the vigor of manhood in 
1828, and the latter following in 1830. Dr. 
Ives married Miss Mary Metcalf Woods. 
This lady was left an orphan in her early 
childhood, and was adopted by the Rev. Whit- 
man Metcalf, by whom she was educated in 
Massachusetts. She became a teacher after- 
ward, as her husband was also, so that Mr. 
James W. Ives may lay claim to a double 
heredity of intelligence. Dr. Ives died in 
1879, and his widow in 1884. They left 
three children — James W. Ives, of this biog- 
raphy, and two daughters — Amelia, now Mrs. 
A. Pease, of Strykersville; and Loraine, the 
wife of Mr. E. Fox, of North Java. 

James W. Ives received his education in 
the old Middlebury Academy and at the Uni- 
versity of Rochester, and taught school for 
a year after finishing his collegiate course. 
His natural tastes inclined him to the free- 
dom and independence of country life, so he 



became a farmer and miller, which double 
vocation he has followed for thirty years. In 
1 86 1 and in 1863 he was drafted for army ser- 
vice, but failed to pass the medical examina- 
tion to which all recruits were subjected. In 
1861 he was married to Miss Helen Richard- 
son, a daughter of Mr. Charles Richardson, of 
Strykersville. In 1871 he was left a widower 
with three children — Glenna, who married 
Mr. Charles Lewis, of Rochester, and is the 
mother of one son ; Charles Ives, as yet un- 
married, and living in Rochester; and Wini- 
fred, whose life lasted only sixteen years. 
Two years after the death of his first wife Mr. 
Ives was married to her niece. Miss Frances 
Richardson. Five children were born of this 
union, all but one of whom died in infancy; 
and the father was a second time bereaved of 
his eldest daughter, Mary, whose brief course 
of fifteen years was the pathetic repetition of 
the story of a short life, her death on June 
20, 1892, recalling the similar bereavement 
of his first marriage. 

Mr. Ives's popularity in the county has been 
manifested by the large majority of votes he 
has received when he has been candidate for 
office. In 1874 and 1875 he held the office of 
Supervisor, and is now serving a fourth term 
as County Superintendent of the Poor. His 
majority at the election of 1894 was twenty- 
four hundred, one of the largest ever carried 
in the county. He is now a member of the 
Baptist church of Java, formerly of the Bap- 
tist church of Strykersville, and was clerk of 
it for twenty years. He is also serving as 
Secretary and Treasurer of the State Conven- 
tion of County Superintendents of the Poor, 
to which office he has been unanimously 
elected for five successive years. 



/®Xo 



EORGE GILL FOWLER, of Dans- 
\ '3 I ville, an enterprising and successful 
dealer in dry goods, is a native of 
Livingston County, having been born in 
Springwater, September 4, 1857. His father, 
Thomas M. Fowler, was born in 1823 at Gor- 
ham, where his grandfather, who was a native 
of Connecticut, had come as a pioneer. He 
settled upon a tract of land, where he re- 



496 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



mained for a time, and then went with his 
son, Thomas M., to Springvvater, in which 
place they erected a flour and saw mill, which 
he operated until his decease, at the age of 
eighty. He reared a family of four children, 
all of whom are now dead. 

Thomas M. Fowler was educated at the dis- 
trict schools and the seminary at Lima. At 
the age of twenty-three he entered the mill- 
ing business at Springwater, where he became 
a very prominent man, continuing to reside 
there, carrying on a mill and a foundry until 
1867. He then went to Wayland, and en- 
gaged in the produce business, and later 
conducted a milling business at Perkinsville, 
N.Y. In 1875 he came to Dansville, and, 
with his son, the subject of this sketch, to 
assist him, bought out the mercantile business 
of M. O. Austin. Here he remained until he 
died. In 1871 and 1872 he was one of the 
representatives from Steuben County to the 
legislature, and held the office of Supervisor 
of Springvvater during the war. He was a 
stanch Republican and a member of the Pres- 
byterian church. The maiden name of his 
wife was Harriet Everett. She was a daugh- 
ter of Boughton Everett, of Herkimer County, 
who was a county judge for many years and a 
very prominent man in that section, being 
very popular and a leader among the people. 
His time, when not required by his office, was 
passed upon his farm. Harriet, Mrs. Fordes, 
was one of three daughters. One of her sis- 
ters, who became Mrs. J. G. Day, of Ilion, is 
now living. The other, Mrs. John Sanders, 
of Portland, Ore., died some years ago. 

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas M. Fowler reared 
seven children, all but one of whom are liv- 
ing, namely: Charles H., a commission mer- 
chant of Paterson, N.J.; Thomas B., a 
physician at Cohocton, N.Y.; George Gill, 
the subject of this sketch; M. H. Fowler, of 
the Dansville Breeze; Mrs. B. J. Smith, of 
Salamanca; and Helen M., who married 
Dr. George H. Cutter, a dentist, of Victor. 
The mother is still living, and resides with 
her son George, having reached the age of 
seventy. She is a member of the Presby- 
terian church. 

George Gill Fowler received his elementary 



education in the district schools, and after- 
ward attended successively the Lima Semi- 
nary, the Dansville Seminary. He was 
engaged as clerk with his father for five years, 
and was then admitted as partner. After his 
father's death he purchased in September, 
1894, his mother's interest; and now the 
business is conducted under the name of 
G. G. Fowler. The present store was for- 
merly occupied by \V. T. Spinnig, a sketch of 
whom appears elsewhere in this work. Mr. 
Fowler carries one of the largest, most varied, 
and complete line of goods in the county. 

In 1S94 Mr. Fowler married Ada Prentiss, 
daughter of Harvey Prentiss, of Hornellsville. 
Her father is an extensive farmer and a very 
prominent man in the above-named town, 
where he has been Supervisor for several 
terms. Mrs. Ada P. Fowler is a most esti- 
mable lady, and a member of the Presbyterian 
church, which her husband attends. Mr. 
Fowler is a supporter of the Republican party. 
He is in every way a leader among the young 
business men of Dansville, enterprising, ener- 
getic, far-sighted, and exceedingly popular, 
with a bright outlook before him. 




LARENCE E. GRIGGS, M.D., phy- 
sician and surgeon at Strykersville 
for the past fourteen years, was 
born at Concordia, Mead County, 
Ky., February 6, 1847. His father, David 
Griggs, was born in Vermont in 1797, and 
was taken while an infant by his parents, 
Ichabod and Jerusha Griggs, to Otsego 
County, New York, the journey being made 
with an ox team. 

David Griggs was the third of thirteen chil- 
dren, nine of whom, three sons and six daugh- 
ters, attained full age. One of these, Mrs. 
Marilla Rathburn, is now living at Spring- 
field, Otsego County. 

David was educated at Fairfield College, 
and studied medicine with old Dr. White, 
whose Christian name was James. At the 
age of twenty-one he started on horseback for 
the South, making his first stop at Fredonia, 
Ind., and while there represented the district 
at the State legislature two terms. He mar- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



497 



ried the widow Atkinson (born Staples), of 
Petersburg, Va., with whom he went to Con- 
cordia, Ky., where she owned a plantation 
and a few slaves. Seven children were born 
to them, five sons and two daughters, as fol- 
lows: Albert, who died in his youth; Mi- 
randa, who also died young; Alonzo, a 
carpenter by trade and a Captain in the Fed- 
eral army, dying IVfarch 4, 1861, on his 
twenty-first birthday; Nathan, a farmer in 
Mississippi County, Missouri, who has a fam- 
ily, served in the Confederate army as recruit- 
ing officer; Clarence E., the subject of this 
sketch; Levantia, wife of Stephen Smith, a 
farmer in Java, N. Y, having nine children ; and 
James, who died in infancy. The father died 
at Concordia, Ky., in 1855, and the mother 
in i860, past middle life. The Kentucky 
property depreciated in value during the war. 
Clarence E. Griggs passed his boyhood on 
the plantation, his only playmates being 
young colored children. He was educated at 
Beech Grove Academy, and at the age of 
twenty-one entered the Louisville University, 
having been appointed to a scholarship in the 
medical department by J. Proctor Nott. In 
1863, on account of the war, he was sent 
North to Concord, Erie County, N.Y. In 
1865 he returned to Beech Grove Academy 
in Kentucky. He taught school one term in 
Concordia, and also practised medicine in 
Kentucky and Indiana, part of the time with 
his father's old partner. Dr. Hawn, who was 
a surgeon under General Benjamin Butler at 
New Orleans. At the time of his death, 
in 1876, Dr. Hawn was Secretary of State in 
Indiana. Having completed his studies in 
1880, Dr. Griggs with his wife and two chil- 
dren came to Strykersville, where he formed 
a partnership with Dr. John Wockner, which 
continued for eight years, or till the death of 
Dr. Wockner. In 1893 Dr. Griggs formed 
another partnership with Dr. Fromholzer, of 
Germany, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere 
in thi-i work. Dr. Griggs was a patient of 
his partner, suffering from an abscess upon 
the liver, complicated with pneumonia, from 
March until May, 1893. During this time 
his life hung in the balance, and his case was 
under a council of physicians from Buffalo. 



In June, 1872, he married in Mead County, 
Kentucky, Miss Eliska R. Fullinwider, of that 
county, and daughter of Rice Fullinwider, of 
Meade County, Kentucky, son of Henry Ful- 
linwider, of Germany. Dr. and Mrs. Griggs 
have five children living, and mourn the loss 
of a son, who died in infancy. Martha E., 
the eldest daughter, who is a professional 
nurse in Dr. Mann's hospital, a private in- 
stitution at Buffalo, was educated at the 
Fredonia Normal School. Nannie, a very 
bright and intelligent young lady, possessing 
more than ordinary talent, is at the Buffalo 
Mute Institute. The others are: David R., 
an intelligent, interesting little man of nine 
years; Nellie, aged six years; and Carlisle 
C, aged four years. 

Dr. Griggs is a Chapter Mason, and his 
father was far advanced in the order. In 
politics he is a Democrat, and has served one 
term as Supervisor. 

He purchased his fine residence and office 
of his former partner, who died a short time 
after completing its erection. He owns the 
land and buildings situated opposite his resi- 
dence and occupied as a hardware store and 
post-office, being himself proprietor of the 
former. He also owns property at Tona- 
wanda. The medical firm of Griggs & From- 
holzer have a large practice in Wyoming and 
adjoining counties; and this, in connection 
with his private business, occupies his time 
completely, causing Dr. Griggs to be a very 
busy man. 




HAYDEN HUMPHREY, a banker 
in Warsaw, N.Y., was born in Shel- 
don, January 22, 1850, son of Les- 
ter H. and Hannah (Blakeley) 
Humphrey. His grandfather, Theophilus 
Humphrey, a native of Connecticut, came to 
Sheldon from that State in 1818, moving 
his family and goods by team. His wife, 
Cynthia Hayden, was the mother of seventeen 
children, all of whom, with one exception, 
grew up to maturity. Theophilus Humphrey 
was by trade a tanner and currier; and, as 
his sons grew up, he took them into part- 
nership with him, establishing quite an ex- 



498 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



tensive business in the course of time in the 
locality known thereafter as Humphrey's Hol- 
low. All of these children married and be- 
came heads of families except one daughter, 
Electa, who died at sixteen. The only sur- 
viving one is Nelson Humphrey, the youngest 
born, now an old man of seventy, living in 
Le Roy, 111. Mrs. Cynthia Humphrey died 
at about sixty-five years of age, and her hus- 
band was again married. He outlived his 
second wife, dying in 1851, aged seventy-five. 

Lester Hayden Humphrey, son of Theoph- 
ilus, was born in Simsbury, Conn., December 
28, 1799. He married Hannah Blakeley, a 
daughter of Deacon James and Huldah (Haw- 
ley) Blakeley, of Aurora, Erie County, N.Y., 
her mother being a native of Greene County. 
Mrs. Humphrey, who was brought as a small 
child to Erie County, remembers distinctly 
when there were only three houses in the city 
of Buffalo, just after the burning of that town 
by the French and Indians in 18 12. Her 
marriage to Mr. Humphrey was solemnized on 
the 5th of July, 1827. The young couple 
lived for a number of years in Sheldon, where 
Mr. Humphrey became a large land owner, 
and conducted the largest tannery, harness and 
shoe manufactory in that section. His career 
was one which gradually developed from small 
beginnings to what seemed in those early days 
to be large ends; and those who knew him 
and a younger brother, a pedler of Yankee 
clocks through the rural districts of New 
York and Pennsylvania, noted with astonish- 
ment and commendation the success which 
attended their efforts. Lester moved to War- 
saw in 1866, and engaged in tanning and in 
the leather trade until 1870, when he retired 
from business. Mr. Humphrey was firm in 
the faith of his fathers, who for several gener- 
ations on both sides were Deacons in the 
Congregational church. He was an active 
member of that church both in Sheldon and 
Warsaw. He died on the 14th of December, 
1884, lacking only a fortnight of eighty-five 
years. 

Mr. L. Hayden Humphrey is the youngest 
of five children, the others born to Theophilus 
and his wife being Harriet, wife of the Hon. 
Orange L. Tozier, residing on the old home- 



stead in Sheldon; Samuel B., a farmer of 
Warsaw and Supervisor of the town; Electa, 
widow of Asa Baldwin, living in Lockport; 
Minerva, the wife of Charles A. Kellogg, of 
Carthage, Mo. At thirteen years of age L. 
Hayden Humphrey left the district school, 
and entered the academy at Arcade, from 
which institution he came to Warsaw, where 
at seventeen years of age he finished his 
course of study. At the age of nineteen he 
engaged in the leather trade, in which he was 
reasonably successful, and which he sold out 
in 1872, to accept a position in the Wyoming 
County National Bank. This bank was first 
established in 185 1 by Joshua H. Darling, 
and in 1865 was reorganized as a national 
bank. In January, 1873, Mr. Humphrey was 
elected Vice-President, and from that time 
until 1888 he was its executive officer. 

In 1885 he became associated with W. C. 
Goninlock in the manufacture of salt at War- 
saw. In 1887 salt was discovered in Kansas. 
Believing that this discovery was bound to 
revolutionize the salt trade of Kansas and 
other trans-Missouri States, Goninlock and 
Humphrey promptly decided to erect a salt 
plant at Hutchinson, a prosperous city in 
Central Kansas. This industry, established 
first by them in 1888, has grown so that now 
Kansas ranks next to New York and Michigan 
in the amount of salt produced, the present 
annual output being nearly one million bar- 
rels. In 1888 Mr. Humphrey resigned his 
position in the bank at Warsaw to devote him- 
self more closely to his salt interests; and for 
two years thereafter he spent fully one-half of 
his time in Kansas, he having special charge 
of that branch of the firm's business until it 
was sold out in 1890. On January 22, 1890, 
his fortieth birthday, Mr. Humphrey was 
elected President of the Wyoming County Na- 
tional Bank, to succeed his uncle, Wolcott J. 
Humphrey, deceased. This position he has 
since held. In 1891 Mr. Humphrey disposed 
of a portion of his salt interests in Warsaw; 
and in 1893 his copartnership with Dr. 
Goninlock was dissolved, Mr. Humphrey re- 
tiring from the firm. Previous to this he be- 
came associated with Marcus E. Calkins in 
the erection of a salt plant at Pavilion in 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



499 



Genesee County, to which business he now 
devotes a portion of his time. 

Mr. Humphrey was married May i8, 1875, 
to Miss Maud Wilton Si<inner, of Quincy, 
111., a daughter of Judge O. C. Skinner, who 
was a contemporary on the Circuit Court with 
Abraham Lincoln, of whom he was a close 
friend. Mrs. Humphrey was educated at 
Knox College, Galesburg, 111., and at Ivy 
Hall, Bridgeton, N.J. She is the mother of 
three children: Onias Skinner Humphrey, a 
young fellow of eighteen, who is at Andover, 
Mass., preparing for Cornell, which he enters 
in 1895; Elizabeth, a girl of fifteen, prepar- 
ing for college under a tutor; and Maud, who 
is just eight years old. 

Mr. Humphrey has never been a candidate 
for and has never held an elective office; but 
he is an earnest, active, aggressive Republi- 
can, who believes thoroughly in the principles 
of his party, and who is always found in the 
thick of the fight for its candidates. For four 
years he has been chairman of the Republican 
County Central Committee, and during that 
time no Democrat can boast of having been 
elected to an office in Wyoming County. He 
was a delegate to the Republican National 
Convention in 1888, which nominated Benja- 
min Harrison for President. Mr. Humphrey 
is genial, social, and unostentatious. He is 
an excellent judge of character and a man of 
unusual executive ability. 




lllARLES T. DIBBLE is an influen- 
tial citizen of Lima, Livingston 
County, N. Y. He was born and 
educated, however, in East Bloom - 
field, N.Y., his advent into this world occur- 
ring on August 19, 1830. 

His grandfather was Joseph Dibble, who 
came from Connecticut to this part of the 
Empire State in 1803, accompanied by his wife 
and six children, and bringing his goods in an 
ox team. They settled in East Bloomfield, 
buying eighty acres of wild land. The usual 
log house was speedily thrown up; and, as the 
new-comer was a cooper, his trade enabled him 
to add substantially to the family income. 
There he lived all the rest of his days, indus- 



trious and happy, dying at the age of seventy- 
six, in 1836-, having been born in 1760. The 
six Dibble children born in Connecticut were 
Spencer, Osborne, Horace, Alanson, Polly, 
and George Dibble ; but the seventh, Ralph 
Dibble, was born in the new home. 

The sixth of these children was the father of 
our special subject. George L. Dibble was 
a babe at the time of the family removal from 
Connecticut. His schooling was therefore re- 
ceived in the primitive school-house of East 
Bloomfield; and he naturally grew up a suc- 
cessful farmer, a profession he never relin- 
quished. He and four of his five brothers, 
there being only one girl in the household, 
lived and worked in East Bloomfield till each 
was able to own a farm for himself. The 
youngest brother, Ralph, though born there, 
did not prefer East Bloomfield for a home, 
but went to Michigan, where he spent the 
remainder of his life. George L. was sixty- 
one at the time of his death, in 1864. His 
first wife was L\'dia Ann Smith, the daughter 
of Charles Smith, of Rhode Island. She be- 
came the mother of two children: Charles T. , 
who is our subject; and his sister Eliza, who 
died at the early age of twenty-two. His 
wife, LydiaA., having died, Mr. Dibble mar- 
ried again. Six children were the offspring of 
the second marriage, and their mother is now 
eighty-nine years old. 

Charles T. Dibble attended the school in 
his native town, and worked on his father's 
farm till twenty-four years of age, when he 
married; and his father gave him a farm in 
Bloomfield, not far away. The marriage took 
place in 1854; and the bride was Marietta 
Smith, the daughter of William and Juliet 
(Sage) Smith. Mr. Smith came from Con- 
necticut, like Grandfather and Father Dibble, 
the removal taking place when he was only 
a child of six. Like the elder Dibbles, he 
alwa}s remained a farmer in East Bloom- 
field, where he died, though his widow is still 
living, aged eighty-three. Mr. and Mrs. 
Charles T. Dibble remained on the Bloomfield 
farm eleven years, and there were born to them 
three children. In 1865 they decided to re- 
move to Lima, where they purchased a farm of 
two hundred acres in the south-west section of 



500 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



the town. It was in Lima, therefore, that 
their children grew to adult age. The eldest, 
William L. Dibble, born in 1855, married 
Lena Diirkee, of Conesus ; and they have one 
child, named Maud Dibble. Minnie Eliza 
Dibble, born in i860, died before she had 
reached her twentieth year. P^dward F. 
Dibble, born in 1866, president of the Dibble 
Seed Company in Honeoye Falls, married 
Grace Deal, of Lima, and has a son — Harold 
Dibble. Both the brothers, William L. and 
Edward F. Dibble, have large farms, and are 
very successful men. 

"One of the greatest of a great man's quali- 
ties is success. 'Tis the result of all the 
others; 'tis a latent power in him, which 
compels the favor of the gods, and subjugates 
fortune." Such are the wise words of the 
celebrated English novelist, Thackeray; and 
the}' apply to such men. Besides the home 
farm, Charles T. Dibble owns another in the 
town of York, of three hundred and si.xty-five 
acres, one for every day in the year. In poli- 
tics they are Republicans, and an honor to 
their party. 




jHESTER W. DAVIS, a prominent 
merchant in North Java, N.Y. , was 
born in \'arysburg, September 6, 
1837. His parents, Salem and 
Julia (Dodge) Davis, left four chiklren, of 
whom Chester is the eldest. One brother 
died in the prime of life, leaving a family of 
five children. When the winter terms of the 
district schools were over, it was the custom 
of the boy's father to take him into his card- 
ing-mill, where habits of industry might be 
acquired, and where the encouragement of the 
wages earned would be an incentive to further 
effort as well as a factor in dexeloping inde- 
pendence and self-reliance. 

Soon learning the value of these lessons in 
self-support, Chester Davis, who began to 
earn wages at the age of twelve years of age, 
started out tor himself in his eighteenth year. 
His first trip to Green County, Wisconsin, 
was the forerunner of many long journeys ; for 
Mr. Davis has lived in various sections of the 
Far West, and has seen "all sorts and condi- 



tions of men." In Wisconsin, where he se- 
cured a clerkship, he remained for a year and 
a half, returning home after that time, and 
becoming a salesman for his father, with whom 
he remained until he reached his majorit\-. 
He then went to Missouri, where he lay claim 
to a quarter section of one of the many lots 
that were offered at that time by the govern- 
ment to settlers. Unable, however, to stand 
the frequent attacks of malaria, Mr. Davis was 
forced to seek a more hospitable climate, and 
started to go to Pike's Peak. Hearing adverse 
news from that quarter, he changed the course 
of his journey, and joined a company of travel- 
lers whose goal was California. The party 
was six months en route, arriving there in the 
autumn of 1859. The first year he was em- 
ployed in a placer mine, and afterward opened 
a livery business, which was a great finanical 
success. In 1863 he took a part of his stock 
to Nevada, and traded it there for a silver 
mine. This proved a bad investment, and was 
abandoned three years later, three hundred 
dollars and a coyote pony being all that was 
left of the three thousand dollars which had 
been engulfed in the empty "pockets" of the 
Nevada mine. 

From Nevada he went to Montana, and pro- 
spected extensively, going thence to Idaho, 
where he worked a placer gold mine until 
1870. Wearied at last of the hard work of 
the mining camp and the uncertain fortunes of 
those who are waiting to "strike a vein," he 
at last returned to his native county, and 
bought a half interest in the store of general 
merchandise owned bv his brother, D. S. Davis. 
Two years later he sold out to his brother, and 
opened a mercantile house in Strykersville. 
This enterprise he conducted for nineteen 
years, when a desire to once more visit the 
regions of the Sierras grew strong upon him ; 
and, selling out to Mr. Hay, of that place, he 
took his famih' to Los Angeles for the winter 
season. Despite the delights of balmy air and 
soft skies and Luxuriant vegetation which have 
made this city famous all over the world, he 
returned in Jul)-, 1892, to Varysburg, bought 
out his brother's stock and trade, and in the 
following autumn opened a store in North 
Java, where he is now engaged in a business 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



50' 



the annual trade of which is valued at twenty- 
one thousand dollars. 

In July, 1873, he was married to Miss Ellen 
Waterman, of Bennington, a daughter of Mr. 
Harry Waterman, who lives with his daughter, 
having, at seventy-six years of age, laid aside 
the active duties of life. Mrs. Waterman died 
in 1869, leaving two children — Mrs. Davis 
and another daughter. Mr. and Mrs. Davis 
have two children. The son, Arthur W. 
Davis, is a young man of nineteen, who gives 
promise of a useful and honorable career. He 
attended the Aurora Academy, and afterward 
graduated from the Bryant and Stratton Busi- 
ness College in liuffalo. Their daughter 
Emma is a little girl of twelve years, who has 
not yet outgrown a taste for rope-jumping and 
dolls. 

Mr. Davis is a member of the Masonic order 
and a Republican. The many climatic changes 
he has had during his somewhat adventurous 
career have, no doubt, been of physical bene- 
fit ; for he has never been a man of robust 
health or strong constitution, and his excessive 
energy and mental activity have been entirely 
disproportionate to his bodily strength. 




AMUEL BONNER, a leading citizen 
and office-holder of the town of Lima, 
Livingston County, N. Y. , was born 
in another town of the same county, 
Sparta, in 1836, on November 22, son of Ben- 
jamin and Jane (Logan) Bonner. Whether his 
grand-father, Samuel Bonner, for whom he was 
named, was born in Scotland or Ireland, is 
uncertain ; but at an early day and in early 
life the elder Samuel came to Sparta, and set- 
tled down as a farmer, clearing the land where 
he passed the rest of his life in hard work. 

His son, Benjamin Bonner, was born in that 
town, and educated in its common schools. 
Of course, he was trained to agricultural labor, 
and in this continued till 1855, the homestead 
having meanwhile come to be his own, partly 
by inheritance and partly by purchase. Hav- 
ing been born in 1807, he was now nearly fifty 
years old, in the very prime of life, and be- 
lieved he should find a better outlook for his 
ability in Lima. Therefore, selling the pater- 



nal acres, he came hither, buying a farm a 
mile and a half east of the village, and thereon 
remaining till 1865, when he felt the need of 
rest from arduous labor, and took up his resi- 
dence in the village, where he died in 1891, 
aged eighty-four. His wife was the daughter 
of Edward Logan, of Sparta, and named Jane 
after her mother; and they had three children. 
The second son, Edward Logan Bonner, born 
in 1839, was about twenty-two years old when 
the Rebellion broke out. Enlisting in the 
One Hundred and Thirtieth New York Infan- 
try, afterward changed to the Eirst New York 
Dragoons, he was killed on June 12, 1864, in 
the battle at Trevilian Station. Rose J. 
Bonner, the only daughter, born in 1849, lives 
at Lima. 

The elder son, Samuel Bonner, the special 
subject of our sketch, was educated in the 
Sparta schools, like his father before him ; but 
he also attended the Genesee Wesleyan Semi- 
nary at Lima, N. Y. He returned to agri- 
culture, however, and has always cultivated 
the soil, at present owning three fine farms, 
with an aggregate of over four hundred acres, 
though he has retired from active work, his 
land being occupied by tenants. 

His marriage took place in 1865. The 
bride was Cornelia Goodrich, the daughter of 
Erastus C. and Sarah (Clark) Goodrich. Mrs. 
Bonner died in 1875, leaving three sons — Ed- 
ward L. , Erank C. , and William S. Bonner. 

Their father was again married, to Mary 
Elizabeth Peck, daughter of Richard and Re- 
becca (Jefferds) Peck, natives, respectively, of 
the towns of Lima and Rush, Mrs. Bonner 
being a direct descendant of William Peck, 
one of the founders f)f the New Haven Colony 
in Connecticut. Her parents were pioneers in 
Livingston County ; and further facts about 
the Peck genealogy may be found in the able 
compendium by Darius Peck, published in 
1877 in Hud.son, N. Y. In 1890 and 1894 
Mr. Bonner was chosen Supervisor, though the 
town is strongly Democratic and he a life-long 
Republican, having cast his first vote in i860 
for President Lincoln. He has served as 
School Trustee, and for over thirty years has 
been School Di.strict Clerk. Well has it been 
said by the German poet Schiller: — 



502 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



"It is not the mere station in life that 
stamps the value on us, but the manner in 
which we act our part. " 




kRS. LOUISA PRINE ALLEN, 

widow of the late Seth P. Allen, is 
an esteemed resident of Gaines- 
ville, Wyoming County, N. Y. 
She was born in Java, in this county, being 
the daughter of Peter Prine, a native of Sche- 
nectady, whose father, Daniel Prine, was also 
a native of that place. Daniel Prine followed 
for a time the trade of a carpenter, but at 
length moved to Cayuga County, where he set- 
tled as a farmer, and died after ha\ing reared a 
large family. His children were Peter, Daniel, 
Aaron, Jane, John, Sarah, Polly, and Luke. 

Peter Prine learned the trade of a cabinet- 
maker, carpenter, and joiner, working for some 
time as a journeyman at Auburn. He had 
been educated in the district schools, and was 
a great reader. After his marriage he con- 
tinued to reside in Auburn four years, then 
purchased a farm on the Holland tract, which 
he cleared and improved. The farm, which 
was situated on the town line between Weth- 
ersfield and Java, was bought by Mr. Prine in 
1831 ; and there were then several Indian huts 
upon the site now occupied by the town of 
Gainesville. He lived upon this farm for 
some years, afterward trading for one in the 
vicinity, where he resided until his decease, at 
the age of seventy-eight. 

The maiden name of the wife of Peter Prine 
was Phoebe La Dow. She was a daughter of 
Jacob La Dow, and was born in Charleston, 
N.Y. , where her father was a farmer for many 
years. Mr. and Mrs. Peter Prine reared three 
children — Gertrude, who died at the age of 
seventeen years; Louisa, the subject of this 
sketch ; and Phoebe, who married Edward 
Burkhart, of Mount Morris. The mother 
passed her declining years in Eagle or Bliss, 
a village in that town, and died at the age of 
seventy-nine years. 

Louisa Prine was married January 3, 1856, 
to Seth P. Allen, son of Matthias Allen, a 
farmer, formerly of Penfield, Monroe County, 
but later of Java, where he cleared and im- 



pro\ed a tract of land, and resided for the re- 
mainder of his life. His wife, who was in 
maidenhood Anna Peck, was born in Durham, 
Greene County, N. Y. , and moved to Camden, 
N. Y., with her parents when a little girl. 
Seth P. Allen was one of eleven children. 
He was born at Penfield in 1833, and was 
reared to agricultural pursuits. He was well 
educated, and at the age of nineteen began 
teaching school, which he continued to do for 
nine terms. He resided with his wife's 
father for si.\ years, then purchased a farm, 
which he conducted for five years, after which 
he formed a partnership with his brother in 
mercantile business in North Java, which con- 
tinued for eighteen months. He next engaged 
in storekeeping at Smith's Corners, in the 
town of Wethersfield, where he did a profitable 
business for seven years, and whence in the 
spring of 1877 he removed to Gainesville. 
Here he built the residence now occupied by 
his widow, and established himself in business 
as a private banker. He was a member of the 
Masonic lodge at Smith's Corners, and a Dem- 
ocrat in politics, also a Notary Public and 
Justice of the Peace. Mr. Allen was for 
thirty-seven years an earnest and devoted 
member of the Methodist Episcopal church, in 
which he faithfully filled all the offices at 
different times, and was exceedingly active in 
church work. He was a class leader for fif- 
teen years. He was converted at a revival 
service held in Java under the leadership of 
the Rev. W. M. Webber, and his whole life 
thereafter testified to the fact that he was a 
sincere Christian. He was an honor to the 
church of his choice, being singularly con- 
sistent and exemplary in his conduct. 

Mr. Allen for many years did a large busi- 
ness as a shipper of produce for the farmers in 
Wyoming County, and was regarded as thor- 
oughly honest and upright in all his dealings. 
His death at his home in Gainesville, on De- 
cember 13, 1894, was a shock to the entire 
community; and his widow has been the re- 
cipient of much sympathy and condolence from 
a large and sorrowing circle of friends. 

A portrait of this good man, whom those 
who knew him accounted faithful, is one of 
the illustrations of the present volume. 




SETH P. ALLEN 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



5°S 




)EWIS J. CHAMBERLIN, who has 
been for forty years a Deacon of the 
Baptist church at South Livonia, 
N. Y. , was born in Livonia, January 
30, 1 81 8. His grandfather, Elias Chambcr- 
lin, was a native of Connecticut, from which 
State he enlisted as a soldier in the Revolu- 
tionary War. He moved to Livonia, where he 
died at an advanced age, having attained more 
than fourscore years. 

Lomis Chamberlin, son of I'.lias, was born 
in Vermont, and came to Li\onia with his 
father and brothers in the year 1810. The 
journey to New York was made in a covered 
road-wagon, and must have been a long and 
rough one. Lomis worked out by the month 
when a young man, and gradually accumulated 
enough money to buy a small piece of land, 
upon which he built a log house. By flint of 
honest toil and careful economy he added 
yearly to his possessions, and when he died, in 
1828, was in good circumstances. He was 
a soldier in the War of 181 2, and was a wit- 
ness of the burning of Buffalo. His wife, 
Ro.xey Lewis, was a daughter of Jabez Lewis, 
who followed the fortunes of war during the 
Revolution as General Washington's cook. 
Lomis and Ro.xey (Lewis) Chamberlin reared 
eight children, of whom Lewis J. was the 
fourth. 

A home-loving and contented nature has dis- 
played itself in Mr. Chamberlin's strong at- 
tachment to the scenes of his youth, which he 
has never left, having always lived on tlie 
premises he now occupies. He was married 
in 185 1 to Charity Hart, a daughter of John 
and Lorania (Chapin) Hart, of Conesus. 
Their children — Lewis H., John L., Edith 
L. , Guy — are all occupying honorable posi- 
tions and leading useful lives. Another 
daughter, Ellen A., is deceased. Lewis H. is 
dejjot master at South Livonia, on the New 
York, Lake Erie & Western Railroad, is also 
engaged in the coal and general produce busi- 
ness, and, besides fulfilling the duties which 
the foregoing work entails, he is an agent for 
the Wells Fargo Express Company. He mar- 
ried Alice A. Townsend ; and they have one 
child, who bears his mother's family name — 
Martin Townsend Chamberlin. 



John L. is First Lieutenant in the First 
United States Artillery; and Edith is a 
teacher in the public schools, and is also one 
of the most popular music teachers in this sec- 
tion of the country. Guy is an electrician, 
and is at present located at Lynn, Mass. 

Mr. Chamberlin and his wife are both mem- 
bers of the Baptist church, of which the former 
has been a Deacon for forty years. He cast 
his first Presidential vote for William Henry 
Harrison in 1840, and has always held fast to 
the faith of the Republican party since its 
formation. 




IMOTHY GALLIGAN, a farmer of 
North Java, in the western part of 
Wyoming County, New York, was born 
in the adjacent town of Wethersfield. His 
grandparents, Edward and liridget (Prior) 
Galligan, reared a family of five sons and four 
daughters, all of whom became in turn heads 
of families. Their son Thomas, born in 
County Leitrim, Ireland, in 1810, came to 
America in 1849, bringing his wife, Cathe- 
rine Prior before marriage, and three chil- 
dren. One child, a daughter Mary, had 
died in Ireland. The voyage from Liverpool 
to New York consumed six weeks; and, when 
the Galligans arrived, they settled in Haver- 
straw, where they lived for only a year. 
Having but scant means, Mr. Galligan deter- 
mined to go to the western part of New 
York, where the wild land was sold at a nom- 
inal price, and where he could clear awa}' the 
timber, develop a small farm, and establish a 
humble home. Acting upon this determina- 
tion, he came to Wethersfield, and bought a 
hundred acres of land, which he cultivated 
and improved year by year. When he died, 
in his sixty-sixth year, on December 2, 1876, 
he left a good property of two hundred acres 
to his widow and four children. 

His son Patrick, who amassed a fortune of 
fifty thousand dollars as an oil operator and 
contractor in Washington County, Pennsyl- 
vania, and whose success was phenomenal 
when the fact that he began life as a day 
laborer is considered, died August 2, 1893, 
aged forty-nine. The next son, Thomas, 



5o6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



married Margaret McDonaUl, who died bear- 
ing one daughter, Maggie Ann, now living 
with her uncle. Thomas was also an oil 
operator. He died at forty-two years of age 
November i6, 1889. His widow, whose 
maiden name was Halligan, lives in North 
Java with her five children. Edward Galli- 
gan, a farmer at Wethersfield, has a son and 
slaughter. The fourth son is Timothy Galli- 
gan of this biography. A daughter, Bridget 
Galligan, died in Wethersfield in 1864. The 
mother, Mrs. Catherine Prior Galligan, died 
in the February of 188S, aged seventy-six 
years. 

Timothy Galligan received a district-school 
education in his boyhood, and remained with 
his parents on the farm, a hundred acres of 
which he now owns besides the handsome vil- 
lage property, which was a legacy from his 
brother Patrick. His aunt, Mrs. Rosanna 
Healey, presides over the attractive home, 
and is chaperone of his niece Maggie. Mrs. 
Healey was left a widow in 1864 with three 
children, of whom two are living; namel)', 
Pldward Healey, a farmer in Java, and Kate, 
the widow of David Murphy. Mr. Galligan 
was married June 20, 1888, to Miss Mary 
Conley, a daughter of John and Ann (Ben- 
nam) Conley, both of Ireland. Her parents, 
who were married in Warsaw, lived in Weth- 
ersfield, where Mr. Conley was a farmer. 
Mrs. Galligan lived only fourteen months 
after her marriage. She died at the birth of 
her child, for whose life her own was given 
on the 2d of October, 1889. The infant 
daughter thus bereaved of a mother's love is 
now a lovely child of five years old, who lives 
with her grandmother Conley, and is a pet in 
both families. Mr. Galligan is a supporter of 
the Democratic party, and in religion is lo)al 
to the faith of his forefathers, being a mem- 
ber of the Roman Catholic church. 



KEUBEN HUMPHREYS FARNHAM, 
a malt dealer of Attica, N.V^., was 
born in this town, October 5, 1827, 
son of Moulton F"arnham, Vkfho was 
born in Shaftsbury, Vt., in 1798. His grand- 
father, Reuben Farnham, a native of Brim- 



field, Mass., resided for a time in Vermont, 
and afterward moved to Onondaga County, 
New York, where he was a farmer. He was 
a Revolutionary soldier, and fought in the 
ranks at the battle of Long Island. He died 
at an advanced age at Marcellus, having 
raised a family of seven sons and two or three 
daughters. 

Moulton Farnham married Perintha Hum- 
phreys, daughter of the Hon. Reuben Hum- 
phreys. Her father was born in West Sims- 
bury, Conn., in 1757. As a Revolutionary 
soldier he took part in the battle of Long 
Island, and after the war was an officer in the 
Connecticut militia, becoming Brigade In- 
spector. He married Anna Humphrey, of 
West Simsbury, and continued for some time 
to reside in Connecticut, having been a Jus- 
tice of the Peace at the age of twenty-five 
years. He later removed to Onondaga 
County, New York, where his many useful 
attainments brought him into prominence. 
He was appointed by Governor Morgan Lewis 
in 1804 the first Judge of Onondaga County, 
and later became State Senator and member 
of Congress. After ably and faithfully filling 
various positions of trust and responsibility, 
he died about the year 1832. Moulton Farn- 
ham was a graduate of the old Onondaga 
Academy and a fine scholar, especially skilled 
in Latin and mathematics and in the use of 
language. When a young man he was ap- 
pointed with others to survey the swamps of 
Syracuse, to lay out the city of that name. 
He was a firm Republican, a Justice of the 
Peace for many years, and actively assisted 
in the election of party candidates, but was 
not a money-maker. Mrs. Perintha (Hum- 
phreys) I-'arnham died in the prime of life in 
1845, leaving two sons, Reuben H., subject 
of this sketch, and Moulton G. Farnham, a 
resident of Buffalo. 

Reuben Humphreys Farnham was educated 
in the academy of Attica, and studied law 
with his father. In 1S57 he entered the real 
estate business in Kansas. When the land 
office was removed to Topeka, he went there, 
and for a number of years did a large busi- 
ness, handling great sums of money for others. 
While he was in the State, during the drought 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



507 



of 1859 and i860, the population diminished 
twenty-five per cent. Although Mr. Farn- 
ham was admitted to the bar at Buffalo in 
1852, he has never practised. For thirteen 
years past he has been an extensive malt pro- 
ducer in Attica, where he has erected his 
large malt houses, which have a capacity of 
one hundred thousand bushels per year. 

In 1859 he married Miss Frances E. Hum- 
phrey, daughter of Hector and Hannah 
Humphrey, of Batavia; and they have five 
children. Their daughter Alice, after grad- 
uating from the Philadelphia Women's Medi- 
cal College, became a pupil of Dr. Charcot in 
Paris, and was subsequently for some time on 
the medical staff of the Willard Insane Asy- 
lum, and later at the Insane Asylum of New 
York City. She is now the wife of Dr. John 
A. Leader, and a successful practitioner with 
her husband at Lewiston, Me. Her sister, 
Anna E., is the wife of Clarence N. Dwight, 
of New York City. The third daughter, 
Edith, is a student of physical culture at the 
Emerson College of Oratory in Boston. The 
only son, Reuben H., Jr., of Watertown, is 
engaged in the civil engineer's department of 
the Rome, Watertown & Ogdensburg Rail- 
road; and Jessie, the youngest child, is pur- 
suing her general studies in Attica. 

Mr. Farnham has served as Justice of the 
Peace and Supervisor. He resides in a com- 
modious frame house on Main Street, which 
is one of the largest residences in Attica, and 
was erected by him in 1868 and 1869. He 
enjoys the reputation of being an honorable 
business man, and his substantial prosperity 
is the result of honest and successful business 
methods. During his residence in Batavia he 
organized the First National Bank of that city 
in 1864, and was its first President. It may 
be worthy of mention that Mr. Farnham 's 
mother was first cousin to the mother of John 
Brown of Harper's Ferry fame, the strong old 
Abolitionist. 



yjDGAR L. GRAY, a most successful 

Pl farmer of Geneseo, Livingston County, 

"^■^ ' ■ N.Y., and a representative of one of 

the pioneer families of this town, was born 



February 20, 1849. His father, Thomas 
Gray, a native of Pennsylvania, being born 
August II, 1798, was the son of Duncan 
Gray, who was born in the north of Ireland, 
of Scotch ancestry, and emigrated to America 
about the year 1780, settling in the Keystone 
State. Grandfather Gray married Hannah 
McBride, also of Scotch ancestry, and for- 
merly a resident of the north of Ireland. 
They resided in Pennsylvania until 1806, then 
removed to New York State, making the jour- 
ney with an ox team, the usual mode of travel 
in those early days, and settled upon a farm 
in the present town of Geneseo, in what was 
then Ontario County. At the breaking out of 
the second war with Great Britain in 18 12 he 
enlisted in the United States service, and lost 
his life at the memorable battle of Chippewa. 
His wife survived him a number of years, and 
reared eight children — John, Hugh, Daniel, 
James, Mary, Thomas, William, and Jane, all 
of whom have passed away. 

Thomas Gray made the best of his opportu- 
nities to obtain an education at the pioneer 
schools, and also in his boyhood assisted his 
mother upon the farm and in the support of a 
large family. In spite of many drawbacks he 
finally began life for himself even with the 
world; and, being naturally industrious be- 
sides possessing prudence and judgment, he 
in course of time procured for himself a hand- 
some competency. In 1827 he purchased a 
tract of timber land, which is included in the 
farm now owned and occupied by his son, 
Edgar L. Gray. He cleared and cultivated his 
farm, erected good substantial buildings, and 
resided here until his decease, which occurred 
July 16, 1887, when he was eighty-nine years 
old. His wife, whose maiden name was Mary 
Wynn, was a daughter of Benjamin and Isa- 
bella (Hunter) Wynn and widow of James 
Haynes. She died aged seventy-eight, hav- 
ing reared six children — Catherine, Daniel 
Harvey, Lydia Maria, Josepha, Leonora ■ 
Elizabeth, and Edgar L., the subject of this 
sketch. Thomas Gray joined the Republican 
party at its formation, and continued to act 
with it up to the time of his decease. 

Edgar L. Gray attended the district 
schools, following this with a course at 



So8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Temple Hill Academy and the Genesee Wes- 
leyan Seminary at Lima. Being the young- 
est son, he always remained at home with his 
parents, assisting his father in carrying on 
the farm and acquiring an experimental 
knowledge of husbandr)-, that has since proved 
of untold value in developing the success with 
which his patient and untiring efforts have 
been crowned. At his father's decease he in- 
herited as his share of the ])roperty the home 
farm, which is beautifully situated on the 
west shore of Conesus Lake, commanding a 
broad view of the surrounding country, is ex- 
tremely healthy and in every way a most de- 
sirable possession. 

On March 14, 1872, Mr. Gray married 
Miss Martha Dieffenbacher, of Geneseo, a 
most estimable lady, who is a daughter of 
John and Martha C. (Knight) Dieffenbacher. 
They have one son, Clyde D. Gray. Mr. Gray 
is one of those active, highly intelligent coun- 
try gentlemen of whom the Empire State is 
proud to boast. 



-AMESON N. WITHEREL, an exten- 
sive land owner and a prominent and 
influential resident of Arcade, Wyo- 
ming County, N.Y., was born in this 
town, February 27, 1849. His father, Nel- 
son Witherel, was one of the early settlers; 
and his grandfather, Jared Witherel, was a 
pioneer from New England, and came to the 
western part of New York in iSio. All was 
then a wilderness. No smoke of hospitable 
chimney gladdened the eye. No sound of 
welcoming voices broke the stillness. The 
nearest grist-mill was at Batavia, thirty-six 
miles distant; but here, in the log house 
speedily constructed, was established the 
home, and with the home and wife and chil- 
dren the pioneer felt courageous in facing his 
difficulties. After the house other buildings 
were erected, and in time the pioneer was 
able to see the result of his long toil and 
rejoice in the blessings of his labor. Jared 
Witherel resided on this property during the 
rest of his life, ending his days there at the 
age of eighty. One of the farm buildings 
still stands, a model to the modern builder 



for strength of timber and firmness of foun- 
dation. 

The family consisted of ten children. Nel- 
son, the fifth child and the father of Jameson, 
the subject of this sketch, applied himself to 
farm work, helping his father about the place 
till he reached manhood, when he married, 
and set up his own homestead on a farm which 
he purchased at that time. He lived in a 
log house in his first essay at housekeeping; 
but, as he brought his fields gradually under 
cultivation, he erected additional farm build- 
ings and improved the homestead property, 
and at the time of his death, which occurred 
when he was sixty-six years old, the estate 
was in fine condition. Nelson Witherel was 
a Republican of decided views, and was a 
Commissioner of Highways during two terms 
of service. As the early settlers generally 
lived in isolated localities, among the awe- 
inspiring influences of nature, they naturally 
drew near to the Maker of all, and were sel- 
dom neglectful of membership with some re- 
ligious body. Nelson Witherel and his wife 
connected themselves with the Baptist church 
which had taken root in the little community, 
and died in that faith. Mrs. Witherel was 
Miss Sarah Wilbur, of Arcade, whose rela- 
tives were originally settlers in that town, 
and spent their later years in the locality. 

Nelson and Sarah Witherel had several 
children, two of whom are still living — Ade- 
line (deceased), wife of Addison Ryder, of 
Holland, Erie County; Monroe Witherel 
(deceased); Imogene, wife of J. H. Rhodes, of 
Bradford, Pa.; James M. and Jameson N., twin 
brothers. James M. died January 22, 1895. 

Jameson N. Witherel lived in the village 
of Arcade in his childhood. As he developed 
into a sturdy youth, he went to reside with his 
father on the farm, remaining with him dur- 
ing the remainder of his life. He received 
his education in Arcade, and put it into prac- 
tical use in agricultural pursuits. He has at 
the present time a fine farm of one hundred 
and fifty acres, and in addition one-half of his 
father's farm, which consisted of two hundred 
and sixty acres. This was divided by the 
father at his death between his twin sons, 
James IVL and Jameson N. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



5°9 



Mr. Witherel is a Republican in his politi- 
cal preferences, and stands well in the county 
for his integrity of purpose and his good char- 
acter. He has held the office of Commis- 
sioner of Highways during two terms of 
service, was also Assessor for two terms of 
three years each, and Deputy Sheriff one term 
of three years. He is a member of the Ar- 
cade Lodge of A. F". & A. M. and of China 
Lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows in Arcade. He also belongs to the An- 
cient Order of United Workmen, being a 
prominent man in each of these societies, be- 
sides which he has seen active service in the 
fire department, and has been President of the 
popular Arcade Driving Park Association for 
five years in succession. 

Jameson N. Witherel was married in Ar- 
cade, January 27, 1876, to Miss Callie 
Hausauer, daughter of Fred and Polly 
(Bendy) Hausauer, of Marilla, Erie County. 
Mrs. Witherel's ancestors were originally 
from Germany. Her paternal grandfather 
was Michael Hausauer, born in that country. 
May 24, 1 80 1. Her grandmother, Margaret 
Hausauer, was born February 28, 1803. 
Her maternal grandparents were early set- 
tlers in Schoharie County, her grandfather, 
Harry Bondy, being born there May 23, 1793, 
and her grandmother, Nancy Bondy, being 
born September 11, 1796. 

Mrs. Witherel's father was Fred Hausauer, 
born in Germany, January 28, 1831. He 
came to this country with his parents in child- 
hood, and was brought up a farmer, living in 
Wales till his marriage, when he went to 
Marilla. There he died at the early age of 
twenty-eight. He was a God-fearing man, 
and was a member of the Disciples' church of 
Marilla. Her mother, Polly Hausauer, who 
is still living, was born in Marilla, Erie 
County, May 22, 1835. Mrs. Witherel has 
one sister, the wife of James Garry, of Buffalo. 

Mrs. Callie Hausauer Witherel was born at 
Marilla in 1856. After the death of her 
father, which occurred when she was a very 
young child, she came to Arcade, and resided 
in the family of Frederick Hubbard up to the 
time of her marriage, which took place when 
she was nineteen years old. She is the 



mother of three children — Fred Harry, Mae 
Flossie, and one that died in infancy. Fred 
H. was born April 7, 1879. The boy who 
died was born September 25, 1880, and passed 
away October 26, 1880. Mae F. was born 
November 29, 1883. 

Mrs. Witherel and her family are members 
of the Congregational church in Arcade, and 
are active in the Sunday-school. 

Frederick Lane Hubbard, in whose care 
Mrs. Witherel grew to womanhood, was one 
of the pioneers of Sardinia, Erie County. In 
that place he was married to Eunice Shedd, 
and some time after his marriage moved to 
Arcade, where he is now living in good health 
at the age of eighty-one. 



dam 



-OHN O. VANDERBELT, of Geneseo, 
N.Y., a manufacturer of harnesses and 
dealer in saddlery, valises, and leather 
bags, was born in Mansfield, Amster- 
County, N.J., March i, 1826. His 
father, Cornelius Vanderbelt, a native of 
Milford, N.J., was a blacksmith by trade, and 
was also noted as an expert in breaking colts 
and training horses for the turf. He made a 
specialty of manufacturing hand made snaps, 
which were quite celebrated at the time and 
much in demand. He died in 1833, at the 
age of thirty-two. His wife, whose maiden 
name was Mary Ann Olp, was a daughter of 
John Olp, also of New Jersey. Of the three 
children to whom she gave birth she reared 
but one, John O., the subject of this sketch. 
After the death of her husband Mrs. Mary A. 
Vanderbelt with her son, in company with her 
father and sister, the latter having eight chil- 
dren, moved to Mount Morri.s, to which place 
Mrs. Vanderbelt walked nearly all the way, 
making the journey in about two weeks. 
This somewhat remarkable event in his early 
history Mr. Vanderbelt now remembers very 
distinctly. John Olp, his maternal grand'- 
father, purchased a farm in the vicinity of 
Mount Morris, and became one of the early 
settlers in that section. 

John O. Vanderbelt passed his early boy- 
hood on his grandfather's farm, and received 
his education at the district schools, and at 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



home was reared to agricultural pursuits. 
He inherited his father's fondness for horses, 
which showed itself at an early age, it being 
his chief delight always to ride or drive to 
the mill or do any other jiart of farm work 
necessitating the use of horses. At the age 
of sixteen, at Mount Morris, he commenced to 
learn harness-making, serving there one year, 
and in the spring of 1843 came to Gencseo, 
where he continued as an apprentice at the 
same trade, serving four years at thirty dollars 
per year. After thoroughly acquiring his 
trade, he worked as a journeyman in Caryville 
for ten months, then returned to Geneseo, 
where in 1848 he opened husiness, and at the 
same time purchased a residence. Mr. Van- 
derbelt has followed his calling in Geneseo 
ever since, and has therefore become widely 
and favorably known through the entire sec- 
tion as a skilful and reliable workman. At 
present he is the oldest dealer in his line now 
living in the village, having conducted trade 
here nearly fifty years. His early fondness 
for horses still survives, and he now conducts 
a stage and livery business as an annex to his 
original occupation. 

On December 31, 1849, Mr. John O. Van- 
derhelt married Helen M. Reed, daughter of 
Mortimer Reed. They have had in all six 
children, as follows: Delia M., now a widow; 
Elizabeth R., the wife of A. R. Scott of the 
Kfpiiblicdn Joiiniit/ at Geneseo, having three 
children — Jeannette, Walter Scott, and 
Reed; John A., a druggist in Rochester, who 
married Lucy Maples; Mary, who died at the 
age of twenty-four, an accomplished young 
lady, especially skilled in music, whose un- 
timely death was the cause of much regret ; 
Charles R., a dentist oi Rochester, a graduate 
of Michigan University at Ann Arbor; and 
Hattie, who died at the age of three years. 
Mr. Vanderbelt is a musician of considerable 
repute, having led the village band for many 
years, and is not excelled in these parts as a 
cornet player. His son Charles is also a 
skilled master of that instrument, and has led 
the band in Geneseo. Mr. Vanderbelt is an 
attendant and his family are members of the 
Presbyterian church. Tn politics he is an 
active adherent of the Republican party. 



OIIN KARClllCR, a retired merchant of 
Attica, Wyoming County, who died 
January 22, 1895, was a native of 
1'" ranee, and was born at Colmar, in the 
valley of the Upjier Rhine, July 5, 1824. 
His father, George Karcher, was a miller of 
that town, where he spent an active life, and 
died in 1833, at the age of fifty-eight years. 
Mrs. George Karcher was before her marriage 
Miss Mary Deisler. After being the mother 
of a large family she died at her home in 
1842, aged forty-three years. 

John Karcher was the latest surviving son of 
fourteen children, of whom ten grew to matu- 
rit\'. He had but a limited education, and at 
fifteen went to learn the trade of currier, in- 
cluding the making of gloves and mittens. 
He served four years at this business, and then 
went to learn the hatter's trade, the ajijirentice 
to which, as in the case of the glove-making, 
has to jjay for the privilege. At the age of 
twenty-one he was drafted into the I'"vench 
army, drawn as "No. 50," and soon iountl 
himself luuler marching orders for the .South 
of France, going afterward to Northern 
Africa. He served his time, which was fully 
six years, and was glad enough when it ended. 
The French nation had settlements on the 
Senegal River, on the western coast of Africa, 
as early as 1662. They ha\e made explora- 
tions into the interifir, antl "to the French the 
world is indebted for nuuh valuable informa- 
tion concerning the northeni pro\-inces and the 
neighboring parts of Sahara. ' ' Hut those who 
first went there paid with theii- sufferings, and 
often their lives, for what posterity enjoys. 
The soldiers with whom John Karcher was 
drafted had to endiue great ]irivations. In 
the years of 1847 and 184S they were set to 
the construction of loads and other severe 
labors, for which the\' were paid the ]iittance 
of from eleven to thirteen cents a day, the 
common soldier receiving but two cents a day. 
Mr. Karcher worked on the road called the 
Omal Road, which was named from the 
Duke Omal, whose desertetl castle he saw 
and had a chance to enter. The soldiers 
often suffered for want of good water; and on 
this account, and from other climatic causes, 



many 



were sick and " hwiic numbers died. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



S" 



The men would stdop nnd drink, in their 
frenzied thirst, warm and muddy water that had 
gathered after a shower in the camels' deep 
tracks. 

On leaving the army, Mr. Karcher .spent 
a year with his hrother in l-'rance, and then set 
out for America. He sailed from Havre, May 
26, 1852, on the "John Curtis," an Ameri- 
can vessel, and landed in New York, July 19, 
having been fifty-four days on the passage. 
Diuing twenty-two days of the time they saw 
neither land nor other vessel, their Ca])tain 
being incompetent through drink, and the 
craft practically lost on the wide sea. On 
arrival John Karcher found himself in a 
strange city, whose language he could neither 
speak nor understand. He had in money about 
eighty-five dollars, but was obliged to employ 
an interpreter. He had brought to this coun- 
try from his brother, who was a manufacturer 
of Berlin-wire jewelry, some wares, of which 
he sold but a very few, as they were somewhat 
injured by the long journey. The merchants 
wanted him to furnish them consignments on 
a]jproval, as the goods were a novelty to the 
trade. So he wrote to his brother, who re- 
turned the answer, "Wait a little" ; and, while 
he waited, his funds diminished. He finally 
set out for Buffalo, and there found work at 
his old trade as hatter, getting but fifteen dol- 
lars a month. I'"or the second month he was 
to receive twenty dollars, but within five 
months his brother sent him a small stock of 
goods in ]ierlin-wire jewelry and purses. He 
then went to New York, disposed of a small 
part of the goods, and bought a small stock of 
"Yankee notions" and other jewelry, and, re- 
turning to Buffalo, opened a store on his own 
account on Main Street, near Genesee Street. 
After continuing in trade there two or three 
years, Mr. Karcher moved to Attica in April, 
1855, and opened a store for ready-made cloth- 
ing, gentlemen's furnishing goods, with mer- 
chant-tail(jring in connection. From this he 
built up a large and successful business, which 
he continued many years. 

Mr. Karcher was married in March, 1854, 
to Miss Catherine Kriegelstein, a daughter of 
J(jhn Kriegelstein, who was a native of France, 
and an old friend of his father. He came to 



America about the year irS2<S, and went first to 
.Syracuse, where he was engaged for a year in 
the salt works. He then went to Buffalo and 
opened a bakery, which was one of the first 
to do business there after the old-country 
methods. A few years later he moved to 
Attica and remained here till his death, which 
occurred in 1878, at the age of eighty years. 
John Kriegelstein's wife was Catherine Gang- 
loff, of the Rhine valley. Her father, Peter 
Gangloff, came to this country and settled near 
Buffalo, where he was a small farmer. Mrs. 
Kriegelstein became the mother of seven sons 
and one daughter, and lived to be eighty years 
old, dying in the year 1884. One son lives in 
Nebraska, and the (others are farmers in the 
neighborhood of Attica. 

Mr. and Mrs. Karcher had four children, 
two of whom have died. The others are a son, 
Jacob H., and a daughter, Louise. Jacob H. 
has succeeded his father in the business, which 
has now grown to be quite extensive. He has 
married Miss Martha McCarthy. They have 
no children. Louise is the wife of George C. 
Sweet, of Attica. Their two sons are Albeit 
H., aged fourteen, and Harris J., thirteen 
years old. Mr. Karcher purchased his house 
and nine acres of land when he went to Attica, 
and for twenty years he and his family 
lived over the store; but later Mr. Karcher 
built a large two-story house, into which 
they moved in 1873. Mr. Karcher became 
a Master Mason in 1864. The family be- 
long to the Lutheran church. Mr. Karcher's 
business increased during his lifetime from 
fifteen thousand to fifty thousand dollars per 
year, showing what perseverance can accom- 
plish. 

Sanuiel Kriegelstein, one of the brothers of 
Mrs. Karcher, should have .some special men- 
tion in this sketch. He was a soldier in 
the army, under Captain l-Ilan I'. -Spink. He 
was Sergeant in his comjjany, and was taken 
prisoner, and remained in Salisbury four 
months. After that he was paroled and came 
home, but not to recover; for he had been lit- 
erally starved in his prison. He died April 
14, 1865, the memorable day of President 
Lincoln's assassination. He was unmarried, 
and was thirty-one years old. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



'ACOB TALLMAN, a prosperous and 
well-to-do farmer of IMount Morris, is 
numbered among the solid and re- 
spected citizens of this part of Living- 
ston County, and is the owner of one of the 
finest and best-appointed farms to be found in 
the vicinity. He is a native of the Empire 
State, and was born in Skaneateles, Onondaga 
County, April 12, 181 7. His father, Peter 
Tallman, Jr., was born in New Jersey, and 
was a son of Peter Tallman, Sr. , a native of 
the same State. 

Peter Tallman, Sr. , was of English ances- 
try. Leaving his New Jersey home in the 
days of his early manhood, he became a pio- 
neer settler of Onondaga County. He re- 
moved his family and household goods with 
teams, and the wheels of the wagon 
which they came were the first ones 
with iron that were e\'er taken into 



with 

tired 

that 

a large tract of wild 

Skaneateles, and there 

an excellent farm, on 

his wife, whose maiden name 

spent the remainder of their 



county. He bought 
land in the town of 
cleared and improved 
which he and 
was Cobham, 
lives. 

Peter Tallman, Jr., was but a child when his 
parents migrated to Onondaga County; and 
there he grew to man's estate on the parental 
homestead, becoming familiar with farming 
pursuits, which he adopted as his life occupa- 
tion. He purchased a tract of timber land, 
and after marriage began housekeeping in a 
log house, the roof of which was covered with 
shakes. There was no floor, and the furniture 
was entirely of home manufacture. There 
being no stove, the busy housewife did all of 
her cooking by the fireplace, and carded, spun, 
and wove the material for the family clothing, 
with her deft fingers fashioning the garments. 
The father improved a considerable portion of 
his land, and resided thereon until 1838, when 
he exchanged his farm for land in Mount Mor- 
ris, and here spent the remainder of his life, 
passing away at the advanced age of eighty- 
seven years. He married Magdalene LeFevre, 
a native of LHster County, and the descendant 
of a French family of that section. She died 
in Onondaga County, New York, when in the 
prime of womanhood, being but forty years 



old, and left six children; namely, John L. , 
Margaret, Jacob, Efifie J., Elizabeth, and 
Peter. Mr. Tallman subsequentlv formed a 
second matrimonial alliance, of which union 
two sons were born — Garrett and William J. 

Jacob Tallman, of whom we write, was 
twenty-one years of age when he came with 
his parents to Mount Morris, and remained an 
inmate of the parental household until after 
his marriage, having previously, however, in- 
vested his earnings in a tract of land con- 
sisting of fifty-four acres of timber. He 
continued working on the home farm for two 
years longer, and then purchased ninety acres 
of land about a mile distant. For a period of 
twelve years he labored to clear and improve 
his farm, and then bought the estate on which 
he now resides. This valuable property con- 
tains three hundred and twenty-five acres of 
rich and i)roductive land, which is under a 
high state of culture, and well supplied with 
modern machinery. 

In 1855 Mr. Tallman was uniteil in mar- 
riage with Miss Mary A. Blood, a native of 
Tecumseh, Lenawee County, Mich., anil a 
daughter of l-lzra Faxon Blood, of that place. 
This happy union has been blessed by the 
birth of two children — Flora Elizabeth and 
Charles P. Flora E. is the wife of James 
Rowe, and the mother of two children — Mar- 
guerite and Carroll. Mr. Tallman is a man of 
undoubted honesty and integrity; and his 
worth as a citizen, friend, and neighbor is 
fully appreciated throughout the community, 
where he is held in great esteem. Both he 
and his estimable wife are conscientious mem- 
bers of the Presbyterian church. 




ILLIAM N. MARTIN, M.U., a 
practising physician at Cowlesville, 
N. Y., where he has followed his 
profession for twenty-eight years, was born 
in Cattaraugus County, N. Y. He is a 
son of Isaac R. Martin, and grandson of 
Robert Martin, a native of the State of New 
Jersey, who was born June 18, 1/75, ^"d died 
January 22, 1819. Robert Martin's wife, 
whose maiden name was Christina Eighme, 
came from Dutchess County, New York. She 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



5'3 



bore him seven children, four sons and one 
daughter attaining their majority, the only 
survivor of these now being Isaac R. Martin, 
Dr. Martin's father. 

The hitter's only sister became the wife of 
William B. Harmon, of ISatavia. His 
brother, Hiram H. Martin, followed the trade 
of a wagon-maker, and was quite a prominent 
man. Although a Democrat in a Republican 
town, he was Supervisor and Overseer of the 
Poor for many years. His youngest brother, 
George H. Martin, was a millwright in Bata- 
via, where he died at the age of seventy-eight 
years. Another brother, Runnion Martin, 
was a carpenter, and had charge of the Con- 
gress Springs at Saratoga for several years, 
afterward becoming a merchant. These 
brothers all became heads oi families. 

Isaac R. Martin was born at Saratoga in 
1805. He has led a very busy life, being 
originally a merchant at Saratoga Springs. 
He came West in search of better health, and 
arrived in Cattaraugus County May 6, 1833. 
Afterward he became a merchant in Alden, 
where he continued in trade for twenty-three 
years. He returned to Cowlesville for the last 
time in 1893, and settled down at his present 
residence. Though ninety years of age, Mr. 
Martin is mentally and physically well pre- 
served, and would hardly he taken for one who 
has passed so far beyond the fourscore limit. 
His first Presidential vote was cast for Andrew 
Jackson, and he has continued to adhere to the 
princijjles of the Democratic party ever since. 
He was Justice of the Peace one term, but 
declined a re-election. 

The maiden name of Dr. Martin's mother 
was Adeline Wooley. She was a daughter of 
Nehemiah W(joley, of Saratoga, and was Isaac 
Martin's second wife, his first, whose name 
was Sally Scoville, having died in 1830, leav- 
ing one son. Mr. Martin was married to Miss 
Wooley on October 18, 1831; and they reared 
a large family. One son, Robert H. Martin, 
a soldier in the Civil War, was killed, leaving 
a wife and si.\ children, who now reside in 
and about Wellsville, N.Y. Dr. Martin's 
brothers were named as follows: Robert H., 
mentioned above; George A., who died April 
7, 1852, at the age of sixteen years; Harmon 



I., a painter residing in West Alden. His 
sisters are as follows: .Susan; Christina A., 
wife of Lafayette Daggett, residing in Cowles- 
ville, who has one son — William K. ; Carrie 
D. , unmarried, and residing at home; and 
Grace Adell, also residing at home with her 
father. 

William N. Martin passed his early boyhood 
upon his father's farm, meanwhile attending 
the district .schools and also the Aurora Acad- 
emy. He learned the joiner's trade, and 
worked at it in the summer time, teaching 
school in winter. When sufficiently advanced, 
he took up the study of medicine with Drs. 
Bradley Goodyear at Alden and M. E. Potter 
at Cowlesville, and graduated from the med- 
ical department of the Buffalo University 
in 1867, since which time he has practised in 
Cowlesville, with the exception of six months 
passed in the State of Minnesota with his 
invalid wife. He is the only physician in 
Cowlesville, and has a large practice — so 
large, indeed, as to show unanimous confidence 
in his knowledge and .skill. He purcha.sed his 
pleasant residence in 1870. Dr. Martin is a 
Master Mason, and is a Democrat in politics. 
He has been Supervisor one term and Justice 
of the Peace for seven years. He is now 
Chairman of the Board of Pension E.vaminers 
at Warsaw. 

Dr. Martin was first married November 7, 
1862, to Marion ]•:. Searls, of Wales, Erie 
County. She died about eighteen months after 
marriage, leaving one son, Marion Eugene, 
now a physician at Bennington Centre, who 
has a wife and three sons. 

On June 29, 1870, Dr. Martin married for 
his second wife Miss Mary Augusta Folsom, 
of Folsomdale, daughter of Colonel John B. 
Folsom. She died in 1873 at the age of 
twenty-five, leaving one daughter, Mary Au- 
gusta, now the wife of Horace P. Taber, of 
East Aurora, N. Y. 

On May 20, 1875, Dr. Martin was united to 
his third wife, whose maiden name was Miss 
M. L. Campbell, a daughter of Leander S. 
Campbell, of Alden, Erie County. Mrs. Mar- 
tin's father died May 9, 1858, leaving a widow 
and seven children; and her mother died 
March 13, 1871, at the age of sixty-two years. 



S'4 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Of the se\eii children tour arc now lix'ing — 
Mrs. Dr. Martin; Robert J. Campbell, a 
resident of Bay City, Mich. ; John A. and 
Cornelia, who reside on the home farm in 
Marilla. 



'OHN C. DECKER, a thriving farmer of 
South Livonia, Livingston County, 
X.V. . was born in Livonia, October 
25, 1822. His grandfather, John 
Decker, who was a German emigrant, came to 
Livonia in 1799, where he took a deed from 
the agent of the Countess of Bath for a tract 
of one hundred and sixty acres of land, and 
became one of the most skilful hunters and 
trappers in this region. He built a frame 
house on this land, in which he lived during 
the remainder of his life. The nearest market 
was Rochester, and thither he carried the flesh 
and .skins of the animals which had fallen vic- 
tims to his ingenious traps and unerring rifle 
aim. His wife's maiden name was Katie 
Weltie. Grandfather Decker lived to be 
seventy -two years of age. 

His son Henry, the second of the Decker 
generation in America, and the father of Mr. 
John C. Decker, whose name heads this 
sketch, was educated in Livonia, where he 
was a farmer and a distiller. He bought a 
farm adjoining that of his father, which upon 
the latter' s death he also purchased. Four 
hundred acres of this estate he afterward sold ; 
and he moved into Lima, in order that his 
younger children might have better educa- 
tional advantages. Eleven children were 
borne to him by his wife, Martha Mather, si.x 
of whom are now living. 

John C. Decker, after completing the course 
of study prescribed by the common schools of 
his town, devoted himself to farm work until 
he was twenty-five, when he acquired the dig- 
nity of a landed proprietor by purchasing a 
hundred acres of land, upon which he erected 
buildings, and which he has diligently im- 
proved by cultivation. He now has an estate 
of one hundred and sixty acres, which he man- 
ages intelligently and profitably. In 1849 he 
married Miss Charlotte Cowles, a daughter of 
Richard and Charlotte (Cole) Cowles, of Hart- 



fort! Count}-, Conn. The one daughter of this 
union, Frances, married the Rev. Amos 
Kiehle, of Livingston County, but was not 
spared to enjoy many years of wifehood and 
motherhood. She died in her thirty-fifth year, 
leaving one son, Ernest, who lives with his 
grandparents. Mr. Kiehle, the boy's father, 
is a Presbyterian clergyman, with a pastorate 
in Milwaukee, Wis. 

Mr. Decker is always interested in the po- 
litical issues of the times, and has been a Re- 
publican since the formation of that party. 
He has exercised the right of suffrage more 
than half a century, having cast his first Presi- 
dential vote for James K. Polk in 1844. A 
portrait of this veteran agriculturist, the years 
of whose life are past threescore years and ten, 
may be seen on the opposite ]iage. Evidently 
the "gospel of outdoors " has not been preached 
to him in vain. 




s ^RS. ELIZA WATSON, a resident 
of Varysburg, town of Sheldon, 
\\'yoming County, widow- of the 
late John C. Watson, M. D., who 
practised medicine in this village and the sur- 
rounding country for twenty years, is a daugh- 
ter of Charles and Nellie (Libolt) Parker. 
Her paternal grandparents, Samuel and Ase- 
nath (Lawa-ence) Parker came Trom Shafts- 
bury, \'t. , to Onondaga County, New York, 
where they were among the early settlers. 
They made the journey from Vermont on 
horseback, and Mrs. Asenath Parker was the 
first lady teacher in Onondaga County. She 
became the mother of eight children, all of 
whom are passed away. 

Eliza Parker taught school several terms in 
Canada, and on August 13, 1857, was united 
in marriage to Dr. John C. Watson, of Erie 
County, son of Dr. Ira and Sally (Stevens) 
Watson. Dr. Watson^s grandfather was a 
man of wealth and influence, and very promi- 
nent in his community. His father, Dr. Ira 
Watson, w-as twice married, having had seven 
children by the first marriage and three chil- 
dren by the second marriage. Of these the 
only survivor is Edward ^^'atson, now residing 
in Kansas. Dr. John C. Watson was for four 




- i 



JOHN C. DECKF.R. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



517 



years a partner of old Dr. Potter before the 
death of that venerable physician, and no 
doubt obtained a great deal of valuable experi- 
ence by that association. He was a skilful 
practitioner and exceedingly popular both pro- 
fessionally and socially. He was a Master 
Mason, and a member of the Methodist church. 
His death occurred in 1878, at the age of fifty- 
five years. 

But one child blessed the union of Dr. John 
C. and Eliza (Parker) Watson; namely, Liz- 
zie, now the wife of J. W. Scoville, a son of 
George and Theresa (Beebe) Scoville, the 
latter a native of Vermont. George Scoville 
died at the age of thirty-eight years, leaving 
two children — J. W. ; and Antha, who is now 
the wife of Roswell Howell, and resides in 
Kansas. The mother again married ; and .she 
died September 15, 1875, at the age of si.xty- 
two years. J. W. Scoville received a common- 
school education, and remained at home until 
his mother's death. His father left a large 
and well-improved farm, which is still p(js- 
sessed by the family. It is situated about one 
mile north of Varysburg. His marriage to 
Miss Lizzie Watson occurred in December, 
1878; and they have since resided at the old 
home, having two sons — John W. and Gad P. 
John Watson Scoville, born November 22, 
1880, now a student in Attica, a very bright 
and promising young man, is an apt scholar, 
far in advance of his years, and will graduate 
in 1895. The second son. Gad Parker Sco- 
ville, was born May 4, 1885. 

Mr. J. W. Scoville is a Master Mason, and 
a Republican in politics. He is extensively 
engaged in farming, the four farms which he 
operates aggregating in all over se\-en hundred 
acres. He owns a farm of two hundred and 
sixteen acres situated north of Varysburg; 
and the other three are the property of his 
wife and her mother, the subject of this 
sketch. They keep about one hundred cows, 
the product of which is disposed of at Buffalo 
and at the cheese factory. Mr. Scoville carries 
on general farming, which his thorough knowl- 
edge of agriculture in all its branches enables 
him to make exceedingly profitable. The 
family are all active and valued members of 
the Methodist church. 




ALVIN KNOWLES is a native resi- 
dent of Avon, he having been born in 
this town, August 29, 1821; and, 
as he has always made Avon his 
home, he has passed nearly three-quarters of a 
century here, and is very generally known in 
this section. He is of New England descent, 
both his father and his grandfather, who bore 
the same name, Paul, having been born in 
Massachusetts. Paul Knowles, the elder, 
lived in the old Bay State all his life, and 
was a farmer from first to last. 

Paul Knowles, Jr., father of Calvin, was 
born in Sandisfield, Mass., and was educated 
in the district schools. Of course he helped 
his father on the farm during his school days; 
but, as he had more taste for manufacturing 
than for agriculture, he became a wool carder 
and clothier by occupation. Finally he re- 
moved from his native State to New York, 
making the journey with an ox team, and 
being accompanied by several other Massachu- 
setts people. He worked in a factory in what 
is now the town of West Bloomfield for about 
a year, when he removed to Avon, and began 
business for himself in a small way, erecting 
a humble carding and cloth-dressing mill. It 
was located where the arched bridge now 
stands, and although small in capacity was 
first-class in equijjment, and turned out excel- 
lent work. Mr. Knowles had an eligible 
water-power located on Conesus Creek; and, 
when he purchased the mill privilege, he also 
purchased the land adjoining. He was en- 
gaged in business at that point for about a 
quarter of a century, and his operations were 
by no means confined to carding and cloth 
dressing; for he added a saw-mill to his plant, 
bought one hundred and twelve acres of timber 
land located in the district known as "Sugar- 
berry," and made a good deal of lumber. F"i- 
nally his business — that is, the carding and 
cloth-dressing part of it — had to make way 
for the great woollen-mills; and he retired to 
his farm, although he continued to operate his 
saw-mill. 

For some years after he bought his farm a 
log house was the only building on it; but it 
would certainly have been strange had the 
owner of a saw-mill been content to live in a 



Si8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



log cabin, and in 1814 he began the erection 
of the frame house in which the subject of our 
sketch was born seven years later, and in 
which he lives to-day. This was toward the 
close of the second war with England, and 
before the building was completed two regi- 
ments of cavalry came to winter their horses 
■at Avon. As a choice of evils Mr. Knowles 
decided to move into his unfinished house, 
and leave his log house for the use of the 
cavalrymen. They accepted the situation, 
and lived on his premises until the following 
summer. Paul Knowles, Jr., died at the age 
of fifty-nine. He had been an active and use- 
ful member of the community, had held a 
commission as Justice of the Peace, and 
served several terms as Commissioner of 
Highways. His wife Betsy McNight, was a 
daughter of Robert and Elizabeth McNight, 
of Alassachusetts. Robert McNight was a 
veteran of the Revolutionary War, and drew 
a pension from the government. Paul and 
Betsy (McNight) Knowles were the parents of 
eight children, their names being as follows: 
William, Ann Eliza, Caroline, Betsy, Paul, 
Calvin, George, James. 

Calvin is now the only survivor. He was 
educated at the Avon district schools and 
Academy, attended the Temple Hill Academy 
at Geneseo one year and the Wesleyan Semi- 
nary at Lima two years. After teaching 
school one winter at Bloomfield and one at 
Avon he began the study of law, first with 
Amos Dann, of Avon, and then in the office 
of Wood & Chamberlin, of Geneseo. 
was admitted to the bar in 1852, and 
tised until 1861, when he enlisted in 
pany A, Thirteenth New York Volunteer In- 
fantry, as a private soldier, but was promoted 
to the position of Quartermaster Sergeant. 

He was present at the battle of Bull Run, 
took active part in the Peninsular campaign, 
and saw more than two years of service before 
being mustered out. Returning to Avon he 
resumed the practice of his profession. He 
was appointed recruiting officer of this Con- 
gressional district when a draft was ordered, 
being himself exempt on account of active 
service and honorable discharge; and the 
irony of fate is illustrated by the fact that he 



He 
prac- 
Com- 



was obliged as recruiting officer to call upon 
one of his younger brothers for service in the 
field or for the furnishing of satisfactory sub- 
stitutes. 

Calvin Knowles is connected with the Free 
Masons, is a member of H. C. Cutler Post, 
No. 235, Grand Army of the Republic, and 
is almost universally known in this section in 
both social and professional circles. He has 
held a commission as Justice of the Peace for 
more than a quarter of a century. He cast 
his first Presidential vote a little more than 
half a ceiitur)' ago, in 1844, for Henry Clay; 
and he has always supported the Republican 
ticket since the formation of that party. 



"TiLJGENE PLUMLEY, a very successful 
fv farmer of Bennington Centre, N.Y., a 
''^-*« I scarred veteran of the late war, was 
born in Attica in the same county, September 
19, 1841. His grandfather, Erastus Plumley, 
was born at Brantford, Vt., about the year 
1784; and his father, William Plumley, was 
a native of the same State, born in 181 2. 

Erastus Plumley removed to Wyoming 
County, New York, and settled on a tract of 
land about two and one-half miles south-east 
of Bennington Centre, then called Hadley 
Hollow, in the year 1818. He journeyed 
from New England with his ox team, bringing 
his wife and family, and began as a pioneer in 
a rude log house, which he himself erected for 
a habitation in the then almost unbroken wil- 
derness, he having purchased fifty acres of 
land at four dollars per acre, the land office 
at that time being at Batavia, seventeen miles 
distant. This land he improved to some ex- 
tent, and later sold in order to purchase a 
larger tract of seventy-two acres. His wife, 
whose maiden name was Polly Neff, and who 
was of Lebanon, Conn., became the mother of 
eight children, all sons, two of whom, Albert 
and Alvin, were twins, one being a Methodist 
preacher and the other a Baptist. These are 
all deceased with the exception of one, Mar- 
shall, who resides in Summit, Mich., at the 
age of over seventy years. Erastus and Polly 
(Neff) Plumley resided upon their farm in 
Bennington the remainder of their lives, with 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



519 



the exception of two years which they passed 
with one of their sons in Ohio, he dying in 
1856 and his wife one year later. Their re- 
mains rest in the Bennington Cemetery. They 
were members of the Baptist church, of which 
Erastus Plumley was an official for many years. 

William N. Plumley was reared to agricult- 
ural pursuits, and also learned the black- 
smith's trade. About the year 1835 ^^ 
married in Attica Eliza Allen, daughter of 
Jehiel and Hulda Allen, of Buffalo. Her 
father was a native of Vermont and a cousin 
of the celebrated Colonel Ethan Allen, of 
Ticonderoga fame. Mr. Plumley followed his 
trade in Attica for many years, and then 
moved to the old farm which his father had 
owned, and which he conducted for a time, 
selling it about 1868, and purchasing a home 
in Bennington Centre, where he continued to 
work at his trade until his decease, which oc- 
curred in 1875, at sixty-four years of age. 
Mrs. Eliza Allen Plumley reached the age of 
seventy-four years, and died in the month of 
August, 1894. She was the mother of seven 
children, three sons and four daughters, of 
whom two of the daughters are deceased. 
One of the sons is George W. Plumley, a 
printer of Seattle, Wash., who is married and 
has a family. Another, Walter Plumley, is a 
machinist of Willimantic, Conn., aged fifty- 
six years. Eugene is the subject of this 
sketch. Their sisters are Martha, a maiden 
lady, who resides with her brother at Ben- 
nington, and Emma J., wife of Frank Pearl, a 
machinist of South Windham, Conn. The 
deceased were: Amelia, wife of Henry P'en- 
ton, who died at the old homestead in 1890, 
leaving one son and two daughters; and Mar- 
garet, wife of George E. Fitch, who died at 
Hartford, Conn., in 1877. 

Eugene Plumley attended the district 
school, and was trained to farm life. He also 
learned the trade of carriage builder, at which 
he worked for four years at Jefferson, Ohio, 
and in 1861 enlisted from that place for three 
months' service at the commencement of the 
Civil War. After being discharged, he re- 
turned to his native village, and in 1863 re- 
enlisted in the Eighth New York Heavy 
Artillery, serving until June 16, 1864, when 



he was wounded by an ounce minie ball, 
which Mr. Plumley has preserved, it having 
entered the corner of his left eye, by the 
bridge of his nose, and lodged in the back of 
the neck, whence it was extracted. He was 
sent to the hospital at Portsmouth Grove, 
R.I., from which he was discharged December 
27, 1864. After leaving the hospital he at- 
tended to his wound by bathing it several 
times in every twenty-four hours with spring 
water, holding his head beneath a faucet, and 
allowing the water to flow through the cavity 
made by the bullet, which was nine years in 
healing. He received a pension of twenty- 
four dollars per month, and his case is said to 
be the only one on record where such a wound 
has not proved fatal. 

On December 11, 1865, Mr. Eugene Plum- 
ley married Miss Mina R. Owen, of Benning- 
ton, daughter of James and Sarah Ann 
(Miller) Owen, her mother having been a 
native of Middlebury, and her father of Wyo- 
ming. The former died in 1856 at the age of 
thirty years, leaving two daughters, Mrs. 
Plumley and her sister, Allie J. Owen. Her 
father is a retired commercial traveller, resid- 
ing at Niagara Falls, N.Y. Mr. and Mrs. 
Plumley have lost two daughters, their first- 
born, Anna, having died at three years of age, 
and Allie E. at sixteen. The latter, who was 
full of youthful strength and promise, became 
a victim of typhoid fever. The only surviv- 
ing daughter, Addie Patti, was married on 
April I, 1892, to Dr. William M. Haynes, a 
practising physician of Sherman, Chautauqua 
County, New York. She is an accomplished 
young lady, having been thoroughly educated 
at Bennington, and being a very fine pianist. 

Mr. Plumley is a comrade of Rowley P. 
Taylor Post, No. 219, and has held some of 
the minor offices. He is an attendant of the 
Baptist church, of which Mrs. Plumley is a 
member. On his farm of one hundred and 
thirty acres he makes a specialty of sheep- 
raising, having an average flock of from one 
hundred to one hundred and fifty Shropshire 
sheep, and also raises superior draft horses. 
He has served the village as Postmaster eight 
years. Justice of the Peace four years. Notary 
twelve years, and Deputy Sheriff three years 



520 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



— a good record for useful and valued citizen- 
ship. 

-OHN NESMITH DAVIDSON, farmer 
and sometime teacher, a well-known 
public-spirited citizen of Genesee 
Falls, was born April 14, 1833, in 
Windham, N.H., son of William and Annis 
(Nesmith) Davidson. His earliest ancestors 
in this country, both paternal and maternal, 
were Scotch-Irish. The genealogy of the two 
families for several generations is given in 
Mr. Morrison's History of the town of Wind- 
ham, N.H., which was formerly a part of 
Londonderry. From this it appears that a 
William Davidson, who was of Scotch de- 
scent, but born in Ireland, came to America 
with his wife Mary and children, and settled 
in Woburn, Mass., in 1728. 

John, their sixth child, born in 1720, re- 
moved to Windham, N.H., in 1752. Deacon 
William, son of John, born in 1761, married 
Jane Barnet. Their son W'illiam, born in 
Windham in 1S02, married December 27, 
1827, Annis Nesmith, a great-grand-daughter 
of Deacon James Nesmith, one of the sixteen 
original proprietors of Londonderry, N.H., 
the date of whose settlement by a band of 
intelligent, religious, liberty loving Scotch- 
Irish colonists was April 22, 1719. The 
Nesmiths had previously migrated, in 1690, 
from Scotland to Ireland, where in 17 14 
James married Elizabeth McKeen. The fam- 
ily has from the first held high rank in New 
Hampshire and Massachusetts among the pos- 
terity of the Pilgrim and Puritan j^ioneers. 

Annis Nesmith, born in 180 1, was a daugh- 
ter of John Nesmith, Sr., a farmer and store- 
keeper of Windham. Her brother John (born 
in 1793 and died in 1869), who with an older 
brother, Thomas, settled in Lowell, Mass., in 
1 83 1, was one of the most enterprising and 
successful of New England manufacturers, 
being largely interested in mills in that city 
and in other places. A liberal helper of the 
antislavery cause, a friend of temperance, 
and a stanch patriot, his influence was widely 
felt for good. He was Lieutenant Governor 
of the State in 1S62, when John A. Andrew 



was Governor. One of his daughters is the 
wife of the present Governor Greenhalge. 

William and Annis Nesmith Davidson re- 
moved to New York State about sixty years 
ago, settling in 1836 on the farm of two hun- 
dred and eighty acres now occupied by the 
subject of this sketch. Mr. Davidson con- 
tinued to clear and improve the land until his 
death, February 6, 1855, at the age of fifty- 
two years. He and his wife had eight sons 
who grew to manhood, namely: William E., 
of Buffalo, an inspector in the interest of the 
Erie Railroad Company; John N. ; Thomas 
A. (deceased); George H. (deceased); F"ran- 
cis J.; Albert O., a large woollen manufact- 
urer in Massachusetts; Jacob M. ; and Irving 
H. Mrs. Annis Nesmith Davidson was one 
of nine children, all of whom are now dead. 
She spent her last years with her sons, and died 
March 31, 1877, at the age of seventy-six. 
Both parents were members of the Presbyterian 
church, the father having the office of Elder. 

John N. Davidson came to the present home 
when he was three years old, and remained 
with his father till he was nineteen. He at- 
tended the district school and later the Alfred 
Academy in Alfred, Allegany County, where 
he graduated in 1854. After this he began 
teaching in the neighborhood, and taught sev- 
eral years in the district and union schools, 
carrying on some farm work at the same time. 
In later years he has been active in public 
matters, and is a strong supporter of the Re- 
publican ticket. He has been elected to vari- 
ous offices, and has been Supervisor three 
terms. He was elected to the Assembly in 
1871-72, and at present is a Director of the 
State Bank of Pike. Of late he has been liv- 
ing a retired life on the old homestead. He 
attends to the interests of the town and neigh- 
borhood as a good citizen, with the composure 
and serenity which belong only to maturer 
life and the consciousness of duty done. 



"ON. GREEN LEAF S. V A N- 
GORDER, a prominent resident and 
able lawyer of the town of Pike, 
N.Y., was born in York, Living- 
ston County, June 2, 1855. He is the son of 




BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



521 



Simon VanGorder, whose native place was 
Tioga Point, N.Y., and grandson of John Van- 
Gorder, who was born in Ulster County, as 
were most of his ancestors whose record in 
this county is known. They were originally 
from Holland; and it is known that the pro- 
genitors of the family ten generations back, 
about 1648, left Albany, and went to the 
present city of Kingston, being among the 
primitive settlers there. The grandfather of 
Mr. VanGorder lived in that locality, and 
later moved to Geneseo, Livingston County, 
where he was a hotel-keeper as well as farmer, 
and where he spent his later years. His son 
Simon was engaged with him in the hotel 
business, but died at the comparatively early 
age of thirty-six years. Simon VanGorder 
married Elizabeth, daughter of Peter More- 
house, of Bethany, Washington County, 
N.Y., her birthplace being Argyle, N.Y. By 
a previous marriage she had one son, James 
C. Parmenter, who served in the late war as a 
member of the First New York Cavalry, and 
was shot in a skirmish with Moseby's gueril- 
las at Snickersville, in the Shenandoah val- 
ley, Virginia. The mother is still living, 
and resides vvith her son, John E., in the 
town of West Almond, N.Y. 

Mr. VanGorder, the subject of this sketch, 
resided with his parents in Geneseo until 
eleven years of age, when they removed to 
West Almond, Allegany County; and here he 
attended school, as he had before done in 
Livingston County. Later he was a student 
in the academic department of Alfred Univer- 
sity, after which he studied law with Sanford 
& Bowen, of Angelica, and was admitted to 
the bar in Buffalo, June 15, 1877, being then 
twenty-two years of age. In August of that 
year Mr. VanGorder went to the town of 
Pike, and began the practice of his profession, 
going on steadily in the way of success. 
Legal work requires, among other qualities, 
perceptive ability and a logically trained 
mind; and, as Mr. VanGorder possesses these 
in a marked degree, he has attained high rank 
among his brother lawyers. He was elected 
Town Clerk in February, 1878, and served 
five years, and then served five years as Su- 
pervisor of the town, was a member of the 



New York State Assembly from the County of 
Wyoming for the years 1888-89, represented 
the Thirtieth Senatorial District (counties of 
Genesee, Livingston, Niagara, and Wyoming) 
in the State Senate of 1890-91 and again in 
1892-93, with credit to his office. He has 
also taken an active interest in Masonic mat- 
ters, and is a member and Past Master of 
Triluminar Lodge, No. 543, a member of 
Wyoming Chapter, No. 181, R. A. M., Batavia 
Commandery, No. 34, Knights Templars, Key- 
stone Council, No. 20, of Buffalo, and Cyprus 
Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, Al- 
bany, N.Y. He is also a member of the Hol- 
land Society of New York. Mr. VanGorder 
is interested in educational matters, and has 
served as one of the Trustees of Pike Semi- 
nary since December, 1882. At the organ- 
ization of the State Bank of Pike, in April, 
1892, he was made one of its Directors; and 
at its second annual meeting he was elected 
President, which office he now holds. 

Mr. VanGorder was married in August, 
1878, to Miss Eva E. Lyon, youngest daugh- 
ter of Josephus and Elmyriet (Gilchrist) 
Lyon. Mr. Lyon was a native of Vermont, 
and spent his early life in the town of Eagle, 
to which place his father had removed among 
the early settlers. Later Mr. Lyon removed 
to Pike. He was a man of many fine quali- 
ties, and was highly appreciated in the town, 
holding the office of Assessor for many years. 
His death occurred there at the age of sixty- 
nine. Mrs. Lyon followed her husband four 
weeks later, dying at the age of sixty-four 
years. She was a member of the Presbyterian 
church. 

Mrs. VanGorder was one of six children, 
all of whom are still living. Her only sister 
is the wife of the Hon. W. M. Smith, ex- 
health officer of the port of New York. The 
other children are: Frank, Edwin D., Or- 
ville D., and Fred H. Mr. and Mrs. Van- 
Gorder reside on the old Lyon homestead, and 
have one child, a daughter, Mary E., now fif- 
teen years of age. In reviewing the events of 
Mr. Van Gorder's life, as given above, it will 
be seen that his present high position is due 
mainly to his own exertions, his father having 
died in March, 1855, three months before the 



522 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



birth of the subject of this sketch. His ca- 
reer has been marked by persevering industry, 
guided by a quick intelligence and singular 
accuracy in his impressions and measurement 
of men — qualities potential for success in 
almost every walk of life. 




ILLIAM AND ALEXANDER \V. 
STEWART were born in York, 
Livingston County, New York 
State, on the land now owned and occupied 
by them. William, the eldest, was born in 
1823, and his brother Alexander W. in the 
year 1833. Their father was also named 
William, and was a native of Perthshire, 
Scotland. Their grandfather was Mr. Will- 
iam Stewart, who came to this country with 
his family about the year 1800. He landed 
in the port of New York, and made the jour- 
ney from that city to Fulton County with wife 
and six children in the only way possible in 
those days — by covered wagons. 

William Stewart, the father of William 
and Alexander, settled in the west part of the 
town of York, then called Caledonia. He 
took up a tract of land, comprising about one 
hundred and twenty-four acres, and later added 
forty-four more, making one hundred and 
sixty-eight in all. The place was a wilder- 
ness; but he built a log house and barn, 
cleared out the land, and proceeded to sow 
and reap and gather in the fruits of his toil. 
His market for produce was a long distance 
away; but the necessary expeditions to Roch- 
ester to exchange his harvests for the necessa- 
ries of life were of other benefit, for they 
brought him into contact again with the out- 
side world, and kept him and his family cog- 
nizant of the events of the day, and by such 
contact riveted anew the links which bind 
men of one blood together. Mr. Stewart 
died at the age of fifty-six, January 5, 1845. 
He had cleared all of the land he possessed, 
and left it in good condition for his heirs. 

Mr. Stewart married Miss Catherine Mcln- 
tire; and they brought up a family of four 
boys and two girls, whose names are as fol- 
lows: William; John W. ; Daniel, who died 
at the age of eighteen; Alexander W; Isabel; 



and Catherine. Catherine, William, and 
Alexander W. are yet living 

Alexander and William Stewart have al- 
ways been farmers by occupation, and have 
passed their lives on their present place, the 
old homestead, where they were born. Their 
farm comprises at the present time two hun- 
dred and sixty acres of land under cultivation. 
This fact concerning their long residence on 
the farm is a very interesting circumstance 
and one uncommon in the general run of 
things. Change of house and land is de- 
sirable to some natures, simply from love of 
change, association with locality having often 
no influence over the mind; but, when two 
brothers are wholly content to live their nat- 
ural lives in the home of their fathers, it 
shows a quality of peace and contentment as 
rare as it is praiseworthy. No doubt this may 
be in part traced back to the Scotch ancestry, 
for that nationality add to their sterling traits 
a love of home, however "humble," and of 
the native woods and hills which bound the 
daily horizon and share equally with kindred 
and friends in their love. 

Both U'illiam and Alexander Stewart have 
been always decided Republicans in politics. 

Mr. William Stewart has held the office of 
Highway Commissioner and Assessor for two 
terms. He married Miss Sarah C. Willis, of 
the town of York; and they have two children 
— -William W. and Jeanette. 




ENRY SMITH, an enterprising and 
practical farmer in Orangeville, 
N. Y. , was born in the town of 
Sheldon, in 1S46. His grandfather, 
Michael Schmidt, as the name was then 
spelled, was born in Brumath, Alsace, in 1788. 
He was a soldier under Napoleon at the time 
of the Emperor's defeat, and was wont to 
relate graphically his reminiscences of the last 
fatal engagements, where the French soldiers 
lay frozen upon the battlefield. Michael mar- 
ried Margaret Goets; and in 1832 they came 
to New York State, bringing with them a 
family of five children. They came to Roch- 
ester by canal soon after arriving upon the 
shores of the great \\'estern world. From 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



523 



New York City the voyage was enjoyable and 
peaceful ; and the new-comers, who were in 
moderate circumstances, but full of hope and 
energy, and anxious to make a home as soon 
as possible, settled at once upon a farm of fifty 
acres, most of which was covered with timber. 
Here they spent their lives, accumulating 
property each year, until the boundaries of the 
fifty-acre farm had extended to an area of one 
hundred and ninety acres. Michael Schmidt, 
or Smith, and his wife were earnest and devout 
members of the Evangelical church. Mrs. 
Smith died in i860, aged sixty-seven. Her 
husband survived her eight years, and reached 
the age of eighty. 

Philip Smith, the father of Henry, was born 
in 1818, at Brumath, Alsace, and came to this 
country with his parents, as stated above. He 
was an ambitious farmer ; and, in order to pur- 
chase and stock a dairy farni, he assumed a 
debt of nearly twelve thousand dollars, which 
he liquidated during the past twenty-five years 
by economy, industry, and good management. 
The principal product of this farm was cheese. 
It was made from the milk of fifty cows, and 
sometimes brought an annual income of over 
two thousand dollars. The firm of Ball & 
Pratt, in LeRoy, consume large quantities of 
this cheese, the excellent quality of which 
finds ready market. Mr. Smith's long and 
useful life came to a close on December 12, 
1893. His wife's maiden name was Philip- 
pine Dick, and she also was a native of Ger- 
many. Her father was a cooper and farmer in 
Sheldon, near Strykersville ; and her mother 
was, before her marriage. Miss Catherine Lat- 
terner. Both lived to be over eighty. Their 
only son died, and of the five daughters three 
are now living. Their six children were all 
born in Germany. Mrs. Smith is now living 
with her youngest son, J. P. Smith, and, 
though seventy-five years old, is still bright 
and active. The children born of the mar- 
riage of Philip and Philippine (Dick) Smith 
were: Charles Smith, born May 30, 1844, 
a farmer in Warsaw, who has two sons ; 
Henry, whose name heads this biography; 
Catherine, who died at five months of age; 
Abraham, who died March 20, 1887, aged 
thirty-two years, leaving a widow and one son ; 



J. Philip, who owns the farm formerly owned 
by his father; Phcebe J., the oldest daughter, 
who married William Werner, and is living in 
Orangeville; Caroline, the wife of William 
Miller, a farmer and cooper; and Sarah M., 
who married Charles Sergei, a farmer of 
Warsaw. 

During the Civil War the family did not 
lack a representati\'e in the Federal army; for 
Charles Smith, the eldest son, who was at the 
time only eighteen years old, enlisted in the 
ranks of the One Hundred and Thirty-sixth 
New York Volunteer Infantry, and received 
a gunshot wound in his side which almo.st 
proved fatal. 

Henry Smith was reared on his father's 
farm, and attended the district school, which 
was a mile distant from his home. When his 
school days were finished, he took up the voca- 
tion that had brought prosperity to his grand- 
father and his father, and now has a fine farm 
in his own right, including over one hundred 
acres of the property owned by his grandfather. 
The new home, the vast barn, measuring 
sixty-four feet by thirty, the old barn, shed, 
cheese-house, and other out-buildings cover 
a large area of ground, and present quite the 
appearance of a village. 

Mr. Smith was a supporter of the Republi- 
can party until 1893, when he espoused the 
cause of the Prohibitionists, with which party 
he is now strongly identified. The citizens of 
Orangeville have attested their confidence in 
him by electing him to important offices in the 
town. He was Supervisor of Orangeville in 
1887 and 1888, and is at present Justice of the 
Peace. 

On March 30, 1868, he was married to Miss 
Newinger, who was a native of France. Her 
parents, Michael and Barbara (Fngle) New- 
inger, came to America in 1845, when she was 
only a year old. So that, in point of fact, 
Mrs. Smith is very much an American in feel- 
ing and education. The Newinger family 
consisted of ten children, all of whom are 
living save two daughters. No children were 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Both Mr. and 
Mrs. Smith are in the communion of the 
Evangelical church, of which he is a Trustee, 
and in whose meetings he is class leader. 



S24 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



His brothers and sisters — Charles, Henry, 
Catharine, Abraham, J. Philip, Phoebe J., 
Caroline, and Sarah M. — all belong to one 
church, and all attend services in the same 



church building. 



JB 



R. FREDERICK A. STRASEN- 
HURGH is now a prominent citizen 
9y and physician in the town of Lima, 
Li\'ingston County, N.Y. ; but he 
was born November 7, 1862, in the time of 
our Civil War, in Port Sarnia, Canada. 
George Strasenburgh, his father, was born in 
Scotland ; but the grandfather, Robert Stras- 
enburgh, was by birth a Prussian. 

George Strasenburgh came to America in 
1855, when twenty-three years old, and settled 
in Kingston, Canada. He was educated at 
Toronto University, and is both a physician 
and preacher. He now lives in Kendall, 
N. Y. , where he is practising his profession. 
His wife was Elizabeth Tucker, and her par- 
ents were John and Elizabeth (Coombs) 
Tucker. She had four sons — P>ederick, John, 
George, and Sidney. John Strasenburgh is a 
Rochester druggist ; he married Stella Grif- 
fin, and has two sons — Edwin and Harold 
Strasenburgh. The younger George Strasen- 
burgh is in the same city, on the staff of the 
city surveyor. Sidney Strasenburgh is a 
postal clerk on the railroad between Syracuse 
and New York City. 

Frederick Strasenburgh received his prepar- 
atory education at Henrietta, N. Y. , in the 
Monroe County Academy, and then went to 
Toronto University, where he was graduated 
in 1S82, afterward winning the degree of M.D. 
from Buffalo University in February of 1886, 
graduating with the highest honors of his 
class. He began practice at East Avon in 
1886, and remained there one year, thereafter 
coming, in 1887, to Lima, where he has since 
resided. Dr. Strasenburgh is a member of 
the Livingston Countv Medical Association is 
President of the village, and was appointed 
one of the County Coroners in 1888. He has 
also been President of the Fire Department, 
and one of the Village Trustees. In politics 
he has always been a Republican, casting his 



first vote for James G. Blaine, who was de- 
feated by Grover Cleveland in 1884; and he is 
in religion a Presbyterian. 

"Aspiration, worthy aiubition, desires for 
higher good for good ends — all these indicate 
a soul that recognizes the beckoning hand of 
the good Pather, who would call us homeward 
toward himself." Thus speaks the novelist 
and poet. Dr. J. G. Holland; and his words 
indicate the spirit of such a man as our sub- 
ject, who has the endowments for a long and 
successful career both in citizenship and his 
profession. 



W"' 



ESLEY RANGER, a prominent 
architect, contractor, and builder 
of the town of Attica, was born in 
Woodstock, Ulster County, N.Y., August 26, 
1856. His father was a native of the same 
town. His mother before her marriage was 
Miss Margaret Lowery, of Canada. Wesley 
Ranger is the eldest of si.x sons and two 
daughters. In the year 1865, when he was 
nine years old, his parents moved to the town 
of Batavia, in Genesee County. He attended 
the district school for several years, getting 
the groundwork of a good education. He was 
not able to put himself through a full scien- 
tific course in architectural training. Free 
education, such as is now found in many of 
the great centres, was not within reach; and 
therefore Wesley Ranger at the age of seven- 
teen found a place with Mr. Morgan, where 
he remained for six years, getting a good 
understanding of the business and enough ex- 
perience to justify his branching out for 
himself. 

Accordingly in 1879 he came to Attica, 
Wyoming County, where he proceeded to set- 
tle down to make a name for himself in his 
chosen profession. Mr. Ranger's success has 
fully justified the experiment. He has gone 
steadily on, keeping up with the improve- 
ments made year by year in architectural con- 
struction, and building on the most approved 
scientific plans; and, while cultivating his 
own taste, he has also done much to improve 
the taste of the community in which he lives. 
He stands at the head of his profession in At- 




A. ORLA PARKER. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



527 



tica, where he began contracting and building 
in 1883. The house he built in 1892-93 for 
himself and family stands as a sample of his 
work. It is two and a half stories in height 
and thirty by forty-seven feet in size. The 
architecture is modern and quite a departure 
from the old-fashioned and uncomfortable, al- 
though sometimes stately, dwellings of a past 
generation. Mr. Ranger has built the Free 
Stevens Memorial Library in Attica, a fine 
structure, admirably suited to the purposes for 
which it exists, and has also erected some fine 
residences, among which may be mentioned 
the one for Mr. A. A. Smith and one for Mr. 
John Krauss, these being but samples among 
many in Attica. 

Mr. Ranger was married in the town of 
Darien in 1878 to Miss Mary Danley, of the 
town of Bennington, Wyoming County. She 
was a daughter of Oscar Danley. Mr. and 
Mrs. Ranger have had four children. One, a 
son named Ray, died at the age of nine 
months. The three now living are: Glen- 
wood D., a boy in his thirteenth year; Daisy 
Margaret, a daughter of eight ; and Mary 
Wesley, aged two years. 

Mr. Ranger is a Master Mason, and in poli- 
tics is in the Republican ranks. He is not 
an office-seeker, but devotes his time to the 
business he has in hand, whose interests are 
of general as well as personal importance, 
furnishing plans and specifications to outside 
parties not connected with his own private 
establishment. Having begun in life "even 
with the world," and happily chosen a calling 
to which he was naturally adapted, he has 
gone on with a perseverance and enthusiasm 
which have given him continued prosperity; 
and, being still young, there is much of prom- 
ise in the prospect of his future. 






ORLA PARKER, well-known as a 
retired farmer and merchant, residing 
at Rock Glen, in Gainesville, Wyo- 
ming County, N.Y., was born in 
this town, November 30, 1830. His father, 
Ira Parker, was of good New England stock. 
He was born in Washington County, in the 
early part of the century, being the son of 



Asapah Parker, a native of Massachusetts, 
who had settled as a pioneer in that county, 
where he remained for several years, but re- 
moved thence to Cayuga County, and finally 
from there to Gainesville. 

Ira Parker was educated in the district 
schools, and reared to agricultural pursuits. 
He remained with his parents until attaining 
his majority, and then being ambitious and 
enterprising purchased a farm for himself in 
Gainesville, which he cleared and improved, 
passing the remainder of his life there, and 
dying at the age of seventy-one years. His 
wife, whose maiden name was Acha Nichols, 
was a daughter of Daniel Nichols and a native 
of Whitehall, N.Y. She had three children 
— Orla A.; James; and Ira Nichols, who 
died, aged five years. Mrs. Ira Parker died 
in Gainesville, at the age of seventy-nine. 

A. Orla Parker attended the district schools 
of Gainesville, and followed the paternal foot- 
steps in devoting himself early to practical 
agriculture, taking possession of the home 
farm at his father's death. He subsequently 
purchased another farm in Gainesville, which 
he conducted for some time, together with his 
original property. In 1886, desiring a change 
of occupation, and having a taste for mercan- 
tile affairs, he engaged in the grocery busi- 
ness at Rock Glen. In this he prospered so 
well that after continuing in trade seven years 
he sold out, and is now released from active 
cares. In 1863 Mr. Parker was united in 
marriage to Mira Wiseman, daughter of Ed- 
mund Wiseman, who was born in Gainesville, 
where he was a farmer for many years. Mrs. 
Mira Parker was one of seven children. Her 
father was a teacher and class leader in the 
Methodist church for many years. He died 
at the age of sixty-three years and her mother 
at thirty-seven. 

Mr. Parker is a Democrat in politics, and 
is a citizen of influence and public spirit. 
He has held the office of Justice of the Peace 
for three terms of four years each, and has 
been a Notary Public for several years. He 
is a member of the Masonic Order at Warsaw, 
and has held several offices in the lodge. 
Both he and his wife attend the Methodist 
church, as did her parents. 



5^8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Toiling patiently with hand and brain for 
many years, both as a farmer and a merchant, 
Mr. Parker has well maintained the good 
reputation of his family as useful members of 
society, and enjoys to-day with his well- 
earned rest the esteem and friendship of his 
fellow-townsmen. His portrait, which ap- 
pears on another page, adds much to the 
interest and value of this scant record of a 
quiet, unostentatious life, in which thought, 
feeling, and aspiration have been slowly 
wrought into character. 



RANK J. McNEIL, the present Sheriff 
of Livingston County, was born in 
Dansville, November 30, i860, and is 
of Irish descent on the paternal side, being a 
grandson of Bernard McNeil, who came from 
Ireland in his youth, and settled upon a farm 
in Allegany County, New York, where he 
lived until his death. Martin McNeil, son of 
Bernard and father of Frank J., was born in 
Roscommon, Ireland, and was a young child 
when his father emigrated to America. His 
youthful years were spent in Allegany 
County; but later in life he removed to Dans- 
ville, where he established a nursery, which 
has proved a financial success, and ranks as 
one of the largest nurseries in this section. 
He married Anna Gilroy, a daughter of Mi- 
chael Gilroy, of Dansville: and they reared 
three of their six children. 

Frank J. McNeil assisted his father in the 
nursery during his youth, though the father 
was conscientious in the discharge of paternal 
duty, and gave him excellent educational ad- 
vantages, sending him to a select school for 
four years after the district-school course had 
been assimilated. When young McNeil left 
school, he immediately took employment in 
a large paper-mill in Dansville, where he 
worked steadily for five years, after which 
time he started in the nursery business. The 
care of the young trees and plants absorbed 
much of his attention and time until in the 
fall of 1 891 he was called to civic duty by the 
voice of the community, which elected him 
County Sheriff, a position he has filled faith- 
fully and creditably. Although he no longer 



gives himself up to the study and practice of 
arboriculture as formerly, he still retains his 
interest and partnership in the nursery enter- 
prise. Having been Deputy Sheriff under 
Sheriff Gilbert and a succeeding sheriff be- 
fore his own election, Mr. McNeil was thor- 
oughly versed in the details of his work, and 
has therefore been especially efficient in the 
discharge of the duties of the office. 

In September, 1886, he consummated his 
dearest wish, and was joined in holy wedlock 
to Miss Maggie Rowan, a daughter of Thomas 
and Anna Rowan. Three daughters have 
crowned and blessed the marriage of Frank J. 
and Maggie McNeil — Marguerite, Frances, 
and Ruth. Mr. McNeil belongs to the Cath- 
olic Mutual Benevolent Association. He 
supports the Republican ticket, and is a 
church member. His delightful social quali- 
ties render him very generally popular, his 
genial manner endearing him to all with 
whom he comes in contact. 



SEONARD NO YES, a highly successful 
and wealthy farmer of Folsomdale, in 
, the town of Bennington, Wyoming 

County, N.Y., is a native of this 
town, having been born here on June 17, 
1823. His father. Moody Noyes, was born at 
Haverhill, Mass., in 1793, and was the son of 
Moody Noyes, a farmer, who was also a native 
of that place. The ancestors of the family 
emigrated from England, the three traditional 
brothers settling together on these Western 
shores. Moody Noyes, Sr., was a soldier in 
the Revolutionary War, as were likewise his 
two brothers. His wife's maiden name was 
Mary Pike. She was a daughter of Simeon 
Pike, who was killed at the battle of Bunker 
Hill. Grandfather Noyes was a farmer. He 
removed with his wife and family from Mas- 
sachusetts to Lebanon, N.H. They reared 
twelve children, seven sons and five daugh- 
ters, all of whom attained their majority; and 
all but one daughter married and had families. 
The last one died in April, 1876, at about 
seventy-six years of age. She was the wife of 
Hiram Rowley. 

Moody Noyes, Jr., came from Massachu- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



529 



setts, and settled about one-half mile east of 
Bennington in 181 7. He was unmarried, and 
came with a yoke of oxen and a sled, being 
twenty days on the way, and arrived in the 
month of February. He had three or four 
hundred dollars, with which he purchased 
seventy acres of timber land, whereon he 
erected a log house. In the spring he went 
to Canada, where he worked in order to pro- 
cure funds to enable himself to carry on his 
farm. Soon after his arrival at Bennington 
he married Mary Aldrich, a native of Oneida 
County, whose father, Thomas Aldrich, moved 
to Bennington about that time. Moody 
Noyes immediately proceeded to clear and 
improve his tract of land, in the course of 
time building a modest frame house and a 
good barn, which is still in existence. In 
1836 he sold that property, and purchased 
another tract of one hundred acres above Fol- 
somdale, which he cleared and improved, 
making a fine farm, upon which he lived many 
years, and died there in 1864, in his seventy- 
second year. His wife survived him seven 
years. 

They had in all ten children. Five sons 
and three daughters attained their majority, 
of whom three are now deceased, leaving 
three sons and two daughters still living. 
One of the daughters is Elizabeth, widow of 
George Scott, now residing at Buena Vista, 
in the State of Oregon, at the age of seventy- 
three. She and her husband went to Wiscon- 
sin many years ago, and later to Grand Forks, 
Dak., from which place they moved to Ore- 
gon. The others are: Leonard, the subject 
of this sketch; Hannah, widow of Anthony 
Potter, who came from New Hampshire in 
1836, and now resides in Cowlesville; John, 
an extensive farmer in St. Croix County, 
Wisconsin, where he owns fifteen hundred 
acres of land; and James F. Noyes, a specu- 
lator in Wetmore, Kan. 

Leonard Noyes received his education in 
the old log school-house, and after finishing 
his studies commenced life by working for 
monthly wages, which he continued to do for 
fifteen years. He was first married in 1853, 
at thirty-one years of age, to Miss Bailey, 
daughter of Amos Bailey. She died in 1859, 



leaving one son, George, now a farmer in Ok- 
lahoma, having a wife, three sons, and two 
daughters. In February, 1865, he married 
for his second wife Miss Harriet Parker, 
daughter of Charles Parker, of Alden, Erie 
County. She died June 27, 1883, of inflam- 
matory rheumatism, at the age of forty-five, 
leaving two children, both daughters; namely, 
Charlotte, who presides over her father's 
household, and Clara, who is residing with 
her half-brother in Oklahoma, where she is a 
teacher. 

Mr. Noyes possesses two farms, the small 
one upon which he resides and the old farm of 
one hundred acres that his father cleared and 
improved. He is a Republican in politics, 
but has never sought nor held office. He 
successfully carries on general farming, and 
deals somewhat largely in blooded cows. He 
has labored hard and unceasingly for the ben- 
efit of his children, and, having by honest in- 
dustry acquired a substantial competency, at 
present lives a life of ease and serenity, at 
leisure from carking cares. 



tOBERT L. MERRELL, a photog- 
rapher in the village of Geneseo, is 
one of the most successful members 
"^ of his profession in the county, 
possessing in an eminent degree the artistic 
ability required to place him among the fore- 
most men in his line of effort. He is a 
native of New York, Macedon, Wayne County, 
having been the place of his birth, and April 
12, 1871, the date of his entrance upon this 
stage of existence. 

The paternal grandfather of Mr. Merrell, 
whose name was Robert S. Merrell, was for 
many years a resident of Macedon, but passed 
the evening of his life in Geneseo. Jay Mer- 
rell, son of Robert S. and father of Robert 
L., having acquired a good education in the 
days of his youth, took lessons in practical 
photography in Batavia, and opened his first 
gallery in the village of Fairport, where he 
remained five years. In 1878 he established 
himself in Geneseo, and during the years he 
labored in his studio was largely patronized. 
On the 1st of January, 1894, he retired from 



53° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



active pursuits, still making his home in the 
village of Genesee. He married Henrietta 
Carpenter, the daughter of Lott Carpenter, 
a prosperous farmer of Macedon ; and they 
are the parents of three children, as follows: 
Gertrude, the wife of John M. Gibbs, a school 
teacher in Livonia; Charles Edgar; and Rob- 
ert L. Both of the parents are people of deep 
religious convictions, and are members of the 
Presbyterian church, in which the father was 
chorister for many years. 

The central subject of this brief record was 
but five years of age when his parents removed 
from Fairport to Geneseo, where he received 
his elementary education. After leaving the 
district school he pursued higher studies and 
received excellent mental training at the nor- 
mal school. Then, entering the studio of his 
father, he learned the art of the photographer, 
becoming thoroughly versed in every branch 
of the work during the three years he re- 
mained with him. He was subsequently 
away for a year; but, returning to Geneseo, 
he took charge of the photographic rooms here 
in January, 1894, as above mentioned, and is 
carrying on a flourishing business. Mr. Rob- 
ert L. Merrell is a rising young man, very 
popular with all classes of people. He is a 
member of Wadsworth Hose Company of Gen- 
eseo. Politically, he supports the principles 
of the Republican party ; and he is an es- 
teemed member of the Presbvterian church. 



T^APTAIN P:L0N P. SPINK, a well- 
I \y known farmer of Attica, was born 
^^IL) in Orangeville, Wyoming County, 

N.Y., February 4, 1842. His 
father, David A. Spink, was a native of Ben- 
nington County, Vermont, born May 28, 
1808. His grandfather. Whitman Spink, was 
a farmer of that locality, but left his land to 
serve in the War of 18 12. He was fortunate, 
however, in returning safe and sound to his 
family, and died in his own home at the age 
of forty-eight. He and his wife, Cynthia 
Weaver, were blessed with sixteen children, 
thirteen of whom reached adult age. Three 
.sons and one daughter are still living, the 
youngest about sixty-two years of age, 



namely: William Spink, an aged resident of 
Attica; Daniel, living at Varysburg; Edwin, 
at Orangeville Centre; and Mrs. Jane Wil- 
cox, at Varysburg. 

David A. Spink was married in the town of 
Orangeville about the year 1833 to Miss Mary 
Jones, daughter of Aaron Jones, of New Eng- 
land. David had learned in youth the trade 
of tanner, currier, and shoemaker, but decided 
on farming for an occupation, and eventually 
gave up the "cobbler's last." He carried on 
a farm in Orangeville till 1852, and then re- 
moved to Attica, where he finally purchased a 
farm of eighty acres, which became the home 
of the family, and which is now incorporated 
in the farm of his son. Captain Spink. David 
A. Spink was married four times, and was the 
father of seven children — Beda, now Mrs. 
Chester Lindsay, of Trempealeau, Wis. ; La- 
vina C, now Mrs. Henry Walbridge, of Te- 
kamah. Neb.; Eliza A., now deceased; Elon 
P., the subject of this sketch; Betsey, who 
died at the age of four years ; Mary, who died 
at the age of two years; and Alice, now Mrs. 
Robert Earll, of Batavia, N.Y. The father 
was a stanch Republican. 

Elon P. Spink was brought up to a farmer's 
life of industry. He attended the district 
school in his boyhood days; but, when he 
reached his twenty-first year, he heard his 
country's call for volunteers, and responded 
by enlisting, August 31, 1862, in Company 
G, One Hundred and Sixtieth New York Vol- 
unteers. He went out as a private; but was 
soon promoted to be Second Sergeant, going 
to New Orleans under General Banks. The 
regiment in which he served was mustered 
into the United States service at New York 
City, November 21, 1862. They went by boat 
to New Orleans, and reached that point about 
Christmas. Their first engagement was with 
the rebel gunboat "Cotton," January 14, 
1863. The second was at Fort Bisland, April 
12 to 14, 1863. Next the forces were at the 
siege of Port Hudson from May 27 to July 8, 
when it surrendered to the Union army. 
There were several hot engagements during 
this siege, in one of which Sergeant Spink 
received a wound in the leg. General Banks 
had succeeded General Butler in command of 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



S31 



the Department of the Gulf, a very important 
position, and involving constant aggressive 
work and many fierce engagements. On the 
14th of June, 1S63, during the siege of Port 
Hudson, Sergeant Spink was detailed to carry 
a message to Brigadier-general Weitzel, over 
what was called the "Hog's Back." The 
dead and wounded were lying all about, and 
two messengers previously sent had been 
wounded and disabled from fulfilling their 
errand; but he, the third, got through without 
harm. At this time he and his companions 
were placed in an advanced and very danger- 
ous position, from which retreat by daylight 
meant almost certain death; but soon after 
dark he escaped from the trap, bearing a 
wounded companion upon his back. After 
the assault of June 14 General Banks called 
for volunteers to storm the port; and about 
one thousand men volunteered, Spink being 
among the number. 

The engagement at Donaldsonville soon fol- 
lowed, succeeded by the Red River campaign 
in the spring of 1864. The tight of April 8 
at Mansfield and of the 9th at Pleasant Hill 
were the hottest of their experience. Their 
regiment was afterward complimented for 
bravery by the general ; and Sergeant Spink 
was promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant, 
his commission bearing that date. Their next 
encounter was at Cane River Crossing and 
later at Sabine Pass and later still at Deep 
Bottom, on the James River. On September 
19 they were at Winchester, Va., under Phil 
Sheridan, next at Fisher's Hill, and then at 
Cedar Creek, when General Sheridan began 
his famous ride "from Winchester, twenty 
miles away." Lieutenant Spink was captured 
by the enemy at Cedar Creek, and was held 
from daylight until dark; but about eight 
o'clock he made his escape, and returned to 
his regiment in time to stack arms with the 
company as usual. During the entire period 
of his service in the army Captain Spink was 
ever on hand in the discharge of his duties. 
He never missed a march or battle of his regi- 
ment, and never failed to be present to stack 
arms with his company at night. Lieutenant 
Spink was made Captain in June, 1865, at 
Washington, D.C. He served in the army 



for three years two months and fourteen 
days, was mustered out at Elmira, November 
14, 1865, and returned to his home in Attica 
and to the old farm life. 

Elon P. Spink was married five years later, 
September 28, 1870, to Clara A. Ainsworth, 
of Varysburg, a daughter of Wyman H. Ains- 
worth, of that place. She died March 9, 
1874, leaving two children, Antoinette and 
Leon D. Spink. On June 3, 1875, Captain 
Spink was again married to Miss Augusta P. 
Rudd, of Johnsonsburg, N.Y. She was the 
daughter of Jabez Rudd. Her father was from 
Massachusetts and her mother from Jefferson 
County, New York. This marriage has been 
blessed with five children. The parents 
mourn the loss of twin infants and also a 
daughter named Helen, a beautiful girl nine 
years of age, who died April 26, 1891. The 
remaining children are Harry R., a youth of 
sixteen, who attends school in Attica, and 
Mary E., a child of six years. 

Captain Spink built his present residence 
in 1893. In 1 891 he erected his commodious 
barn, forty-two by ninety-six, with basement, 
to which he has quite recently added an L ex- 
tension, while at the end is a double silo, six- 
teen feet square and twenty-nine feet deep, 
holding about two hundred tons of ensilage. 
He has added one farm of forty acres and one 
of one hundred and thirteen acres to his 
father's original eighty acres. He has a fine 
dairy of thirty cows, grade Jersey and Hol- 
steins, and ships his milk to Buffalo. 

Captain Spink is a Republican in politics. 
He is a prominent member of the Grand Army 
of the Republic, having been for several years 
connected with Rowley P. Taylor Post, No. 
219, of Attica. 



AMES B. PECK, a prosperous farmer 
and horse dealer of Lima, Livingston 
County, N.Y., was born in West 
Bloomfield, Ontario County, May 4, 
His grandfather, Thomas Peck, re- 
moved to New York State in the early days, 
and settled in Lima, where he purchased 
three hundred and twenty-one acres of land, 
building a stone house, which is still stand- 



1825. 



532 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ing, and is one of the finest residences on the 
road. In this pleasant home, surrounded by 
his family, he passed the remainder of his 
life. His son Richard, the father of the sub- 
ject of this sketch, was educated in the dis- 
trict schools of Lima, after which he adopted 
the life of a farmer, and helped to clear the 
home farm. His first wife was Elizabeth 
Case; and she became the mother of two chil- 
dren — Asabel and James B. Mrs. Elizabeth 
(Case) Peck died in the prime of life; and 
her husband married for his second wife Re- 
becca Jeffards, by whom he had one daughter, 
Elizabeth, who is the wife of Samuel Bonner, 
of Lima, a sketch of whose life is given else- 
where in this work. 

James B. Peck received his education in the 
district schools of Lima, the Genesee Wes- 
leyan Seminary, and a select school at Avon, 
which he attended for one term. In 1858 he 
bought seventy -five acres of his father's farm, 
built a dwelling-house, and has since con- 
tinued to reside here with his family, success- 
fully engaged in farming and dealing in 
horses. In 1857 he married Juliet Sprague, 
daughter of Grotius Sprague, of Lima; and 
they have one child, Fannie, who is a teacher 
of painting. Mr. Peck has been a Republi- 
can since the formation of that party, having 
cast his first Presidential vote, however, for 
Zachary Taylor in 1848. He has held several 
offices of trust, among them those of Con- 
stable and Collector; and the high regard in 
which he is held testifies to his ability and 
integrity. 




DWARD DOTY TOLLES, a hardware 
merchant of Attica, Wyoming County, 
was born in Bennington, the adjoin- 
ing town on the west, in 1841, and is the son 
of Roswell ToUes, whose birth date was Octo- 
ber 25, 1804, he being the first white child 
born in that town. Roswell was the son of 
John and Catherine (Sibley) ToUes, the former 
a native of Orwell, Vt., and the'latter of Con- 
necticut, and a niece of General Israel Putnam. 
The grandparents came to New York State 
with several children in 1803, journeying with 
an ox team over the rough roads, crossing the 



Hudson River at Albany, and following the 
IMohawk valley to Avon, thence to Batavia, 
and finally settling in the vicinity of Attica, 
which was then called Phelps's Settlement, in 
honor of its founder, who erected a grist-mill 
here in 1802. John Tolles and a Mr. Wright 
cut their way through the woods to the town of 
Bennington, about three miles. Wild animals 
were plenty ; and the Indians, who were 
friendly to the white settlers, were frequently 
seen passing from Buffalo to Mount Morris, 
crossing the creek on driftwood near the vil- 
lage. Here the grandfather erected a log 
cabin, and proceeded to clear and improve a 
farm, living in the most primitive manner. 
When Roswell, the father of Mr. Tolles, was 
born, the nearest physician was at Batavia. 

"The lost boy," well known in pioneer his- 
tory, was Hiram, .son of David Tolles, and a 
cousin of Roswell Tolles. He was sent to 
bring up the cows at night, and is supposed to 
have strayed away and to have perished. Al- 
though the Holland Land Company and others 
took extraordinary measures to find the child, 
and his father .searched all his life for him, he 
was never found. 

In the War of 181 2 John Tolles joined the 
defenders of his country, leaving his sons, aged 
respectively eight and twelve, to care for and 
assist their mother, and keep a good fire in the 
old-fashioned fireplace, built of sticks and mud, 
which nearly covered one side of the room, 
the huge logs that fed the fire being hauled by 
the old white horse, a most important member 
of the pioneer's family. During the latter 
years of his life John Tolles was a cripple, his 
infirmity having been caused by exposure while 
serving in the war. He died in 1S47, aged 
seventy-three years, his wife following about 
two years later. Their remains now lie in the 
beautiful Forest Hill Cemetery, having been 
removed there from Bennington. 

John Tolles reared a family of four children, 
two sons and two daughters — James S., a sur- 
veyor and farmer, who had a family of ten 
children, all deceased but one daughter, Mrs. 
A. L. Norton; Roswell, the father of Edward 
D. Tolles; Samantha, who married Carlo 
Vorse, and moved to Utah ; and Sarah, wife of 
Levi Phillips, of Attica. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



5i3 



In 1 83 1 Roswell Tolles married Eliza Doty, 
daughter of Natlianiel K. Doty, of Durliam, 
Greene County, N. Y. , who came to Benning- 
ton in 1 81 5. They resided upon the old farm 
in Bennington many years, rearing but two 
children, two others dying in infancy. Ellen, 
the only daughter, is the wife of William 
Cross, of Raymond, Wis., where their father 
died in 1878, their mother having died in 1854, 
aged forty-four years. 

The son, Edward Doty Tolles, lived with 
his parents upon the farm until he was eleven 
years of age, at which time his parents moved 
to Attica. Here he attended the district 
school, and later the Genesee and Wyoming 
Seminary at Alexander. At the age of fifteen 
he was thrown upon his own resources, his 
father having failed in business and gone 
West, lea\'ing him clerking in the dry-goods 
store of John S. Putnam. Shortly after the 
breaking out of the war he enlisted, in August, 
1 86 1, in Company F, Fifth New York Cavalry, 
serving until the fall of 1863, when he was 
discharged on account of physical disability, 
being at the time First Lieutenant of his 
company, which was organized by Captain 
Washington Wheeler. On his retirement from 
the service he engaged in the grocery business 
with his uncle, Leonidas Doty, of Batavia. 
This firm continued business for three years, 
when Mr. Tolles purchased the entire business, 
which he conducted for two years. Selling 
out in 1869, he accepted a position as clerk for 
J. H. Loomis, with the intention of entering 
the hardware business, and at the end of a 
year's clerk.ship he engaged with Pratt & Co., 
of Buffalo, as commercial traveller for the 
sale of hardware throughout the North-western 
States. He was upon the road two years, and 
afterward had charge of their wholesale trade 
in the city for one year. In 1873 he returned 
to Attica, and became a member of the hard- 
ware firm of Loomis & Tolles, successors to 
Loomis & Son. This partnership existed until 
the year 1884, when Mr. Tolles purchased the 
interest of his partner, and has since continued 
alone. 

On April 22, 1S65, Mr. Tolles married Miss 
Josephine E. Brainard, daughter of Ephraim 
Brainard, deceased, formerly of Attica. Her 



mother, whose maiden name was Sophia 
Wright, was a daughter of Amzi Wright, of 
Vermont, an early settler, well known in those 
days of stage travel as landlord of the best 
hotel in Wyoming County. Mrs. Sophia 
Brainard is still living, at eighty-three years of 
age, well and hearty, and in full possession of 
her mental faculties. She is of a long-lived 
race, her father having lived to be over ninety 
years of age. Mrs. Tolles is a grand-daughter 
of Seymour Brainard, who came from Oneida 
County, New York, in 18 10. He was a 
wealthy farmer, mill owner, and a distiller, and 
a very prominent man. He gave each of his 
sons and daughters a fine farm. His old home- 
stead is still possessed by the family. 

Mr. and Mrs. Tolles have three children liv- 
ing, one son having died in infancy. The el- 
dest son, Brainard Tolles, a lawyer in New 
York City, is a graduate of Hamilton College 
and of the Columbia College Law School, and 
is an attorney for the Manhattan Elevated 
Railway Company, besides having a private 
practice. He entered Hamilton College as a 
Sophomore at the age of fifteen, was graduated 
at nineteen, in 1886, as valedictorian of his 
class of forty-two members. Rachel is a grad- 
uate of Elmira College, and valedictorian of 
her class, where she was also a teacher for two 
years. Edward Donald Tolles is at home, 
preparing for college. 

Mr. Edward D. Tolles is a Republican in 
politics. He is a member of the Presbyterian 
church, in which he has been an Elder for 
twenty years, and superintendent of the Sun- 
day-school for more than that length of time. 
He has a war record of which he may well be 
proud. His regiment, after being organized at 
Staten Island, was in the camp for instruction 
at Annapolis, Md., during the first winter, 
after which it was ordered to join General 
Banks's disastrous campaign uj) the Shenan- 
doah valley, and was also under Pope at Bull 
Run and Meade at Gettysburg. He saw a great 
deal of service, and had many hair-breadth 
escapes, and is now one of three survivors of 
the thirteen who went with his company 
from Attica, and the only officer of his com- 
pany now alive. 

Mr. Tolles is a senial and intelligent 



534 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



gentleman, and a business man of ability, 
standing hitrh with all who know him. 




oncfin 



kORMAN W. ROSE, Postmaster of the 
town of Genesee, is a native of Ge- 
neva, Ontario County, N.Y. He 
was born February 13, 1827. The 
of the Rose family in America was 
about the year 1650, when three brothers emi- 
grated from Holland, one of whom settled in 
Virginia, one in the territory now called 
Rhode Island, the third in New Amsterdam, 
now New York City. The last-mentioned 
had four sons — David settled in Dover, 
N.Y.; Elijah settled in Canaan, Litchfield 
County, Conn., was a commissary in the War 
of the Revolution, and had two sons — 
Nathan and David, who settled in Bloom- 
field, N.Y. ; Elisha settled in Schoharie 
Kill; John was in the French War at the 
taking of Quebec and also through the Revo- 
lutionary War, after which he settled in Ver- 
mont, where he lived until 18 12, when he 
removed to Chenango County, New York, and 
died soon after, leaving five sons — Hinsdale, 
Shirland, John, Rilvus, and Montague. 

Alban, grandfather of the subject of this 
sketch, was born in Canaan, Litchfield 
County, Conn. He furnished military equip- 
ments to Napoleon during his campaign. He 
moved to Geneva, Ontario County, N.Y., in 
1822. He had two sons — Sherman and Nor- 
man. Norman was killed when about four- 
teen years of age. Alban Rose died June 
10, i860, at Geneva, N.Y., at half past-twelve 
A.M., aged ninety-two years and five months. 
Leonard Rose settled in Perry, Wyoming 
County, N.Y. He died at Castile, March 7, 
1857, aged eighty-five. It is noteworthy 
that in this family there were seven brothers, 
who all lived to be over ninety years old. 

Sherman Rose, son of Alban, was brought 
up in Canaan, and resided there until he was 
nearly thirty years old, carrying on the car- 
riage business. He afterward moved to Ge- 
neva, and continued the same occupation with 
prosperity until his death, when he was 
seventy-three years old. His wife, the 
mother of Norman W. Rose, was before her 



marriage Miss Mary Lewis. She was born 
on April 16, 1798. Her father. Miles Lewis, 
who was of English descent, carried on mer- 
cantile business at Canaan, Conn., her native 
place. A portrait of him in the old Conti- 
nental costume, with powdered hair, has been 
kept in the family over one hundred years. 
It is on ivory set in gold, and was painted in 
England. Through his mother Mr. Norman 
W. Rose is descended from General Heman 
Swift, of Cornwall, Conn., whose daughter 
Rhoda married Miles, son of Jeremiah and 
Esther Lewis, of Goshen, in that State. The 
line of Swift genealogy runs in the following 
order: William Swift, born 1600; William 
2d, 1635; Jabez, 1665; Jabez 2d, March 16, 
1700; General Heman, October 14, 1734. 

Heman Swift was born in Sandwich, Mass., 
in 1734. He moved to Kent, Conn., and 
from thence to Cornwall in the same State, 
where in the summer of 1787 he built a resi- 
dence, which is still standing, and which is 
known as the Swift Mansion. Soon after 
coming to Connecticut he was chosen a repre- 
sentative to the legislature. He rose to the 
rank of Brigadier-general during the war of 
the American Revolution, and at its close was 
elected a member of the council, from which 
board he resigned his seat in 1802. He was 
for many years a Judge of the Court of Com- 
mon Pleas for the county of Litchfield, and 
was distinguished for native strength of mind, 
gentle and unassuming manners, independence 
of character, and conscientious fulfilment of 
duty. Purity of motive and justness of act 
combined in him to form a character rever- 
enced by all good and feared by all bad men. 

From the historical 
nental army his military 

lowed. He was made Ensign of Durkee's 
Wyoming Valley Company, August 26, 1776, 
during the Indian War, retired July r, 1778, 
Colonel of a Connecticut regiment from July 
to December, 1776, Colonel Seventh Con- 
necticut January i, 1777, transferred to 
Second Connecticut January i, 1781, and 
returned as Colonel of the consolidated Con- 
necticut regiment June, 1783. He was com- 
missioned Brigadier-general September 30, 
1783, and served until December, 1783. In 



of the Conti- 
career may be fol- 



register 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



535 



military life he won the respect of the officers 
and the love of the soldiers. In judicial ca- 
reer no man ever held a more even balance 
with steadier hand. In private life he was 
humble, sincere, charitable, and pious, a man 
whose supreme object was to discover and to 
perform duty. The children of General 
Heman and Mary (Skiff) Swift were: Rufus, 
born 1760; Philo, 1762; Elisha, 1764; Jabez, 
1766; Heman, 1768; Denis, 1770; Mary, 
1772; Rhoda (Mrs. Lewis), September 27, 
1774; Ira, 1777; Erastus, 1780. General 
Swift was one of a family of eight children, 
the others being Jabez, Sirch, Job, Seth, 
Elisha, Hannah, and Patience. He died in 
Cornwall, Conn., in 1814. 

To Sherman and Mary (Lewis) Rose six 
children were born — Miles; Norman W. ; 
William; Edward; Cornelia; and Heman, 
who died in youth. Norman W. Rose, whose 
career is here outlined, spent his early life in 
Geneva, N.Y., where he attended the gram- 
mar school and afterward a preparatory school 
of higher grade. When he had finished his 
studies, he engaged as clerk with Edward R. 
Dean, of the town of York, three years, when 
he went to Geneseo to work for Turner & 
Bishop. After a year he went into the 
employ of Henry A. Wilmering. of Moscow, 
Livingston County, who carried on a large 
general store. Here he had chief charge of 
the business, in which he continued for two 
years. Mr. Wilmering selling out at that 
time, Mr. Rose closed up the business affairs 
of the concern, and started in the general 
clothing business for himself. This was in 
1 85 1, and his was the first clothing store in 
that section. Mr. Norman W. Rose was mar- 
ried in 1852 to Miss Sarah E. Bissell, daughter 
of Benjamin Bissell, of Connecticut. Their 
only child, Charles, died at the age of eleven 
years; and Mrs. Rose died after about thirty- 
nine years of wedded life. She was a mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church. Mr. Rose 
has been a very earnest and prominent mem- 
ber of the Odd Fellows society in Geneseo, 
No. 252, and also the encampment of Lima 
and the Grand Lodge of the State of New 
York. He is also a member of the Presbyte- 
rian church. 



It is interesting to observe how much may 
be accomplished by energy and persevering 
attention to business. The world owes its 
larger enterprises of commerce and manufact- 
ure not so much to great outlay, reaching to 
large points of exchange, as to strong, steady 
impulses of local trade, which keep up the ex- 
change of currency and a demand for the 
staple things of life; and, wherever may be 
chronicled the history of a man who in a long 
career of this kind has kept aloof from the 
snares of hasty profits at the expense of hon- 
esty and rectitude, it should be remembered 
in his honor, as may justly be done in the 
case of Mr. Rose, the Postmaster of Geneseo. 



SRA ADAMS, a watchmaker and jeweler 
in North Java, Wyoming County, N.Y., 
was born in the town of Alden, Erie 
County, N.Y., October 10, 1838. His 
paternal grandfather, Gurdon Adams, who was 
a farmer and mechanic, built one of the first 
canal boats ever put on the Erie Canal. This 
boat was run by him and his sons, Jefferson 
and Harry, while his daughter, Maria, was 
cook and housekeeper on board. Gurdon 
Adams married a Miss Safford, to whom a 
large family of children were born, only one 
of whom is now living, Mrs. Caroline Whit- 
ney, of Oswego County, New York. This 
lady's husband was a brother of Judge Whit- 
ney, of Oswego County. The grandparents 
died in Clay, Onondaga County, leaving a 
comfortable property to be divided among 
their heirs. 

Their son, Thomas Jefferson Adams, the 
father of the subject of this sketch, was born 
in Fabius, N.Y., in the year 1805. In 1830 
he married Miss Sally Hackett, of the Black 
River country, town of Fairfield, N.Y., near 
the St. Lawrence River. Two years after 
their marriage they came to Alden, Erie 
County, by way of the Erie Canal, settling on 
a farm about three miles south of the old 
Buffalo Road. The land purchased was cov- 
ered with forest growth; and, while the log 
cabin which was to shelter them was being 
built, they stayed with an uncle who lived 
near. The five children of this couple were 



\r^ 



536 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



all horn in the primitive Erie County home, 
with the exception of Asa, who was born in 
Onondaga County. Harry, who died in in- 
fancy, Ira, Henry, and John were all reared 
in the little woodland cabin, where life was 
simple and the modes of housekeeping of the 
most primitive fashion. All the cooking was 
done before the open fire on the hearth at the 
foot of the great, chimney, where the crane 
swung and the teakettle sang merrily as the 
steam issued in spiral wreaths from its splut- 
tering black throat. The bread was baked in 
vessels set on the glowing coals. The bed- 
chambers were in the attic loft, to which 
nightly the children ascended by means of a 
kukler; but parents and children were happy 
in their humble lot, and perhaps the angels of 
contentment and peace kept nightly vigil 
here, like those of old who watched the strag- 
glings of Jacob. In 1S51 the father died, at 
forty-five years of age. 

The children had as good an education as 
the district schools afforded, and Asa and 
John became teachers. Ira farmed at home 
until his twenty-ninth year. In 1859 he was 
married to Miss Lucinda Blackman. One 
daughter, Clara, now Mrs. McDowell, of 
Buffalo, and the mother of two children, was 
the result of this union. Mr. Adams was 
married a second time in 1869 to Miss Eliza 
Case. They have one son, Henry J. Adams, 
who is a resident of North Java. He was 
united in marriage to Miss Gertrude Crom- 
well, who has borne him one son. Dean Jef- 
ferson Adams. In 1867 Mr. Ira Adams 
moved to Muncy Valley, Pennsylvania, where 
he worked as a mechar.ic for thirteen years, 
first establishing a carriage factory and after- 
ward entering into the manufacture of all 
sorts of tool handles and hand rakes. In 
these enterprises he was quite successful 
pecuniarily, but his health became so im- 
paired that he was obliged to abandon work 
there. In 1881 he turned his attention and 
energy toward acquiring an accurate knowl- 
edge of the jeweller's trade, which he mastered 
at Picture Rocks, Pa. In the mean time he 
had purchased a farm in Barton County, Mis- 
souri, near the new and at that time thriving 
village of Liberal. In 1883, having disposed 



of his property at Picture Rocks, he started 
with his wife and son to go to this place, where 
he intended to prosecute his trade. Tarry- 
ing by the way to make a short and last visit 
with his mother, who was then in her eighty- 
second year and living in Marilla, Erie 
County, N.Y., with her son Henry, Mr. 
Adams was induced by her earnest solicita- 
tion to forego his Missouri expedition and 
make his home near her the remainder of her 
days. Desirous of pleasing his mother, he 
accordingly settled in the village of North 
Java, and opened a shop, whose sign bears the 
legend "Watchmaker and Jeweller." He 
owns a small farm just beyond the village, 
which IS under the management of his son. 
Mr. Adams is a member of the Ancient 
Order of United Workmen and also of the 
Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and is 
Noble Grand of Lodge No. 618 in his village 
at the present time. He was a Republican 
until 1876, having cast his first Presidential 
vote for Lincoln in i860. He voted for 
Horace Greeley in 1872, next for Peter 
Cooper, and four years later for James B. 
Weaver. Since that time he has voted with 
the Prohibitionists, and it is in evidence of 
his popularity that in spite of his politics he 
has several times been elected to the ofifice of 
Justice of the Peace, which ofifice he now 
holds. Mr. Adams belongs to the class of 
philosophical thinkers called agnostics. 




RS. MARIA BEARDSLEE, a resi- 
dent of Silver Springs, town of 
Gainesville, Wyoming County, 
N.Y., widow of the late Andrew 
J. Beardslee, was born in the town of Lee, 
Oneida County. She is the daughter of 
Hiram Smith, a native of New Haven County, 
Connecticut, whose father, Caleb Smith, also 
of the same place and of German and Scotch 
ancestry, was a carpenter by trade, and be- 
came a pioneer in Oneida County, where he 
settled upon a farm in the town of Lee. The 
law in those early days permitted slavery; 
and he owned several slaves, who did all of the 
farm work. He resided at Lee for the remain- 
der of his life, and died at an advanced age. 




A. O. BUNNELL. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



537 



Hiram Smith, Mrs. Beardslee's father, was 
reared to agricultural pursuits upon his 
father's farm, and at his majority purchased a 
farm in Onondaga County, which he carried 
on for some years; but later he removed to 
Hume, then in Genesee County, where he 
continued farming. He afterward removed 
to Gainesville, and resided there until his 
death, which occurred at the age of eighty- 
nine years. His wife, Mrs. Beardslee's 
mother, whose maiden name like her own was 
Maria Smith, was a daughter of John Smith, 
a farmer, and was one of nine children. 
John Smith passed his declining years at the 
home of his son in Onondaga County, surviv- 
ing his wife, who died there at the age of 
eighty-two years. Mr. and Mrs. Hiram 
Smith were members of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church, having joined that denomina- 
tion in 1845. They left four children — 
Caleb, Delia, Sarah Ette, and Maria (Mrs. 
Beardslee). 

The subject of this sketch resided at home 
with her parents until her marriage to Andrew 
J. Beardslee, which occurred in 1859. Her 
husband was born in Caneadea, Allegany 
County, son of Augustus Beardslee, a farmer, 
who removed later to Hume in the same 
county, where he and his wife still reside 
(1895), the former at the age of eighty-eight 
and the latter at eighty-five years. Andrew 
J. was educated at the district schools of 
Hume and the Rushford Academy. He was 
reared to agricultural pursuits, and on reach- 
ing his majority purchased a farm in Gaines- 
ville and later another in Warsaw, both of 
which he carried on for several years. He 
sold his farm property in 1885, and became a 
resident of Gainesville, where he engaged in 
real estate business, laying out village lots to 
a large extent. He purchased one hundred 
acres of land upon the site of the present vil- 
lage of Silver Springs, which he divided and 
sold as building lots, also erecting several 
houses. His enterprise in building up the 
village made him a very prominent man and a 
valuable citizen. 

Mr. Beardslee was a devoted member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church, and actively en- 
gaged in all matters connected with that soci- 



ety, being a Trustee and its Treasurer, as 
well as holding other offices at different times. 
He died at his residence in Gainesville, Jan- 
uary 2, 1893, from a complication of diseases, 
superinduced by heart trouble. His sudden 
demise caused a general shock to the entire 
community, and many who had been benefited 
by his acts of generosity deeply mourned the 
loss of their benefactor. Mr. Beardslee was a 
Republican in politics, and although taking 
an active interest in political affairs always 
firmly refused to accept office. 

Of Mrs. Beardslee's two children Cora died 
at the age of seven years, and Ella R. was 
married on April 15, 1893, to George Piper, 
who was born in Washington, D.C., August 
17, 1866. His father, John Piper, is a farmer 
residing in Castile. Mr. and Mrs. George 
Piper attend the Methodist Episcopal church, 
and are socially very popular, Mr. Piper being 
a member of the Select Knights. He is a 
young man of much business ability, who is 
sure to succeed in life. 




O. BUNNELL, of Dansville, N.Y., 
was born in Lima, Livingston County, 
N.Y., March 10, 1836, the third of 
five children of Dennis I^unnell, 
four of whom are living — Miss D. B. Bunnell 
and Mrs. Mary Bunnell Willard, of Brooklyn, 
N.Y., and A. O. Bunnell and Major Mark J. 
Bunnell, of Dansville. Dennis Bunnell was 
the youngest of seven sons of Jehiel Bunnell, 
of Cheshire, Conn., a Revolutionary soldier, 
and one of an old and leading family. Jehiel 
Bunnell's wife was a Hotchkiss, a family also 
prominent in the early history of Connecticut. 
The mother of A. O. Bunnell was Mary 
Baker, the daughter of James Baker, a sturdy 
pioneer woodsman and hunter. James Baker's 
wife was Mary Parker, the elder sister of 
three celebrated pioneer Methodist circuit 
preachers of Western New York, the Rev. 
Messrs. Robert, Samuel, and John Parker. 
All these ancestors are dead. Dennis Bun- 
nell died in 1885, Mary Baker liunnell in 
1881. A. O. Bunnell and Anna M. Carpenter 
were married in Lyons, N.Y., April 9, 1863. 
Of their children, one daughter and two sons, 



538 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



only the daughter survives, Anna May Bun- 
nell, of Dansville. 

A. O. Bunnell came to Dansville at the age 
of fourteen years with his father's family; 
and with the exception of one year in Rock- 
ford, 111., where he set the first type for the 
Rockford Register, he has lived in Dansville 
since. From the age of seventeen to the 
present time he has been engaged in printing, 
as an apprentice and journeyman, and as edi- 
tor and publisher of the Dansville Advertiser, 
founded by him in i860. Preferring the 
printing-office to any political office, he has 
never sought favors through the ballot or 
appointment. But his professional brothers 
have held him for the past twenty-seven years 
as Secretary and Treasurer of the New York 
State Press Association, much of the success 
of which is due to his ability, energy, and 
genial qualities. In grateful recognition of 
this fact he was presented a five-hundred-dollar 
sterling silver tea-set on the twenty-fifth anni- 
versary of his services to the Association. 
Mr. Bunnell is also Secretary and Treasurer of 
the Republican Editorial Association of the 
State of New York, President of the Living- 
ston County Press Association, and President 
of the National Editorial Association of the 
United States. Mr. Bimnell is a well-known 
Odd Fellow, and his long membership and 
valuable services were rewarded in 1884 by 
election to the proud position of Grand Master 
of the New York State organization. He is a 
graceful newspaper writer and successful par- 
liamentarian. Few in Western New York 
have so warm and so widely extended an ac- 
quaintance in the State and nation. Self- 
education, rare gifts of heart and mind, a life 
of probity, industry, and public spirit, have 
earned for him what he richly deserves — the 
esteem, confidence, and love accorded by Liv- 
ingston County to one of her best citizens. 

The Dansville Advertiser was established at 
Dansville in i860 by A. O. Bunnell. The 
first number was issued Thursday, August 2, 
a folio fourteen by twenty-two inches, four 
columns to a page. The name indicates the 
intention of the founder to publish a paper 
mainly for advertising purposes. In a modest 
way, but with conscientious care, Mr. Bunnell 



prepared the first number, miscellany for the 
first and fourth pages, editorial and general 
news for the second page, and local matter 
for the third page, just enough, he thought, 
to nicely introduce and make welcome to 
readers and profitable to advertisers its adver- 
tising columns. For a starter, and in his 
mind all the paper was worth, he offered the 
Advertiser for the remainder of the year (five 
months) for twenty-five cents. Much to his 
surprise and somewhat to his confusion, he 
was widely complimented upon his bright 
little newspaper; and, when the 1st of Jan- 
uary came, he had more subscribers than the 
oldest paper of the village and more advertis- 
ing than he knew what to do with, although 
after the first two months the Advertiser had 
been enlarged to twenty-one by thirty-one 
inches, each page six columns. From time 
to time since then the Advertiser has been 
enlarged, as the exigencies of patronage de- 
manded, until to-day it is a folio twenty- 
seven and one-half by forty-three and one-half 
inches, nine columns to the page. Still its 
columns are crowded with the best advertising 
in the country, and another enlargement seems 
imperative. The Advertiser has ever main- 
tained the lead which it won at a single 
bound in the first year, and has steadily grown 
in circulation and influence. Mr. Bunnell 
has been connected with the Advertiser from 
the first, and scarcely a number has been is- 
sued excepting under his personal supervision. 
From 1866 to i868 he had as a partner, under 
the firm name of Bunnell & Jones, the late 
Joseph Jones, an educator and a forceful 
writer, a man of rare sweet character, whose 
death in the prime of life and usefulness was 
a loss to the world. Since 1884 Mr. \V. S. 
Obcrdorf, a sketch of whose life appears in 
this work, has been associated with Mr. Bun- 
nell, the firm name being Bunnell & Oberdorf. 
The impetus given to the business of the 
office by this notable accession has been felt 
during all these later years. 

Established as an independent business 
newspaper, the Republican and patriotic im- 
pulses of its founder impelled him to a vigor- 
ous support of the party of the great war 
President, the lamented Lincoln; and ever 




W. S. OBERDORF. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



539 



since then the Advertiser has been the active, 
faithful advocate of Republican principles, 
the supporter of the nominees of the Republi- 
can party. It may be worthy of note that the 
same conscientiousness observed in the prepa- 
ration of the first number, especially of its 
literary and local features, has characterized 
the Advertiser throughout its entire history. 
Every column of its contents, including ad- 
vertising, has been the subject of minute 
painstaking. The Advertiser has literally 
become a synonym for wholesomeness, enter- 
prise, and talent, and for handsome typog- 
raphy, and has fairly won the appellation 
some years ago given it by a leading journal- 
ist, "the best country weekly in the State." 
Special and primary attention to local affairs, 
historical and current, has so enriched its col- 
umns that the editor of the last History of 
Livingston County volunteered the testimony 
that the file of the Dansville .-J^/^rrZ/.f*-;' was 
the richest mine of local history that his re- 
searches in every county of the State had re- 
vealed to him. Its wise and energetic efforts 
in matters of current local enterprise may be 
noted especially in the movements that gave 
to Dansville a system of water-works for fire 
purposes, a railroad, a library, and a union- 
school system and building second to none in 
the State. The fealty of the Advertiser to 
the interests of the citizens of Dansville is 
emphasized by its championship of the rights 
of the defrauded creditors of the Dansville 
banks with such fearless persistency that it 
was made the defendant in a libel suit for ten 
thousand dollars damages, in which the Ad- 
vertiser won a signal victory, the chief con- 
spirators were punished, and the people 
secured all that was left of two sad wrecks. 

Since the discontinuance of the Laws of 
Life, a monthly magazine published in the in- 
terests of the world-renowned Jackson Sanato- 
rium at Dansville, the Dansville Advertiser 
has added a Sanatorium department to its col- 
umns, and has been made the sole authorized 
periodical representative of this great health 
institution. It has thus added to its constit- 
uency a large class of enterprising and criti- 
cal readers. In addition to publishing a 
newspaper which has been an educating and 



uplifting force to its readers and a great bene- 
fit to advertisers, in which it has ever kept its 
original interest, Messrs. Bunnell & Oberdorf 
are conducting a job printing-office, whose 
unusual facilities have attracted work of a 
State and national character, including books 
and pamphlets the artistic printing of which 
has been rarely attempted outside the large 
cities. 




IXFIELD SCOTT OBERDORF, a 
journalist and member of the firm of 
Bunnell & Oberdorf, proprietors and 
editors of the Dansville A.dvertiser, was born 
in this village on January 12, 1861. He is a 
son of Mr. and Mrs. Peter John Oberdorf, 
further mention of whom will be found in a 
sketch of his brother, Bernard H. Oberdorf. 
His early life was spent alternately between 
the farm of his grandfather and the village of 
Dansville. At fourteen he entered the office 
of the Dansville Advertiser to learn the 
printer's trade, where he remained three and 
one-half years. In the latter jDart of his ap- 
prenticeship he prepared for examinations to 
enter the Geneseo State Normal School, the 
money he had saved contributing toward his 
school expenses. At Geneseo his class exami- 
nations never fell below ninety, a percentage 
of seventy-five indicating good work. He was 
active in the Delphic Literary Society, and 
was chosen to appear in the annual public 
entertainment every June he was in attend- 
ance, being selected twice as President, the 
second time to deliver the valedictory on 
the literary programme. A well-established 
precedent permitted a member to occupy that 
office only once, and the exceptions to this 
practice were rare. Although during the four 
years from 1878 to 1882 he was absent twenty 
weeks or more for the purpose of teaching, be- 
sides being engaged, during vacations, teach- 
ing or working to pay expenses, he completed 
the four years' classical course with his class 
in the spring of 1882, and, within a year after 
being graduated, repaid the money that he had 
been obliged to borrow. 

Before his senior year at school had closed, 
he being then twenty-one years of age, he was 



S40 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



offered the editorship of the Livingston Re- 
piiblican, a paper published at the county seat, 
and having at that time the largest circulation 
in the county. This was accepted, and his 
editorial work began soon after the commence- 
ment exercises of June. In a little less than 
two years a copartnership interest in the Dans- 
ville Advertiser w-A?, tendered to him by A. O. 
Bunnell, in whose employ he had learned his 
trade. Accordingly, on March i, 1884, Dans- 
ville again became his home. Becoming iden- 
tified with various local organizations, he pro- 
gressed from secretary of Union Hose Com- 
pany, one of the best associations of the kind 
in the State, to foreman, and to Chief Engi- 
neer of the whole fire department, from scene 
su]iporter in the Odd Fellows to Past Grand, 
and through various positions of other socie- 
ties. He is a member of Phcenix Lodge, 
F. & A. M., and a Presbyterian. In June, 
1 891, he appeared first at a State encampment 
of the Sons of Veterans. The same summer 
he went to Minneapolis as one of five delegates 
representing that order in this State at the na- 
tional encampment; and next June at the State 
encampment in Amsterdam he was elected 
without opposition to the highest place in the 
gift of that body. Commander of all the camps 
in the State. This year the order had a most 
successful career, the membership in the State 
reaching a point never before and never since 
attained. The gold cross of the order was 
conferred upon him for meritorious service by 
the next national encampment. 

As a business man Mr. Oberdorf aims to be 
exact, thorough, and progressive. He is never 
content with things as they are, but insists 
upon a steady advance along the whole line. 
He possesses excellent executive ability, and 
is conscientious in the discharge of the duties 
of any position which he has gained or ac- 
cepted, whether the work be gratuitous or 
remunerative. 

Mr. Oberdorf is a journalist of the progres- 
sive school, productive of ideas, which he 
turns to the very best account — a live editor 
of a live newspaper. The reports of the 
Lester B. F"aulkner trials — the first held at 
Rochester, where about two weeks were con- 
sumed in continuous day and night sessions of 



the court, and the second at Buffalo, where a 
still longer period was required — were from 
his pen. The editor of the Rochester Demo- 
crat and Chrotiielc, a daily spectator at the 
Rochester trial, declared this account to be 
the best reportorial work ever coming to his 
notice; and after the Buffalo trial he published 
an editorial paragraph which contained the 
following: "The Dansville Advertiser, in its 
last two issues, has a notable report of the 
Faulkner trial in Buffalo, as full, as accurate, 
and as graphic as that which it published upon 
the Rochester trial. The report is by \V. S. 
Oberdorf, junior editor and proprietor of the 
Advertiser, who might easily trust his reputa- 
tion as a most accomplished journalist to the 
reports he has made of the trials in which Liv- 
ingston County felt the deepest interest. " 

Mr. Oberdorf has fine oratorical talent, and 
has made a wide reputation as both a political 
and after-dinner speaker. A Republican in 
politics, and always active in promoting the 
interests of that party, he first appeared as a 
campaign speaker in 18S8, when he went on 
the stump for Benjamin Harrison. In 1893 
he was Memorial Day orator at Utica, having 
that year received no less than fifteen invita- 
tions to deliver memorial addresses. Thor- 
oughly in earnest in whatever he says, 
brimming with ideas and talking for a pur- 
pose, he impresses himself upon others by the 
irresistible logic of fact and argument rather 
than by the use of honeyed words or florid 
rhetorical phrases. Not that he confines him- 
self to barren statement : rather may it be said 
that, with something of the poetic in his tem- 
perament, and he being a faithful student of 
history and biography as well as an active 
force in current events, his addresses mingle 
the perfume of the flowers culled from the 
fields of literature with the feeling and inten- 
sity inspired by the deeds of the great men 
and women of the past, and a love for country 
growing out of his familiarity with the glow- 
ing pages of that country's history. He never 
tries in speech simply to amuse or entertain, 
but to interest, edify, and inspire. 

A man of positive convictions and irrepres- 
sible industry, and a stanch friend of all who 
struggle to rise, he has not onlv fairl\- won his 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



S4I 



way to his present position of wide influence 
and great responsibility, but his interest and 
his example have proved a help and an inspira- 
tion M many young men with whom he has 
come in contact. 



XTrANKLIN R. BARROSS, M.D., a 
f^ resident physician and surgeon of At- 
tica, who has practised in this town for 
over thirty-nine years, was born in 1832 at 
Linden, Genesee County, where his father, 
Volney C. Barross, was born in 181 1. The 
Doctor's grandfather, Calvin Barross, prob- 
ably a native of Connecticut, settled in Beth- 
any, in Genesee County, as a pioneer about 
the year 1800. He married Olive Patterson, 
whose mother died, leaving several small chil- 
dren ; and she, being the eldest, assumed 
charge of her father's household, and reared 
her younger brothers and sisters. 

Calvin Barross established himself as a 
wool carder and cloth dresser at Bethany, and 
became a prominent business man and a Jus- 
tice of the Peace. When ready to erect his 
mill, in order to insure a successful raising, 
according to the custom at that day, he walked 
nine miles to Batavia for the purpose of pur- 
chasing a keg of whiskey, which he brought 
home upon his back; and he was obliged to 
provide another in the same manner before 
the mill was completed. On building his 
dam, which was about a quarter of a mile 
below a saw-mill on Little Tonawanda Creek, 
he floated the logs and timbers himself to the 
scene of operation. In spite of these difficul- 
ties he succeeded in establishing his mill, 
and successfully conducted it for many years. 
His ofiice in which he transacted public busi- 
ness as Justice of the Peace was a popular 
resort, and the peach brandy which he dis- 
pensed upon special occasions was held in 
high repute. His method of making this 
seductive stimulant was to fill a barrel with 
choice peaches, adding as much of the best 
whiskey as it would hold, and allowing the 
mixture time to macerate. 

Grandfather Barross lived to be over ninety 
years of age. Although he was very gray, a 
short time before his death a growth of jet 



black hair appeared above his forehead. His 
wife died at the age of eighty years. 

They were the parents of seven children, 
two of whom, a son and daughter, died young, 
the others being the following: John Barross, 
who died at Linden, aged forty-five, leaving 
one son, James C, now residing upon his 
father's farm; Volney C, the father of 
PVanklin R. ; William H., for many years a 
merchant in Attica, now an octogenarian, liv- 
ing at Batavia; Sextus T., a farmer, who 
now resides at the old homestead in the house 
erected by his father nearly one hundred years 
ago; and Evander H., a merchant in Hills- 
dale, Mich. The dwelling of Sextus T. 
stands on the site where, at the time the old 
farm was cleared, was built the log house, 
which was destroyed by fire on a cold winter's 
night, turning the occupants out into the 
snow with nothing but their night-clothes to 
protect them. 

Volney C. Barross married in 1831 Elvira 
Richards, daughter of Paul Richards, of 
Orangeville, a prominent dairy farmer of that 
town and the first Judge of Wyoming County. 
She was the child of Judge Richards's first 
wife, whose maiden name was Stone. After 
the death of her mother, the Judge married a 
second time, the lady being a widow named 
Salisbury, who had six children, which group, 
added to the seven left by the first Mrs. Rich- 
ards, made a family of thirteen children, all 
of whom attended the district school at the 
same time. It was customary, when the roll 
was called at night by the teacher, for the el- 
dest member of the family to tell bowman}' 
were present; and Elvira would call out 
"thirteen," and then hide her head, being 
ashamed of such a large number. Mrs. El- 
vira (Richards) Barross died when forty years 
of age, in 1852; and her husband married for 
his second wife a Miss Locke, who is now 
deceased. Mr. Volney C. Barross died in 
1879, at the age of sixty-eight years. He 
purchased in 1853 and operated for twenty- 
five years the Attica Mills, formerly the prop- 
erty of the Folsoms, grandparents of Mrs. 
Grover Cleveland. The four children of Vol- 
ney C. and lilvira Barross are the following: 
Franklin R. ; Olive Jennett, wife of D. W. 



S42 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Richardson, a Buffalo business man, whose 
home is in Attica; Luellyn, who married 
I. E. Jefferson, of Attica; and Elvira, wife 
of William Hall, also of Attica. 

Franklin R. Barross commenced his educa- 
tion at the Wyoming Seminary; and after 
completing his course there he entered the 
medical school at Ann Arbor, Mich., where 
he was graduated in 1853. He was Dr. John 
G. Meachem's first pupil, and practised with 
Dr. Potter, of Cowlesville, later one year in 
Linden, and also one year in \'arysburg. On 
June 7, 1S57, Dr. Barross married Harriet 
Sargent, daughter of John Sargent, of Cowles- 
ville, a pioneer of the western part of Wyo- 
ming County, who resided nearly sixty years 
upon the farm which his own labors had 
cleared and improved. Dr. and Mrs. Barross 
have one son, John V., and two daughters — 
Grace H. and Carrie B. John V. Barros, a 
broker and banker in Washington, D.C., who 
is a successful business man and unmarried, 
was connected with the Loomis Bank for ten 
years, and held the position of private secre- 
tary for R. S. Stevens a like period. Grace 
H. Barross has been a teacher in Attica. 
Carrie B. is the wife of Eugene P. Norton, 
proprietor of the Pineapple Cheese factory 
in Attica. They have an infant daughter, a 
prize baby of eight months, a very precocious 
child. 

Dr. Barross is a physician of long and 
varied experience, being one of the oldest and 
most successful practitioners in the county. 
He firmly adheres to the old school or regular 
practice, and also has a wide reputation as a 
surgeon. He is a member of the Masonic 
fraternity, as were both his father and grand- 
father before him, they being of the Royal 
Arch degree and Masters of the lodge. They 
passed through the Morgan excitement, firmly 
adhering to the principles of the order. The 
Doctor is a Democrat by inheritance, his 
father having been of that political party; 
and he remains true to the example which was 
set before him. He is a quiet, genial gentle- 
man, generally absorbed in the cares and 
duties of his large practice, and whenever he 
has an hour to spare prefers to spend it over 
a game of draughts, at which he is an expert. 




RS. ALICE B. KNIBLOE, who 

resides at her pleasant home near 
Hunt's, town of I^ortage, Living- 
ston County, is descended from 
an early pioneer of Cayuga County, her great- 
grandfather on the paternal side being Jared 
Beardsley, who, with three brothers, John, 
Sherman, and Roswell, and one sister, Ann, 
came to Cayuga County, New York, from 
Connecticut about 1806, at which time the 
western part of New York State was thickly 
wooded and the settlements few and far be- 
tween. They made the journey in their pri- 
vate conveyance, and their experiences were 
similar to those which usually fell to the lot 
of pioneers in a new country. Jared Beards- 
ley settled in the town of Scipio, Cayuga 
County, and built a tavern, which he kept for 
thirty-five years. His wife's name before 
marriage was Betsy Bennett. Their son, 
Bennett, grandfather of Mrs. Knibloe, was 
born in Scipio, receiving his mother's family 
name. By his marriage with Mary Tabor he 
had three sons, Jared, George, and Augustus. 
Augustus was born in Michigan, to which 
State his parents had moved about 1829, and 
where they resided about six years, when they 
moved back to Cayuga County, New York, 
and afterward to Livingston County, where 
they died. Of their children Jared died in 
1888, leaving a wife and four children, only 
three of whom are now living. George died 
in 1890, leaving a wife and two children. 
Augustus now resides in Portageville. 



'AMES W. DUNBAR, a prosperous 
hardware merchant of Attica, N.Y., 
was born in the town of Darien, Gen- 
esee County, February 7, 1839. His 
father, James Dunbar, who died in Attica 
February 20, 1895, was born at Hartford, 
Conn., in the year 181 1., Early in the twen- 
ties, when he was twelve years old, his par- 
ents, Ruel and Elinor (Rogers) Dunbar with 
their six children migrated from Connecticut 
to this State, travelling with an ox team, 
James and his elder brother and their father 
walking, while their mother and the four 
younger children rode in the wagon with the 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



543 



household goods. The family were in limited 
circumstances. They settled in Genesee 
County, one mile north-west of Attica. Here 
the grandmother died at the age of seventy, 
while Grandfather Dunbar lived to be eighty- 
eight. 

James Dunbar, son of Ruel and Elinor, 
and father of James W., of the present sketch, 
on beginning life as a farmer, purchased about 
fifty acres of land, ten acres of which was 
cleared. This he improved, and by his indus- 
try and thrift added to it little by little, until 
he possessed a farm of two hundred acres. 
In 1837 he married Olive Bowen, a daughter 
of Peleg Bowen, of Darien, who came from 
Montgomery County in 1808. Her father was 
a farmer and also a veteran of the War of 
i8[2. He died in 1862, at the age of sixty- 
five, after having reared a family of eight 
children, of whom all but one attained their 
majority, and six of whom are now living, the 
youngest being now (1895) fifty-four and the 
oldest seventy-five years of age. James W. 
Dunbar, the subject of this sketch, is the el- 
dest of five children of James and Olive Dun- 
bar, four of whom are still living. Amy L., 
one sister, wife of Charles Meacham, of Ca- 
yuga County, died January 8, 1895. His 
only brother, Henry R., is a farmer residing 
in Clay County, Minnesota. The living sis- 
ters are Flora E., who married Thomas Chap- 
pell, residing in the vicinity of Attica, and 
Alice, now residing with her mother on Buf- 
falo Street, Attica. Mr. Dunbar's father 
conducted until the time of his death his farm 
of seventy acres at Darien, although he re- 
sided in town. 

After receiving his education at the dis- 
trict schools, James W. Dunbar assisted his 
father in farm work; and at the age of twenty- 
one he purchased a farm of eighty acres on 
credit at twenty dollars per acre. This he 
conducted for some years, adding to his pos- 
sessions later and erecting suitable farm 
buildings. In the spring of 1877 on account 
of failing health he sold his farming property; 
and a year later he moved to Attica, where 
in 1880 he established himself in business 
for the sale of agricultural implements. This 
enterprise was attended with so much success 



that in 1884 he added a general stock of hard- 
ware; he also keeps carriages, wagons, paints, 
and oils, and has created for himself a very 
prosperous trade, his store being located at 
No. 33 Market Street, in a building which 
he erected for that purpose. 

On January 12, 1865, he married Cecilia 
Sumner, daughter of John Sumner, of Darien, 
her parents having been early settlers in that 
section. Mr. Dunbar is a Democrat in poli- 
tics, and is serving his fifth year as Justice 
of the Peace. He has been Secretary of the 
Baptist church for fifteen years, both himself 
and wife being members. Mr. and Mrs. 
Dunbar have no children. They occupy a 
very comfortable residence on Buffalo Street. 



TT^ORDELIA A. GREENE, M.D., has 
I s-' for nearly thirty years been sole pro- 
^^lU prietor and medical director of the 

Sanitarium in the village of Cas- 
tile, Wyoming County, N.Y. Her parents, 
Jabez and Phi la (Cook) Greene, were married 
September 30, 1830. Her mother, a native 
of Uxbridge, Mass., was a direct descendant 
of the South wick family of whom Lawrence 
and Cassandra Soutbwick were early members. 
Her father, Jabez Greene, was a son of David 
Greene, of Rhode Island, where the Greenes 
have been among the leading citizens from 
early times. He removed from Lyons, 
Wayne County, N.Y., to Wyoming County in 
the year 1847 and to Castile in 1849. 

At the age of sixteen Cordelia commenced 
nursing the sick, and two years later took up 
the general study of medicine under the su- 
pervision of her father. After a three years' 
course of study, two years of which she was in 
the Woman's Medical College of Philadel- 
phia, she was graduated at the Western 
Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, taking 
the degree of M.D. from that institution in the 
year 1856. Dr. Greene is a member of the 
regular .State and County Medical Association. 

The Castile Sanitarium, for the treatment 
of women and children, was established in 
1865. From the first the general plan of 
medical practice adopted has included the 
broadest scientific principles. While the 



544 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



treatment has been largely hygienic and hy- 
dropathic, the remedial measures chosen have 
embraced every well-authorized surgical and 
medical aid to the restoration of health. 
During the entire history of the institution 
no advertisement has ever been issued. The 
patients have invariably been sent by friends 
who have at some time received benefit in the 
Sanitarium. The building gives accommoda- 
tion to about thirt)'-three invalids, and the 
adjoining boarding-houses receive from twenty- 
five to thirty more. Among those who have 
been treated here may be counted persons 
from nearly every State in the Union and from 
many foreign countries. The Sanitarium is 
always full, a vacancy rarely occurring which 
has not been pre-engaged. Every effort is 
made to combine quiet and elevated home life 
with the most skilful medical care. 



WILLIAM E. HUMPHR 
Livingston County, 
Geneseo, was born in 



[REY, Clerk of 
residing at 
Springvvater, 
N.Y., October 15, 1851. His father, Cor- 
nell, and his grandfather, Ozias, were natives 
of Simsbury, Conn. The Humphreys trace 
their origin back to Michael Humphrey, who 
came from Lyme Regis, England, about the 
year 1643, and settled in Windsor, Conn., a 
few miles east of the town now called Sims- 
bury. His wife was a daughter of Matthew 
Grant, of \\'indsor. Conn. In 1884 his lineal 
descendants numbered seven thousand six 
hundred and twenty-six. The ancestors of 
Michael came from Normandy with William 
the Conqueror, and settled in England in the 
eleventh century. 

Ozias Humphrey, the grandfather of Will- 
iam E., was born in Simsbury in 1787, and 
married Parnel Douglas, of New Hartford, 
Conn. Shortly after their marriage they re- 
moved to Otsego County, New York, whence 
in 1817 they went to .Madison County. Five 
years later, however, they returned to Sims- 
bury, Conn., where Cornell M. was born in 
1829. The same year they came back to New 
York State, and in 1836 migrated from Ca- 
yuga County to what was then the "West," 
and settled in Springwater, Livingston 



County, where in 1856 Ozias Humphrey died, 
on the farm now owned by C. M. Humphrey. 
They had nine children, as follows: Harvey 
D., now living at Webster's, Livingston 
County; Amanda H., deceased, of Birdsall, 
Allegany County; Correll M. ; Charles, of 
Almond, N.Y. ; Leora (Mrs. John Wilhelm); 
Lucy (Mrs. Willis Clark); Esther (Mrs. John 
Crittle), the last three now deceased; Eu- 
phrasia (Mrs. John H. Baird), of Holly, 
Mich. ; and Mary, who died early. 

Correll M. Humphrey has always followed 
farming, and since 1887 has occupied the farm 
where he now resides, in the west part of the 
town of Springwater. He married in 1850 
Emily J. Erwin, eldest daughter of Jared 
Erwin, a native of New Hampshire, who there 
followed the trade of a wool carder and cloth 
dresser. When Emily was seven years old, 
Mr. Erwin removed with his family from 
Piermont, N.H., to Rochester, N.Y., and the 
following year to Tuscarora, in the town of 
Mount Morris, in this county, where he lived 
several years, and about the year 1843 bought 
the farm in Springwater, where he passed the 
remainder of his days. They reared a family 
of five children, as follows: William E., the 
subject of this sketch; Edwin D., now of El- 
reno, Oklahoma Territory' : Amelia E., who 
married Charles Swick, and resides in Abi- 
lene, Kan.; Herbert L., of Kansas City; 
and H. Wilson. The parents of the subject 
of this sketch are members of the Methodist 
church, in which the father has been promi- 
nent many years. 

William E. Humphrey's boyhood was spent 
in Springwater, where he was educated in the 
district schools, later attending the Genesee 
Wesleyan Seminary at Lima. He remained 
with his father on the farm until of age, after 
which he worked for a time at carpentry and 
lumbering, and for about two years was asso- 
ciated with George F. Scott in carrying on a 
handle factory at the old tannery south of 
Springwater village. In the spring of 1877 
he with his brother Edwin D. went to Naples, 
Ontario County, N.Y., and leased the Ontario 
Mills, which business they carried on until 
April, 1878. The year following he was in 
the employ of F. W. Beers & Co., and in 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



545 



September, 1879, bought the interest of 
George A. Miller in the hardware business of 
Allen, Whitlock & Miller at Springwater. 
He was associated with Allen & Whitlock for 
a time and later with Allen B. Becker, who 
bought their interest; and since 1884 he has 
been in company with Mr. Charles H. Mar- 
vin, under the firm name of Humphrey & 
Marvin, the continued growth and prosperity 
of the business at Springwater evincing the 
close application and business qualifications 
of the firm. 

On December 31, 1879, ^^- Humjjhrey 
married Miss Carrie Robinson, daughter of 
Edmund and Mary Monk Robinson, of Spring- 
water. Mrs. Humphrey's ancestors were 
early settlers in Springwater, coming from 
Cayuga County, New York, in 1825. Her 
father died in November, 1892, at the age of 
sixty-three, having raised a family of five 
children, namely: Frank, who died at an 
early age; Carrie; Stella, the wife of Ezra 
Gleason, of Urbana, Steuben County; James 
M., of Springwater, Assistant Commissioner 
of Agriculture of New York State; and Min- 
nie, who married Charles Wiley, of Spring- 
water, and who now resides in the State of 
Washington. Mrs. Humphrey was graduated 
from the musical department of Genesee Wes- 
leyan Seminary, and taught music for several 
years previous to her marriage. The married 
life of Mr. and Mrs. Humphrey has been an 
exceptionally happy one; and they have four 
children — Nellie, Edward Robinson, Will- 
iam E., and Solon C. The family attend the 
Methodist church, of which Mrs. Humphrey 
is an active member. She is also an earnest 
worker in the Woman's Christian Temperance 
Union. Socially, they are highly esteemed. 
In the years 1883, 1884, and 1885 Mr. Hum- 
phrey was Supervisor of the town of Spring- 
water, and in 1892 was elected County Clerk, 
and changed his residence from that town to 
Geneseo in January, 1893. He is Republi- 
can in politics, and has been active in for- 
warding the interests of his party in his 
locality. 

He has proved a most efficient officer in 
public service, and has received the hearty 
commendation of the entire community. He 



is a member of Geneseo Lodge, No. 214, 
A. F. & A. M., and is deeply interested in 
Masonic affairs. 




p^YRON E. BARTLETT, attorney- 
at-law, of the firm of M. E. & 
E. M. Bart left, in Warsaw, 
N.Y., was born in the town of 
Orangeville, Wyoming County, on May 7, 
1831. He is a .son of William K. and El- 
mina E. Bartlett, and comes from a family 
whose name has for generations been an hon- 
ored one, and whose ancestors won prominent 
places in Colonial days. His great-great- 
grandfather's brother, Josiah Bartlett, was an 
early Governor of New Hampshire. He went 
to that part of the province from the vicinity 
of Boston, and purchased large tracts of land 
there. The Bartlett progenitors were from 
Sussex, England. 

Stephen Bartlett, the grandfather of Myron, 
was a merchant in Boston, who owned a farm 
near the town of Bath in New Hampshire. 
His wife was Abigail Bailey, of New Hamp- 
shire. Their children were: Stephen, who 
died while a student at Dartmouth College; 
Cosam E. ; and William K. Cosam E. Bart- 
lett went South, established a publishing house 
in Tallahassee, Fla., and was a prominent 
lawyer there, enjoying a close friendship with 
Daniel Webster and other men of note. He 
died before the era of the Civil War, leaving a 
son, who bore the mantle of his father's abil- 
ity. This son, whose name was Washington 
Bartlett, became Governor of the State of 
California, where he died in 1892. The third 
son of Stephen, William K., was for many 
years a teacher, and was also a farmer in the 
towns of Warsaw, Orangeville, and Attica. 
He married Miss Elmina McLaughlin, of 
Chelsea, Vt., a daughter of Harrie E. and 
Rebecca (Stone) McLaughlin. Mr. Mc- 
Laughlin was a prominent man in Orange 
County, Vermont, filling many of the highest 
local ofifices and wielding a potent influence 
for good in the community. He was elected 
a member of the Constitutional Convention 
twice, and was closely identified with the 
county's interests. 



546 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Immediately after their marriage, which 
took place in Chelsea, Vt., in 1824, Mr. and 
Mrs. William K. Bartlett came to the village 
of Attica, making the journey from Albany to 
Wyoming by stage. They shortly afterward 
settled upon a tract of forest land in Orange- 
villc. Their wedded life was not altogether 
unclouded, for three of their younger children 
died. Six sons and two daughters, however, 
grew up beneath the roof-tree, six of whom 
are still living, namely: Columbia C, the 
widow of Hiram Melvin, in Attica; Emmet 
L., a resident of New Mexico; Myron E., of 
whom this is a sketch; Yorke, a rancher in 
Uruguay, South America; Cosam T., who 
lives in Warsaw; and Stephen B., a lawyer in 
Casselton, N. Dak. The mother of this fam- 
ily died at fifty-four years of age in 1857. 
The father, who left a fine property, including 
his farms in Wyoming County and lands in 
the West, lived to be seventy-one years old. 
He died in 1869. 

Myron E. Bartlett was brought up with a 
practical knowledge of farming acquired on 
the farm of his father, which was about two 
miles and a half out of Warsaw. After leav- 
ing the district school he attended the acad- 
emy in Alexander, Genesee County, and was 
afterward a student at a school in Summit 
County, Ohio. On November 23, 1853, he 
was married to Miss Cordelia McFarland, of 
Twinsburg, Summit County, Ohio. Mrs. 
Bartlett was a daughter of Harvey McFarland, 
a native of Washington County, but brought 
up in Trumbull County, Ohio. His father, 
Archibald McFarland, was of Scotch-Irish 
descent. Mr. Bartlett was admitted to the 
bar in Buffalo in 1861. He began to practise 
alone, but afterward entered into partnership 
with Mr. J. Sam Johnson, under the firm name 
of Bartlett & Johnson, which continued for 
two years. His next partner was B. N. Pierce, 
and they had an office in Warsaw and in St. 
Louis. The third change of the firm was 
when he formed a partnership with L. W. 
.Smith, which continued until the death of 
Mr. Smith in 1869. In 1877 he formed a co- 
partnership with his brother, C. T. Bartlett, 
under the firm name of Bartlett & Bartlett. 

The present firm of M. E. & E. M. Bart- 



lett, which has existed since the year 1881, 
consists of Myron E. and Eugene M. Bartlett, 
father and son. 

Mr. and Mrs. Myron E. Bartlett have four 
children. Eugene M., the only son, was 
married in January, 1895, to Miss Grace 
Sheldon, of Hornellsville, N.Y. Estelle, the 
eldest daughter, the wife of S. Anton How- 
ard, of Rutland, Vt., who is engaged in the 
marble trade, is a graduate of Vassar, and her 
husband was graduated at Amherst ; they have 
two sons. Edith E., the second daughter, is 
the wife of Dr. Walter Manning Bartlett, of 
St. Louis, who is distantly related, being a 
nephew of Governor Bartlett, of California; 
she was also a student at Vassar. Lillian 
Blanche, the youngest daughter, has recently 
returned from V^assar College to her home. 

Mr. Bartlett's charming place with its 
maple-shaded lawn. No. 20 East Court Street, 
is one of the most attractive residences in 
Warsaw. The walk in front of the lawn is 
laid within a double row of large maples. At 
some distance from the walk and near the 
house is a grove of beautiful trees, under 
whose spreading branches on summer days 
may be seen hammocks and chairs, where Mr. 
Bartlett and his family are pleasantly gath- 
ered to enjoy the cool shade. The owner of 
this pleasant home is deeply interested in his 
profession, to which he devotes most of his 
time. 




J:TER van DORN, a favorably 
known farmer of Mount Morris, Liv- 
ingston County, N.Y., was born 
November 7, 1820, in Minwealth 
County, New Jersey. His father, Jacob Van 
Dorn, was a native of the same county, and 
was a descendant of an old family of that 
name, who came from Holland. He learned 
the trade of a miller, and followed this occu- 
pation, together with farming, in New Jersey, 
where he resided until 1824. He then mi- 
grated with his wife and two children to New 
York State, the journey being made in a cov- 
ered wagon drawn by a pair of horses. They 
first settled in Ludlowville, Cayuga County, 
and four years later removed to Livingston 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



547 



County, settling at Brooks's Grove, where Mr. 
Van Dorn purchased a tract of land, and 
erected a log house, exchanging his lumber 
for flour in Allegany County. For many 
years after the family moved to New York, 
there were no railroads or canals; and the 
l;eople subsisted chiefly on the products of 
their land and the deer, pheasants, and other 
game, which was then abundant. The mother 
of this family carded, spun, and wove the 
homespun in which she dressed her children. 
Mr. Van Dorn directed his energy to clearing 
his land and tilling the soil, and resided on 
his farm until his death in his seventieth 
year. His second wife, the mother of the 
subject of this sketch, was Hannah Perrine, a 
native of New York City, and daughter of 
William and Elizabeth Perrine. She died at 
the age of seventy-five years, leaving eleven 
of her twelve children. 

Peter Van Dorn was but four years old 
when his parents moved to New York, and 
remembers well the trials and hardships of 
pioneer life. He lived under the parental 
roof until he was twenty-four years of age, 
when he bought a tract of land about a mile 
from his present home, residing there three 
years. He then moved to the River Road, 
where he lived eleven years, after which he 
resided for seven years on the Bathelomew 
homestead, and thea jiiirchased his present 
place. 

January 13, 1845, he married Miss Mary K. 
Bathelomew, who was born in Hunterdon 
County, New Jersey, June 14, 1825. Her 
grandfather, Benjamin Bathelomew, was a na- 
tive of the same county, and resided there 
throughout his life. His wife was Anna 
Dittze, of Germany. Their son, Daniel, the 
father of Mrs. Van Dorn, was reared to farm 
life, and resided in New Jersey until 1836, 
when with his wife and three children he 
removed to Livingston County, where he pur- 
chased a tract of land. Here he lived until 
his death, April 15, 1856, at the age of 
sixty-five years. His wife, Elizabeth Swal- 
low, was born in New Jersey, April 2, 181 1, 
and lived to be sixty-five years of age. 

Mr. and Mrs. Van Dorn have two children 
now living. The elder son, Edgar L., who 



was born August 18, 1849, married Lydia 
Berry, and has five children — Delano, Gertie, 
Howard, Stamford, and a baby. The younger, 
Henry L., who was born October 16, 1867, 
assists his father on the farm. Two other 
children, Sarah and John, passed away in 
childhood. The family attend the Methodist 
church, where they are much esteemed. 
Their home is one of the pleasantest in the 
vicinity, and is delightfully situated on the 
edge of the Genesee valley. Mr. Van Dorn 
is regarded as a man of upright principles, 
and is everywhere highly respected. 




RUMAN LEWIS STONE, keeper of 
the County House at Varysburg, N.Y., 
was born in Orangeville, Wyoming 
County, N.Y., July i, 1853. Harvey Stone, 
his father, was born in Orangeville, February 
14, 18 1 8, and married P"ebruary 20, 1840, 
Eliza Lewis, a daughter of the Hon. Truman 
and Lucy (Porter) Lewis. Oliver Lewis, 
grandfather of Eliza, was a descendant of Will- 
iam Lewis, who came from England in the 
ship "Lion," landing in Boston, September 
16, 1632. 

By this marriage three children were born, 
namely: Almira A., born August 20, 1841, 
who became the wife of George L. Parker, a 
merchant in Buffalo, N.Y., and now resides 
at No. 2319 Main Street in that city, they 
having no children; Morris L., now a resi- 
dent of Wamego, Kan., of which city he is 
Mayor, born August 8, 1843, who married 
February 21, 1867, P'rances E. Stanley, a 
daughter of Edwin Stanley, of Middlebury, 
they having but one child, Mary Eliza; and 
Truman Lewis, of whom this biography is 
written. Mr. Harvey Stone died January 7, 
1887, leaving a good property to be divided 
among his children. He was always a resi- 
dent of the town of Orangeville, and was a 
farmer and dairyman. He held the ofifice of 
Justice of the Peace for twelve years, was 
Supervisor in 1855, and was elected Session 
Justice of the county for two terms. In polit- 
ical faith he was a Whig and a Republican. 
He was a regular attendant and a liberal 
supporter of the Presbyterian church. Mrs. 



548 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Eliza Lewis Stone was born February 20, 
1820, and died October 15, 1894. 

Reuben Stone, the father of Harvey and 
grandfather of Truman L., was born at Han- 
cock, Berkshire County, Mass., January 26, 
1790, and died at Orangeville, April 11, 
1869. He was married twice ^ — first, in Sep- 
tember, 1815, to Almira Merrill, daughter of 
Noah Merrill, who was a Revolutionary soldier 
and an early settler in Orangeville. Almira 
was born in Colebrook, Conn., June 13, 1792, 
and died in Orangeville, December 22, 1831. 
By this marriage Reuben Stone had seven 
children, namely: Lois, born July i8, 1816; 
Harvey, born February 14, 181 8; Sarah, born 
October 28, 1820; Lucinda, born in 1822, 
and died young; Reuben, born in 1824, died 
young; Lucinda, born September 28, 1826; 
and Caroline, born December 22, 1828. He 
married second, April, 1833, Mrs. Julia Dun- 
ham, a widow, by whom he had two children 
— Edwin, born April 17, 1833; and Lucy C, 
born January 22, 1838. Reuben Stone left 
Hancock, Mass., in 1790 or 1791 with his 
father's family, who settled in Greenville, 
N.Y. In 1809 or 1810 he with his brother 
Joel removed to Livonia; and in September, 
1813, he came to Orangeville, and settled on 
the farm of nearly four hundred acres, on 
which he continued to live until his death. 
He was a leader and worker in the organiza- 
tion of the town, placing public roads and 
schools, and in the organization of the First 
Presbyterian Church, of which he became a 
member. He was one of the earliest dairy- 
men on the Holland Purchase, selling home- 
manufactured cheese in Canada and Eastern 
markets as early as 1823. 

Russell Stone, Reuben's father and the 
great-grandfather of Truman L., was born at 
the old homestead, in the house now standing 
at the corner of Broad and River Streets, 
Guilford, Conn., January 26, 1759. ^^ ^^^^ a 
descendant of the Rev. Samuel Stone, of Eng- 
land, and John Stone, who came with his 
brother William from Surrey County, Eng- 
land, in the Rev. Henry Whitfield's Guilford 
colony, landing in New Haven in July, 1639, 
their ships (for there were two) being the first 
vessels to enter that harbor. Russell married 



in 1 78 1 Lois Stone, who was a descendant of 
William Stone, the brother of John the emi- 
grant. Russell was a private in the second 
battalion of General Gates's army, Thaddeus 
Cook Colonel, Edwin Russell Major. He 
was wounded in the hand at the battle of 
Stillwater, September 19, 1777; but his 
wound was not so serious as to cause him to 
leave the service, as he was present at the 
surrender of Burgoyne, October 17, 1777. 
He died at Greenville, N.Y, December 11, 
1803. His epitaph is, "The law of kindness 
was written upon his heart." 

Truman L. was educated in common and 
select schools and the Warsaw Academy. He 
married December 2, 1874, Miss Helen A. 
Lewis, born July 18, 1852, at Hinsdale, N.Y. 
She is the daughter of Oliver and Louisa 
(Preston) Lewis, her father being a descend- 
ant of William Lewis, the emigrant. Mrs. 
Stone's parents are still living on a farm at 
Great Valley, Cattaraugus County, N.Y. 
She has one brother, Charles Lewis, who 
resides in Buffalo, N.Y., a railroad man, 
and one sister, Mrs. David Frost, who re- 
sides near her parents at Great Valley. 
Mr. and Mrs. Stone have one daughter, Theo 
E. Lewis Stone, who is a member of the class 
of 1896 at Houghton Seminary, Clinton, 
Oneida County, N.Y., where she is a diligent 
student. 

Mr. Stone has held the ofifice of Justice of 
the Peace for fourteen years, and has been 
keeper of the Wyoming County Poor House 
since 1885. This institution is located one- 
half mile from the village of Varysburg, 
N.Y., on a farm containing two hundred and 
fifty-one acres of land, a great part of which 
is best adapted to grazing. About one hun- 
dred acres of it, however, are very productive; 
and here are raised all the necessary vegeta- 
bles, potatoes, fruit, wheat, buttei', beef, and 
pork consumed on the place. There are sixty 
inmates in the institution, that are comfort- 
ably and kindly cared for; and through the 
liberal appropriations made by various boards 
of supervisors of the county, the Board of 
Superintendents of the Poor and the Keeper 
have caused the buildings to be placed in such 
condition that there is an atmosphere of home 




Z. FONTAINE. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



55' 



life given to the place, vvhicli is very elevat- 
ing to the unfortunate men and women domi- 
ciled within its walls. The main iniilding is 
two stories high, measures forty by forty-four 
feet, with kitchen, dining-room, and laundry 
extending back for a distance of two hundred 
feet, while the men's building, connected by 
a covered corridor on the east, measures thirty 
by sixty feet, and the women's building, con- 
nected by a covered corridor on the west, 
measures thirty by sixty. In the rear is that 
part of the establishment which is devoted to 
the feeble-minded. 




KI'HIR FONTAINE is a leading 
miller as well as farmer in the town 
of Ossian, Livingston County, N.Y., 
his establishment being situated 
some four miles in a westerly direction from 
Dansville. He was not born in this county, 
however, nor even in this country, being a 
naturalized citizen, whose place of nativity 
was la Belle France, where he was born on 
March 29, 1845, in the fifteenth year of the 
reign of Louis Fhilippe, and two years before 
that monarch's wise abdication. His father, 
Peter J. F^ontaine, was an agriculturist at 
home. Coming to America in 1856, he pur- 
chased a farm in Wyoming County, New 
York, where he lived and worked till his 
death, at the age of seventy-one. Peter J. 
Fontaine's wife was Florimonde Rousseax; 
and she died in Wyoming County, aged sixty- 
four. Out of the seven children vouchsafed 
them by kind Providence they reared four to 
adult age, though only two are now living. 
One is Lucy Fontaine, who became the wife 
of Emile Lefort, in their native land, but is 
now living in Wyoming County; and the 
other is the subject of this sketch. 

Zephir Fontaine was eleven years old in 
1856, when the Fontaines came to their 
adopted land. He grew up a farmer, and re- 
mained under the paternal roof till the old 
man's death, and then came to his present 
home, where he owns sixty-five productive 
acres, and has a saw-mill, shingle-mill, and 
grist-mill, and is able to do a large amount of 
lucrative business. In 1866, on the attain- 



ment of his majority, Zephir took unto him- 
self a helpmeet in the jjerson of Barbara 
Kasel, a daughter of Dominique Kasel, a 
farmer in Wyoming County, where she was 
born. Three children she bore her husband. 
The eldest, John Kasel Fontaine, assists his 
father in the mill. He married Nellie Hamil- 
ton, of Ossian; and they have two children. 
Appolonia Fontaine chose the life of a religi- 
eitsc, belongs to the sisterhood of St. IJrid- 
get's Convent of Mercy at Buffalo, but is now 
using her fine education as a teacher in the 
Catholic school in Jamestown. Mary Fon- 
taine is with her father. Their mother passed 
away from this world in 1886. As may be 
inferred from this biography, the Fontaines 
arc Catholics; and Mrs. Barbara Fontaine, 
being of Teutonic blood, was a member of the 
German branch of that church. After her 
death Mr. I*"ontaine again sought a wife of 
German nationality, marrying for his second 
spouse Mary Derrenbacher, a daughter of 
Conrad Derrenbacher, for many years an 
Ossian farmer. By this union one child has 
been reared, ICugenie Fontaine. 

In politics an active Democrat, Mr. Fontaine 
has been three years Assessor and two years 
.Supervisor. In religion he is loyal to the 
traditions of his Catholic forefathers; and his 
wife, like her predecessor, belongs to the Ger- 
man Catholic communion. No country has 
afforded such advantages to its adopted citi- 
zens as the United States, as Mr. Fontaine's 
career illustrates. When he landed on our 
shores, he was wholly ignorant of the English 
language; but he was at a receptive age, and 
soon mastered its difficulties. His fine resi- 
dence attests alike his industry and success. 
He has won the favor and respect of those 
with whom business brings him into contact, 
and their esteem has been practically shown 
by choosing him to serve his fellow-townsmen 
in places of trust. In every effort he has 
been ably assisted by his wife, who is a model 
of genuine womanhood. In their domicile 
even a stranger is sure to find a warm wel- 
come; and, if there is one thing which more 
than another speaks the liberal mind and 
kindly hand, it is hospitality. In one of the 
ancient sages we read of " Hospitality sitting 



552 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



with Gladness"; and Milton thus describes 
the true wife : — 

•• With despatchful looks, in haste 
She turns, on hospitable thoughts intent." 

For a picture to illustrate such poetic pas- 
sages, one might paint Mrs. Fontaine as she 
efficiently moves about her household, or sits 
chatting with a friendly visitor. 

A speaking portrait of this loyal American 
citizen of French birth adorns another page 
of the "Review." 




LBERT D. PARKER, a farmer resi- 
dent of Arcade, Wyoming County, 
N.Y., was born in this town, Jan- 
uary 2, 1849. He is the son of Richard 
Parker, a native of the same locality, and 
grandson of Silas Parker, who came here from 
Vermont in 1809. Silas Parker brought his 
family and possessions with an ox team, fol- 
lowing the occasional blazed tree as his guide 
to the place of destination. He settled on a 
large tract of wild land covered with forest in 
what is now the corporation of Arcade. He 
and his wife had a family of ten sons and four 
daughters, all of whom grew to maturity, and 
outlived their mother, who died at seventy- 
seven years of age. Silas Parker was proprie- 
tor of the first store in this section of the State. 
He was a man prominent in the community 
which he had seen gradually developed about 
him, was Justice of the Peace many years, 
was also the first Supervisor of the town of 
Arcade, elected in the year 1818, and was 
Master of the Masons" Lodge. After his ca- 
reer of usefulness he died at the age of eighty 
years. 

Richard Parker, one of the sons, and father 
of Elbert D., attended the district school in 
his boyhood, and began his independent 
course in life by the purchase of a farm about 
two miles from the homestead, where he re- 
sided a few years, getting his land somewhat 
cleared and in a partially productive condi- 
tion. Later he moved to the north-western 
part of the town, on a farm where he has since 
remained. He married Miss Lucv Ann Fair- 



field, a daughter of Stanton Fairfield, a well- 
known farmer residing in Arcade. She was a 
native of Vermont, and came with her parents, 
who were early settlers in the town, and 
finished their days in their adopted home. 
Richard and Lucy A. Parker were the parents 
of three children — Gains B., residing in 
Minnesota; Rose; and Elbert D. Mrs. 
Parker lived till the age of forty-nine, spend- 
ing her later days with her children, and was 
a faithful member of the Free Methodist 
church. 

Elbert D. Parker spent his youthful days 
on his father's farm, attending the district 
school and later the academy in Arcade. At 
eighteen he went to Minnesota, was engaged 
at farming during the summer, and worked in 
the lumber woods in Wisconsin during the 
winter for the next three years. He then 
came back to Arcade, where he has since 
lived, engaged in farming and dealing in 
horses and cattle. On July 31, 1878, he mar- 
ried Miss Ida F. Burzette, whose father 
George Burzette, was a farmer residing in 
South Wales, Erie County, in which place 
she was born. Her father lived to the age of 
ninety-one. She was the youngest of eight 
children, and was the mother of four children, 
Clifford B. being the only one living at her 
death, which occurred November 26, 1890, at 
the age of thirty-six years. 

Mr. Elbert D. Parker has always been a 
Republican in his political views until within 
three years. In the fall of 1S92, while hold- 
ing the position of Justice of Sessions in 
Wyoming County as a Republican, he was 
nominated by the People's party and the Dem- 
ocratic party for the Assembly against Mr. 
Milo H. Olin, of the town of Perry, who was 
one of the wealthiest and also one of the most 
respected Republicans of Wyoming County. 
Mr. Parker's canvass created the most bitter 
and intense excitement at that time among 
many of his old political friends. He was de- 
feated, as was expected, but carried his own 
town, and ran ahead of the national ticket in 
his county. Two years after he was again 
nominated by the Democrats for the same 
office against the Hon. R. J. Tilton, also of 
Arcade, but was overthrown by the tidal wave 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



553 



of that year. Mr. Parker has held the office 
of Justice of the Peace for ten years and other 
minor town ofifices at various times. As a 
substantial farmer in Arcade, Mr. Parker 
stands prominent. He became a member of 
Hermon Lodge, No. 41, A. F. & A. M., at the 
age of twenty-one years. He favors bimetal- 
lism, and acts independently in all political 
matters. 



father, 
N.Y., 



OHN H. BURTIS, one of the foremost 
citizens of Mount Morris, Livingston 
County, was born in the city of Roch- 
ester, N.Y., October 21, 1843. His 
Allen Burtis, was born in Saratoga, 
but when a young boy removed with 
his parents to Rochester, which was then only 
a village, and learning the trade of blacksmith 
followed it till his death in 1854. He mar- 
ried Margaret O'Connell, who was born in 
Dutchess County, New York, and died in 
1889. 

John H. Burtis received his early education 
at Rochester, and when a lad of thirteen 
went to Bloomington, 111., to join his uncle, 
and while there attended for a time the normal 
school at Normal, 111. He soon afterward 
began to learn the printer's trade in the office 
of the National Flag, but after remaining there 
three years entered the employ of H. Warner, 
a horse dealer, with whom he went South, 
where he was at the breaking out of the war. 
At the first call for troops he enlisted in 
Company C, Twentieth Illinois Volunteer 
Infantry, for three months, but was finally 
mustered in for three years, remaining with 
the regiment till February 15, 1862, when he 
was wounded at Fort Donelson. He still car- 
ries the ball in his head. Being for a long 
time incapacitated from duty, he was hon- 
orably discharged May 10 of the same year, 
when he went to Lockport, N.Y., where he 
learned the trade of moulder, and followed it 
till 1889. In that year he engaged in the 
livery business, which he carries on at the 
present time. 

In 1872 he 
Union Springs, 
they have two 



married Julia H. Bush, of 
Cayuga County, N.Y. ; and 
children — William H. and 



George E. Mr. Burtis is very popular among 
his many friends in the different lodges to 
which he belongs. He is Past Commander of 
J. E. Lee Post, No. 281, Grand Army of the 
Republic, is Past Master of Mount Morris 
Lodge, No. 122, A. F. & A. M., and Mount 
Morris Chapter, No. 137, is Past Grand of 
Bellewood Lodge, No. 315, Independent Order 
of Odd Fellows, is ex-Secretary of the Select 
Knights, and a member of Maccabee Tent, 
No. 143. He was the first President of 
Mount Morris Lodge, E. A. U., No. 151. 
In all these ofifices he performs his duty to the 
best of his ability, thus gaining much credit 
and honor. 




ENRY C. LATHROP, a druggist at 
Pike, Wyoming County, N.Y., was 
born in this town, December 4, 
1836. His paternal grandfather, 
Simon Lathrop, was of English descent and 
originally from Massachusetts, born July 23, 
1772. September 15, 1796, he married Molly 
Buckman, and removed to Bethel, Vt., where 
he raised a family of five sons and four daugh- 
ters. In 1832 he removed with them to Pike, 
N.Y., where he purchased an improved farm 
of one hundred acres, paying cash down, he 
being a man of considei^able wealth for a 
farmer at that time. 

Oel Lathrop, son of Simon, the father of 
the subject of this sketch, being then twenty- 
five years of age, bought one-half the farm, 
and contracted to conduct the entire place 
during the life of his parents. After their 
demise he bought the other half, and con- 
tinued to occupy it till his death, July 16, 
1872, at the age of sixty-fi\'e years. February 
4, 1836, he was married to Eliza Slusser (orig- 
inal spelling Schlossar), a daughter of Nicho- 
las Slusser, of Dutch descent, an early settler 
in Pike, and originally from the town of 
Esopus, on the Hudson River. She bore him 
eleven children, eight sons and three daugh- 
ters. Five sons and one daughter are now 
living, namely: Henry C, of whom this 
biographical memoir is written; Joshua; C. 
Columbus; Simon Alvarado; Jerome E. ; and 
Rosina A. Mrs. Eliza Lathrop spent the last 



554 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



years of her life with her daughter, Rosina 
A., at the village of Pike, where she died, 
having lived eighty-one years. Both parents 
were members of the Universal ist church. 

Henry C. Lathrop, whose boyhood and 
youth were passed on the farm, and whose dis- 
trict-school education was supplemented by a 
full course of study in the Genesee Valley 
Seminary at Belfast, N.Y., was for several 
years a teacher in the district schools of Alle- 
gany County. Going West in 1862, he be- 
came principal of the public schools at Rich- 
mond, 111., and soon after of the Walworth 
County Institute in Wisconsin, where his wife 
was an instructor, she having previously 
taught in the schools of New York State. 

Mr. I.athrop afterward engaged in the pat- 
ent medicine business for two years, travelling 
over a large part of Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, 
and Michigan. He next embarked in the boot 
and shoe business at Rushford, N.Y., where 
he remained for three years, and then returned 
to Pike, and purchased the drug store which 
he now conducts. This pharmacy is an old 
and reliable house, having been established in 
1844 by James W. Lloyd, and subsequently 
conducted by A. C. Thompson, who sold it to 
Mr. Lathrop. Both Henry C. and his brother, 
who are now joint owners of the business, 
have been licensed by the New York State 
Board of Pharmacy, and have proved them- 
selves to be competent and reliable phar- 
macists. 

On July 5, 1864, Henry C. Lathrop was 
married to Miss Ann Lapham, born April 13, 
1843, a daughter of Abraham Lapham, a lum- 
ber dealer of Allegany County, and at one 
time Superintendent of Canals. Mr. Lapham 
was of excellent Quaker stock, and was 
raised at Macedon, Wayne County, where 
many of the Laphams now live and exert a 
large influence in the general affairs of the 
place. 

Of this union two children were born — 
Helen B., October 2, 1867, and Henry Willis, 
October 11, 1870. Helen B. Lathrop, a 
graduate of Pike Seminary and also of the 
Geneseo Normal School, is at this time a 
teacher in Pike Seminary. Henry Willis 
Lathrop, a telegrapher and railway agent, 



married Miss Carrie Stanton, of Castile, and 
has one child, Hawthorne Willis Lathrop. 

Henry C. Lathrop has been prominently 
identified with everything appertaining to 
Pike's prosperity, particularly its common 
schools, has several times been elected Presi- 
dent of the village, and was Postmaster during 
the Garfield and Arthur administration. He 
has ever been a stanch Republican in politics, 
and he is an attendant of the Presbyterian 
church. He is a leading Free Mason, being 
a member of Triluminar Lodge, in which he 
served as Master six years, and is its present 
Secretary. He served three years as High 
Priest of Wyoming Chapter, of which he is a 
member, and is also a member of Batavia 
Commandery. His devotion to Masonry has 
been rewarded by several appointments to 
places of trust, he having held the office of 
Grand Steward and District Deputy Grand 
Master, and being now Assistant Grand 
Lecturer. 




,ERRICK SHELDON, an extensive 
land owner in Livingston County, 
now living in Geneseo, is a na- 
tive of the town of Perry, Wyo- 
ming County, N.Y., having been born there. 
May 13, 1823. His paternal grandfather, 
Ezra Sheldon, was a native of England, being 
one of two brothers who came to America in 
Colonial times. He settled in New Marl- 
boro, Berkshire County, Mass., where he 
spent the rest of his life on his farm. He 
was the father of thirteen children, all of 
whom married and settled in different States. 
One of the pleasantest recollections of the 
family is that of the reunion of these thirteen 
children at the old homestead many years after 
they had left the paternal home, and when the 
youngest was fifty-two years of age. 

Oren Sheldon, father of Merrick, was reared 
to agricultural pursuits, and resided at the old 
home in New Marlboro until 181 i, when he 
migrated to New York with his wife and one 
child, the journey being made, according to 
the custom of the day, with a pair of oxen and 
a wagon. He settled in the town of Perry, 
then in Genesee, now in Wyoming County; 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



555 



and there he bought a tract of timber land of 
the Holland Land Company. He built a log 
house, and having no sawed lumber split the 
logs for boards, taking the bark from the bass- 
wood trees for the roof, and hanging a blanket 
in the doorway to keep out wild beasts. No 
railroads or canals brought to the inhabitants 
of that region the necessities and comforts of 
our day; and in the primeval forest they lived 
upon the products of their land, together with 
venison, bear meat, and other game which 
abounded. He had a practical knowledge of 
surveying, and was employed by the State in 
laying out roads in different sections, which 
kept him away from home a great deal of the 
time, and left his brave wife to contend with the 
dangers and hardships. After twenty-two years 
he removed to Mount Morris, and purchased 
two farms, and resided there twenty-eight 
years, moving from there to the village of Mos- 
cow, where he spent the remainder of his life. 

The wife of Oren Sheldon was Sally Tay- 
lor, a native of New Marlboro, Mass. Her 
grandfather, a native of England, was the 
founder of the family in America. Just 
before sailing he and his wife were presented 
with a curious piece of china in the form of a 
cow, which was intended to be used as a milk 
pitcher; and since that time, 1738, it has 
been passed down from generation to genera- 
tion, being now in the possession of Mr. 
Sheldon. Mrs. Oren Sheldon survived her 
husband several years, and died when over 
eighty years of age, having had seven children 
— Clarissa, John, Rosie, Tempy, Pomeroy, 
Merrick, and Julia. 

Merrick Sheldon attended the district 
school, giving his assistance to his father 
until he was twenty-one, when he started out, 
even with the world, and bought a farm in the 
town of Leicester, which he afterward ex- 
changed for one in Mount Morris. This he 
improved, and to it added other tracts, as his 
means increased, and now has about eleven 
hundred acres in the towns of Leicester and 
Mount Morris. In 1887 he removed to Gen- 
eseo, where he has since resided. His son- 
in-law occupies the old homestead, while 
much of his land is given over to thrifty and 
industrious tenants. 



Mr. Sheldon was first married, when twenty- 
four years of age, to Alviza Star, a native 
of Leicester, and a daughter of Martin and 
Amanda Star. Mrs. Alviza Sheldon died in 
1884, leaving one daughter, Mary, who is the 
wife of Chester D. White, and has a daughter, 
Mabel. In 1888 Mr. Sheldon married Har- 
riet Gladding, who was born at Mount Morris, 
and was daughter of Hiram and Lydia (Lake) 
Gladding. Mr. Sheldon is a member of the 
Presbyterian church, his wife being an adhe- 
rent to the faith of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. In politics he is a Republican, and 
may safely be set down as a believer in a 
strong central government, just laws, and a 
pure administration. 




BENEDICT WHITLOCK, a salt 
manufacturer in Warsaw, where he 
was born on September 29, 1852, 
belongs to a family which has for 
several generations been known in New York 
State. His great-grandfather, Samuel Whit- 
lock, who is the senior Samuel of this record, 
although there had been other Samuels in 
earlier generations of the family, was born in 
1739, and died in 1799. He was married 
twice, and left four sons and five daughters, 
all of whom lived to rear families of their 
own. One son, Joseph, died in Michigan; 
and another, who bore the name of Julius, 
died near Warsaw, having attained the age of 
eighty-three years. 

Samuel Whitlock, son of the elder Samuel, 
and grandfather of Mr. S. Benedict Whitlock, 
was born in Warren, Litchfield County, in 
1789. He came to Warsaw in 18 10 with his 
brother Julius, and settled on a tract of fifty 
acres of land situated one and a half miles 
north of the village. The land was in the 
woods; and the young men, who were both as 
yet unmarried and of scant means, must have 
had a very lonesome and toilsome life in their 
little log cabin. Their father having died 
when Samuel was a boy of twelve years, both 
lads were thrown upon themselves for their 
support. They were employed as raftsmen on 
the St. Lawrence River, at twelve dollars a 
month, and early manifested a steadfast and 



SS6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



conscientious adherence to religious principle 
that is rarely seen in youth. The occasion 
was a demand on the part of their employers 
for their services on Sunday; but the boys, 
who had been brought up by Christian par- 
ents, firmly refused to do what they had been 
taught to believe was a sacrilegious profana- 
tion of God's command to "keep holy the 
Sabbath day." 

Samuel's son, S. Norris Whitlock, whose 
birth date was February 25, 1826, and whose 
place of birth was Warsaw, where he has lived 
for the past thirty years, received a fair edu- 
cation in the district and select schools of his 
native village, supplemented later by a two 
years' course in the union school. Indeed, 
he was prepared to teach, having studied with 
that intention, but came to a different deci- 
sion after reaching his majority, and remained 
with his parents until his marriage to Miss 
Emily L. Benedict, of Perry, on January 8, 
185 1. This lady was a daughter of Samuel 
and Julia (Otis) Benedict, her father being a 
native of the State of Vermont, her mother of 
Connecticut. Mrs. Whitlock's parents were 
among the early settlers of Perry. They 
reared a family of four sons and as many 
daughters, and enjoyed more than a half-cen- 
tury of wedded life. The family was noted 
for longevity; and the first death in this 
branch was that of old Mr. Benedict, who 
died in the eighty-third year of his age, in 
1883. His widow, who lives in Warsaw, is 
now eighty-nine; and all of her children are 
still living, three sons residing in Chicago 
and one in Milwaukee. 

For five years Mr. S. Norris Whitlock cul- 
tivated his father's farms, and two hundred 
and thirteen acres of the original estate is 
still in possession of the family. He after- 
ward became a merchant in Linden, Genesee 
County, and lived there for six years before 
coming to Warsaw, where he engaged in the 
grocery and crockery trade, to which his son 
succeeded him. He was for about a year in 
the coal and lumber traffic, and then gave it 
up to enter the insurance business, in which 
he was eminently successful for seventeen 
years. Mr. S. Norris Whitlock has now 
retired from active cares; and he and his 



wife, who has been in verity a helpmate as 
well as companion to him, are spending the 
afternoon of their lives in their pleasant home 
at No. 9 Brooklyn Street. For thirty-eight 
years Mr. Whitlock has been a faithful worker 
in the Methodist church, of which both he and 
his wife are members, and has done much 
toward the moral as well as practical support 
of the organization in his village. The fam- 
ily circle has been broken by the death of one 
child, Charles E., who died at six years of 
age. The surviving children are: Benedict, 
of whom this memoir is written; and George 
N., who at present resides in Warsaw. 

Benedict Whitlock was educated in the 
Warsaw Union School, and has been engaged 
in salt manufacturing since 1883. He is Sec- 
retary and Treasurer of the Empire Dairy Salt 
Company, and is largely interested in the 
Warsaw Bluestone Company, being Presi- 
dent of the company and one of the incorpora- 
tors. In 1889 he was married to Miss 
Elizabeth Hume, a daughter of Nelson Hume. 
Two lovely children, Margherita and Donald 
Benedict, crown the happiness of this union. 
Mr. Benedict Whitlock is, like his father, a 
stanch Republican. Both he and his wife are 
in the fold of Christian faith, being members 
of the Presbyterian church. 



(jjTSAAC A. CLARK, an eminent teacher 
hI and mathematician of Livingston 
(JJ_ County, was born in Berks County, 
Pennsylvania, March 27, 18 16. His 
great-grandfather, an early settler of Pennsyl- 
vania, is thought to have been of English 
birth, and to have resided for a time in the 
north of Ireland before coming thence to 
America in Colonial times. He located on 
the banks of the Susquehanna, and there spent 
the rest of his days. He kept a ferry boat, 
and carried passengers and freight across the 
river. It is supposed that his son, William 
Clark, a soldier of the Revolutionary War and 
grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was 
born at Clark's Ferry on the Susquehanna 
River, Pennsylvania. In 1805 he made a 
journey on horseback to New York State, 
where he bought a tract of land in what is 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



557 



now Geneseo, Livingston County, and return- 
ing for his family moved hither in 1806. He 
died in 181 5, five years before his wife, who 
was Sarah Templeton, of Pennsylvania. 

Robert Clark, son of William and Sarah, 
was born in Northumberland County, Penn- 
sylvania, and lived there till he was thirteen 
years of age, when he removed to Geneseo 
with his parents. A few years later he went 
back to Pennsylvania, where he married Re- 
becca Ringlar, of Berks County. After a 
prolonged absence he returned to New York 
State with his family, and settled on his 
father's homestead, where he lived till his 
death, at the age of seventy-three years, 
his wife dying at the age of seventy-two. 
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Clark had ten children, 
the eldest of whom was Isaac, the subject of 
this biography. 

Isaac A. Clark was but two years old when 
he removed with his parents to Geneseo, so 
that he had no recollection of his birthplace. 
When they came to New York, this section of 
the country was sparsely settled, and deer and 
other game abounded in the forests. As 
there were no railroads or canals until a num- 
ber of years afterward, the people marketed 
their products at Charlotte; and a great part 
of the merchandise was brought from Albany 
on teams. Isaac attended the pioneer school, 
then kept in a log house, with furniture made 
of slabs, the seats having wooden pins for 
legs. Like most country lads at that time, 
he began when quite young to make him- 
self useful as a chore boy, doing light work 
on the farm ; but at the age of twenty-two 
he engaged in teaching, for which he was 
better adapted. He taught one year in a dis- 
trict school and a year in a high school in 
Geneseo, afterward going to Pennsylvania, 
where he taught select schools for a year. 
He then travelled, and for a time made a spe- 
■cialty of teaching mathematics. He was the 
author and publisher of two well-known text- 
books, the "Prussian Calendar" and "Clark's 
Mental Arithmetic." 

In 1849 Mr. Clark married Sarah Durfee, of 
Palmyra, Wayne County, N.Y., and three 
children were the result of this union; 
namely, Oliver, Elizabeth, and Lucy D. 



Clark. At the time of his marriage Mr. 
Clark bought land in Wayne County; and he 
was subsequently there engaged in farming 
for eighteen years, at the end of which period 
he returned to the old homestead in Geneseo, 
post-office Lakeville, his present residence, 
which has been in the family since 1806. 
Mr. Clark was always an apt jjupil, from his 
youth caring more for study than other pur- 
suits. His life as a teacher was a pleasure to 
himself as well as a great benefit to the many 
with whom he came in contact; and he is con- 
sidered a man of much intellectual ability. 




ADOLPHUS GARDNER, familiarly 
known as "'Dolph Gardner" in Wyo- 
ming County, New York, and as 
"Old Honesty" at the Golden 
Gate, is one of the solid farmers of Attica on 
the Tonawanda Creek. He was born in this 
town on February 12, 1827. His father was 
Adolphus Gardner, born in Brimfield, Mass., 
in 1785. His grandfather. Major Josiah 
Gardner, who was on Washington's staff, was 
a pensioner of the Revolution. The Major's 
wife was Catherine Fenton ; and they were 
the happy parents of four sons and two daugh- 
ters, the sons being Asher, Adolphus, Ros- 
well, and Parley. Asher and Adolphus were 
the first to migrate from Massachusetts to this 
town, coming about 1808, and being among 
the pioneers who settled on the Tonawanda, 
in the northern part of Attica. Like most 
of the early comers they had very limited 
means, barely enough for subsistence. These 
two brothers in coming had but one saddled 
horse between them, and took turns in riding 
the animal, the one who rode leaving the horse 
tied when he dismounted and walking ahead 
till the other came up, the brother doing the 
same in turn. 

They took up land, and made a clearing in 
the woods for their rude log house, and then 
went back for their families. Their settle- 
ment was on the farm now occupied by Parley 
Gardner, the son of Asher. Fodder being 
scarce for their stock, they were compelled to 
fell the young trees for the cow to browse 
upon; but in so doing they had the ill luck 



SS8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



to let a tree fall upon her, and so lost one 
very necessary source of table supply. Find- 
ing that their first crop of corn was being de- 
stroyed in some mysterious way, the brothers 
watched one night with a loaded musket, and 
succeeded in shooting a large bear, who proved 
to have been the marauder. This was consid- 
ered to be a famous exploit by the neighbors, 
and brought them honor, aside from a good 
supply of bear's meat and a fine rug for the 
floor. These simple rehearsals indicate the 
straits the early settler was sometimes put to 
and also the guard he was obliged to con- 
stantly exercise in so wild and unprotected a 
locality. 

Adolphus Gardner married Miss Mehetebel 
Moulton. They brought up seven of their 
eight children, and five are still living, as 
follows: F. M. Gardner, now seventy-five 
years old, an able farmer of Alexander, Gen- 
esee County; Mary, widow of L. P. Harris, 
in Batavia; N. Adolphus; Cutler, a farmer 
three miles south of Attica; James F., a man 
of prominence and ability living near Denver, 
Col. The deceased are: Truxton, a little 
child of four years; Lovisa, wife of E. T. 
Maxon, who died at the home of her brother 
in 1877, aged sixty-two years, leaving four 
children; and Catherine, wife of H. G. Vin- 
cent, who died in Attica, in January, 1892, 
and whose daughter, Cora Vincent, is the wife 
of Joseph Burke. The four children of Lovisa 
are: Marion Maxon, living at Varysburg; 
Ella M., who has resided with her uncle since 
his return from California; George Maxon, 
whose home is in ]\Iichigan; and Hattie, the 
wife of F. Ramsey, who died in Nebraska. 

N. Adolphus Gardner had a very good dis- 
trict-school education; for it was one of the 
first principles of the people of the newly 
formed towns to furnish educational facilities 
for their children in their immediate neigh- 
borhood, that they might be as well equipped 
as possible for future undertakings in life. 
After the school days were over, young Gard- 
ner became a boatman on the Erie Canal, and 
kept at this work for seven successive seasons. 
In January, 1854, he set out for California by 
way of the Isthmus, making a so-called quick 
trip of twenty -three days from New York. 



He turned his attention to the gold mines, 
and taking his chance with others he kept at 
the work in the diggings for over two years 
and a half, meeting with a fair amount of suc- 
cess; but he finally left the locality, and be- 
came a stage-driver from Stockton to Sonora 
and Columbia, driving teams of four, five, 
and sometimes six horses. Mr. Gardner was 
in California about twenty years, accumulat- 
ing considerable property; and he still owns 
city lots in Stockton. In April, 1873, the 
longing for home and friends moving him to 
return to the scenes of his early life, he came 
back to Attica, and purchased about eighty 
acres of land, which is now a part of his well- 
cultivated farm of one hundred and forty acres. 
His present attractive and comfortable home 
was built by him in 1874. He occupies his 
time in farming and general oversight, and 
has a dairy of sixteen cows. 

In the summer of 1882 Mr. Gardner re- 
visited the scenes of his old-time stage-coach 
experiences in California, accompanied by his 
niece, making it a pleasure trip for them both, 
and taking in the Yosemite valley, the big 
trees of Calaveras, and the awe-inspiring passes 
and canyons of the Sierras. There were 
friends with warm welcomes to greet their 
arrival, and the old neighbors and townsmen 
furnished free transportation for their pleasure 
trips. He was still known by the title of 
"Honesty" or "Old Honesty," given him as 
a mark of appreciation in former days. Hav- 
ing returned to his farm, Mr. Gardner has 
settled down to his ordinary pursuits, his 
capable niece. Miss Maxon, presiding over his 
household, and scr\ing by her presence to 
keep away dulness and any sense of bachelor 
solitude. 




RVILLE N. RICHARDSON, the 
popular merchant and Postmaster of 
Groveland, Livingston County, N.Y., 
was born October 14, 1848, in Inde- 
pendence, Allegany County, where his grand- 
father, Jonathan Richardson, who had been a 
pioneer of Livonia, was among the first set- 
tlers. He purchased a farm, and resided 
there for some years, after which he sold his 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



559 



property, and took one-half the interest in 
the Shongo Mills in the town of Willing. 
He devoted his time to milling for some 
years, and then returned to Independence, 
where he resided with his son Columbus until 
his death, at eighty-five years of age. He 
was an officer in the State militia, in which 
he took an active interest. His wife was 
Miranda Bennett, and she was the mother of 
thirteen children. 

La Fayette Richardson, son of Jonathan 
and Miranda and the father of the subject of 
this sketch, was born in Livonia, and has al- 
ways followed agricultural pursuits. He now 
resides in Wellsville, Allegany County, hav- 
ing reached the age of- seventy years. He 
married Mary Wilson, a native of Indepen- 
dence and daughter of Calvin and Chloe 
(Eaton) Wilson. Calvin Wilson was a pio- 
neer of Independence, and erected the first 
frame barn constructed in the town, the boards 
for which were procured at Strong's mill in 
Andover, and were drawn by team a distance 
of nine miles. The board nails used were all 
made by hand, and the shingle nails were 
paid for with deer skins. Mary Wilson Rich- 
ardson died in 1856; and her husband married 
again, his second wife being Maria Graves. 

Orville X. Richardson, the subject of this 
biography, left school in January, 1864, when 
but sixteen years of age, and enlisted in the 
Sixteenth Regiment, New York Cavalry, in 
which he served six months, and was then 
honorably discharged on account of injuries 
received while in service. After his return 
from the war he learned the trade of a miller, 
and this occupation he followed in different 
localities until 1889. In February of that 
year he started in the mercantile business in 
Groveland, in which he is still engaged. He 
carries a small but well-selected stock of gen- 
eral merchandise and farm implements, and is 
a deser\-edly successful man of business. 

Mr. Richardson has been twice married, his 
first wife, Emma Shafer, having died in 1882. 
In 1884 he married Loana .Snider, of Grove- 
land, daughter of Henry Snider. Four chil- 
dren were born of his first marriage, three of 
whom are still living — lona. Myrtle, and 
Florence. Enos, the only son, a promising 



young man of twenty-one years, was killed in 
a railroad accident, June 7, 1894. Mr. Rich- 
ardson is a Democrat in politics, being a firm 
supporter of the principles of that party, and 
is respected as a worthy citizen of the town. 




HOMAS W. MITCHELL, an exten- 
sive landholder and prosperous agri- 
culturist of Livingston County, is 
busily employed in the prosecution of his 
chosen calling on the old Gould homestead, 
which is situated in the town of Ossian, about 
four miles west from Dansville. Mr. Mitchell 
was born in Springwater, which is the south- 
east corner town of the county, February 5, 
1 82 1, being the son of Thomas Mitchell, an 
early pioneer of this section of the State. 

Thomas Mitchell was born in Pennsylvania, 
and in his youth was apprenticed to learn the 
blacksmith's trade. The unrest natural to a 
young man of ambition leading him to seek 
newer fields of labor, he came to New York, 
and w-orked at his trade for a while in Tioga 
County, whence he removed to Springwater, 
Livingston County, where he lived until after 
the birth of some of his children. He next 
became a resident of Livonia, but finally went 
back to Pennsylvania, and made his home at 
the head of Oil Creek, where he departed this 
life at the age of sixty-seven years. He mar- 
ried Annie Van Camp, who bore him eleven 
children, of whom Thomas W., the youngest, 
is the only one now living. Mrs. Mitchell 
lived to be seventy years old. During her 
childhood Indians were often seen in the 
neighborhood of her home: and one of her 
brothers was taken captive by them, but suc- 
ceeded in making his escape. 

Thomas W. Mitchell was quite young when 
his parents removed to Oil Creek, where he 
lived until after the death of his father. 
Being then a sturdy lad of fourteen years, 
able and willing to work, he came to Ossian, 
and lived with his brother for a while, assist- 
ing in farming. He subsequently purchased 
the farm adjoining the one where he now 
lives, and engaged in general husbandry there 
until his marriage, at the age of twenty-one 
years, with Miss Harriet L. Gould, the 



560 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



daughter of William Gould. Her father was 
the original owner of this valuable tract of 
land, which he redeemed from its pristine 
wildness. Mr. Mitchell still retains the 
ownership of the farm which he first bought, 
and successfully manages them both. In ad- 
dition to tilling the soil, Mr. Mitchell has 
carried on a very profitable lumber business, 
running two saw-mills night and day much of 
the time, a good deal of the timber used being 
cut from his own land. 

Mrs. Harriet Gould Mitchell died in 1856, 
leaving one child, Mary, who at twenty-one 
years of age passed to the world beyond. Mr. 
Mitchell subsequently married Mary Gilbert, 
the daughter of William S. Gilbert, a promi- 
nent and well-known business man of Li- 
vonia, where he is extensively engaged in 
farming, stock dealing, and milling. Three 
children have been born of this union, two of 
whom are now living. Mr. Mitchell has ever 
been useful in his community and ably as- 
sisted in promoting its agricultural and busi- 
ness interests. He is a firm advocate of the 
principles promulgated by the Democratic 
party, and attends the Presbyterian church. 



-OHN BELDEN, a lumber merchant of 
Attica, Wyoming County, N.Y., was 
born in Genesee County, January 11, 
1 8 19, son of Kellogg Belden, who was 
a native of Connecticut, born in 1785. 

Bartholomew Belden, father of Kellogg, 
moved to Montgomery County, New York, 
about the year 1800, and died at the age of 
eighty years, leaving his second wife and 
three children, two sons and one daughter, 
Kellogg, Henry, and Elmira. Henry became 
a physician, practised his profession in Am- 
sterdam, N.Y., and died in middle life. El- 
mira was the wife of Seth Carter, a farmer of 
Darien, Genesee County, and died in the 
sixties, leaving a large family. 

Kellogg Belden went to Michigan in the 
latter part of his life, and died there in Ber- 
trand at the age of fifty-three, in 1838; and 
his wife died in 1848, leaving four sons and 
one daughter, of whom John Belden is the 
sole survivor. The parents were industrious 



farming people in comfortable circumstances 
and earnest members of the Methodist church. 
The mother's grave is in Darien, N.Y. 

John Belden was educated in the district 
schools and at Alexander Seminary. He 
remained with his parents, assisting in the 
farm work until reaching the age of twenty- 
nine years. On December 2, 1850, be mar- 
ried Miss Mary C. St. John, a daughter of 
Samuel St. John, of Saratoga Springs. Mr. 
Belden came to Attica in 1850, and opened a 
grocery store, later associating himself with 
James H. Loomis; and in 1857 they estab- 
lished themselves in the lumber business 
under the firm name of J. Belden & Co. In 
i860 Mr. Belden sold his interest in the 
grocery; and, having acquired the firm's lum- 
ber business, he has since conducted it him- 
self, continuing at the location of its original 
establishment on Washington Street. He 
carries about eighteen thousand dollars' worth 
of stock, consisting of all kinds of logs and 
short lumber, which comes mostly from Mich- 
igan; and his facilities for handling and pre- 
serving his stock are unequalled, he having 
well-built houses and sheds for that purpose. 

Mr. and Mrs. Belden have no children. 
They have resided on Main Street near the 
Methodist church for the past twenty-five 
years, and have lived together as husband 
and wife for more than forty years. Mr. Bel- 
den is, in politics, a graduate of the old Whig 
party, has been a Republican since the forma- 
tion of that party, but has never been an office- 
seeker. He is an .Elder in the Presbyterian 
church and a teacher in the Sunday-school. 
He is in every way a worthy, upright citizen, 
and a man well known for his kindness and 
benevolence. In short, he bears a good name; 
and his portrait is well placed in this gallery 
of representative citizens. 




|ATTHIAS ROBISON, a prominent 
member of the agricultural com- 
munity of the town of Ossian, is 
a fine representative of the ster- 
ling men of Livingston County, who, by per- 
severing industry, wise frugality, and shrewd 
management, have gradually and steadily 




JOHN BELDEN. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



563 



worked their way upward from a state of pov- 
erty to one of influence and afl^uence. He is 
a native of the Empire State, Ovid, Seneca 
Comity, being the place of his birth, and No- 
vember 10, 1818, the date thereof. He is 
descended from Revolutionary stock on both 
the paternal and maternal sides, his grand- 
father Harrison, who had a brilliant war 
record, having been severely wounded at the 
battle of Staten Island, and his grandfather 
Robison having been a recruiting officer 
throughout the entire period of the Revolution. 

Charles Robison, the father of him of whom 
we write, was born in New Jersey, and was 
the son of Jeremiah Robison, who was born 
and spent the larger part of his life in that 
State. After his marriage with Susanna Har- 
rison, who was also a native of New Jersey, 
Charles Robison settled in the town of Ovid, 
N.Y., and there carried on farming for a few 
years. He subsequently removed to Big 
Flats, where he continued to reside until his 
death, at the age of forty-six years. His 
widow siu"vived him, and died at the home of 
her son Matthias in Ossian, January 4, 1857, 
aged seventy-five years. She reared seven 
children, namely: Betsey E., deceased, who 
married Lyman Washburn; William, deceased; 
Margaret, the wife of Daniel Carter; Robert, 
deceased; Matthias; Mary Ann, deceased, 
who married Plutarch Clark; and Jeremiah. 

Matthias was a little fellow when the death 
of his father occurred; and he remained under 
the protection of his mother until nine years 
old, when he went to live with a neighbor, 
and attended school. Five years later he 
began the battle of life for himself, working 
out by the month at any honorable employ- 
ment he could find. His wages were scant; 
but he was prudent in his expenditures, and 
saved a part of his yearly stipend, so that 
when he came to Ossian in 1845 he was en- 
abled to buy a small farm, situated not far 
from his present home. He cleared off about 
one hundred acres of his land, placing it 
under good cultivation, and lived there some 
sixteen years, when he sold, and purchased the 
property where he now resides. This in- 
cludes ninety acres of land, which he has 
brought to its present excellent condition by 



steady application and wise management. 
Mr. Robison was fortunate in securing as a 
life companion Miss Harriet Knapp, a daugh- 
ter of Joel I. Knapp, a leading citizen of 
Ossian and the descendant of one of its earli- 
est settlers. The pathway of the wedded life 
of Mr. and Mrs. Robison has been dimmed 
by the death of their two children, Virginia 
Alice, the eldest, having passed to the higher 
life at the age of six years, and Samuel A. 
when only four years old. 

" And the mother gave in tears and pain 
The flowers she most did love: 
She knew she should find them all again 
In the fields of light above. 

'■ Oh, not in cruelty, not in wrath, 
The reaper came that day ; 
'Twas an angel visited the green earth. 
And took the flowers away."' 

Mr. Robison is a stanch supporter of the 
principles of the Republican party, taking an 
intelligent interest in the public welfare, and 
has served as Highway Commissioner. Both 
he and his estimable wife are conscientious 
members of the Presbyterian church, which he 
joined thirty-five years ago, and of which he 
was for many years a Trustee, and is now 
worthily filling the office of Elder. 



WILBER 
farmei 
1 n cr n ^ 



M. BENTLEY, a very able 
er of the town of Sheldon, liv- 
ing near Johnsonsburg, owning one 
of the largest and best farms in the county, 
was born in the town of Orangeville, March 
23, 1843. His father, William G. Bentley, 
was a son of Ezekiel 15entley, who was a na- \ 
five of Vermont, and became an early settler 
of Wyoming County, locating at Orangeville 
Centre in the woods. He had three sons — 
Johnson, Gardner, and William G. Johnson 
Bentley settled on a farnt of fifty acres. He 
was an expert hunter and a sure shot with his 
rifle. Soon after he settled on his farm he 
killed three deer during one day in the swamp 
not far away. His table was constantly sup- 
plied with deer, turkeys, and other game, 
which he found no difficulty in bringing to the 
ground upon his own premises. 



S64 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



William G. Bentley, the youngest son of 
Ezekiel, was a blacksmith at Orangeville, but 
in 1846 moved to Williamsville, where he fol- 
lowed his trade until about the year 1851, 
when he settled on a farm of sixty-two acres 
in Sheldon at the top of Dugway Hill. Here 
he remained for some six years, and then sold 
out, purchasing a farm of one hundred and 
fifty-two acres in Orangeville, between Varys- 
burg and Johnsonsburg. In 1866 he disposed 
of this farm, and, moving to the village of 
Varysburg, within six months purchased a farm 
of three hundred acres in the town of Ben- 
nington. After residing there for about six 
years he sold that property, and buying a farm 
in Johnsonsburg resided there until his death, 
which occurred November 15, 1878. He left 
an estate valued at about six thousand dollars. 
He was an earnest and zealous Methodist ex- 
horter and later an ordained local preacher. 

His wife was Mary Blackmer, of West 
Moreland, Oneida County, born August 9, 
1809, daughter of Zoar and Mary (Smith) 
Blackmer. Her parents were married in 
1808, and came to Orangeville from Oneida 
County in 181 8. Zoar Blackmer was a fair 
scholar, a teacher, and a great reader. He 
was a surveyor, and did a great deal of work 
in that line. He had a family of five chil- 
dren, four of whom, two sons and two daugh- 
ters, grew up; and the latter are still living. 
Mrs. Bentley's sister married Johnson Bent- 
ley, who died at Sheldon in 1846, from the 
bite of a hog, while yet in the prime of life. 
His widow is now residing in Michigan, 
where she went with her son and daughter in 
1869. 

Mrs. Mary Blackmer ' Bentley still survives 
her husband, and now lives with her son, Wil- 
ber M. At eighty-five she is physically vig- 
orous; and, although she has toiled severely 
all her life, she has always had perfect health. 
Four of her seven children are now living, 
namely: Wilber M., the subject of this 
sketch; James D., a railroad man at Dans- 
ville, N.Y. ; Charles F., a commission mer- 
chant of Baltimore, where he has been since 
1876; and Julius E., a farmer in the vicinity 
of Sheldon, who has one son and one daughter. 
Alvin G., a volunteer in the One Hundred 



and Thirtieth New York Infantry, and later 
First Dragoons, died at Suffolk, Va., of fever, 
and fills a soldier's grave. He was one of the 
first volunteers in 1861, enlisting in Captain 
Knapp's company, which won such fame. 
He was unmarried and in his twenty-fourth 
year. William Henry Harrison Bentley died 
in 1875, at the age of thirty-five. He married 
Deborah Johnson, of Harvard, 111., who sur- 
vives him with one son, Johnson. Hugh D. 
died one day following the death of his father, 
leaving a wife, two sons, and one daughter in 
this State. 

Wilber M. Bentley was reared to farm life, 
and attended the district schools. On Jan- 
uary 16, 1873, at the age of thirty, he married 
Miss Abbie Thompson, born at Hudson, Sum- 
mit County, Ohio, in 1841, the daughter of 
Elijah and Sarah (Phinney) Thompson, both 
of whom are now deceased. She has one sis- 
ter, Mrs. Sarah Sanford, who resides on the 
home farm near Cleveland, Ohio, where her 
father died in 1873. Her mother also died 
very suddenly from an accident in 1S75. Mrs. 
Bentley was educated at a female seminary in 
her native town, and was a teacher for three 
years. She is a graduate of the Chautauqua 
class of 1891. 

Mr. Bentley soon after his marriage in 1873 
purchased a farm of one hundred and fifty 
acres, for which he paid eight thousand dol- 
lars, and began dairying with eighteen cows. 
He later purchased twenty acres more for one 
thousand dollars; and that he has not only 
held his own, but has had such notable suc- 
cess, is really to be marvelled at when the fact 
is known that he actually started in life at the 
age of nineteen years, working out by the 
month, which he continued to do until his 
marriage, chopping ccu-d wood at the rate of 
four or five cords per day, keeping up the 
record of his father and his uncle Johnson, 
who were famous choppers in their day. He 
has always been a very robust man, although 
he suffered severely from an attack of la 
grippe in 1890. His principal crops are 
wheat, corn, beans, potatoes, and hay. He 
keeps a herd of twenty cows, and sells milk to 
the creamery. In 1878 he erected his pres- 
ent fine two-story frame residence, twenty- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



56s 



four by thirty feet, with a wing twenty-two 
by twenty-six feet, with a large wood-house; 
and moving from the old to the new is the 
only change he has made since his marriage. 
His famous barn, which is thirty by one hun- 
dred and forty feet, and is furnished with all 
modern conveniences, he built in 1894. He 
not only produces hay sufficient for his own 
use, but sells as high as fifty tons per annum. 
His farm is one of the best-tilled and finest in 
this region, with an orchard yielding three 
hundred bushels of apples per season. 

Mr. Bentley is a Master Mason and a mem- 
ber of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows. He has been Commander three terms 
of the K. O. T. M., and is connected with 
tbe Knights of the Maccabees. 

Mr. Bentley is a Republican in politics, 
but has escaped office. His residence is built 
on rising ground, an ideal situation, and is 
surrounded by beautiful shade-trees. 

Mr. and Mrs. Bentley are both exceedingly 
active in the work of life. It is pleasant to 
record that prosperity is the result solely of 
well-directed, untiring industry. 




|LMER H. BLANK, who ranks among the 
prosperous agriculturists of Livingston 
County, is carrying on the home- 
stead property of his father, the late Perry 
Blank, and though young in years has ac- 
quired a good reputation as an excellent 
farmer and a citizen of integrity and worth. 
He was born January 15, 1864, in North 
Dansville, Steuben County, of which his pa- 
ternal grandfather, Peter Blank, was one of 
the earliest and most influential pioneer 
farmers, having bought and cleared a valuable 
farm within its limits. 

Perry Blank was the third son of the seven 
children born to his parents; and during the 
days of his youth he performed his full share 
of the work of felling trees, uprooting stumps, 
and placing the land thus opened to the sun- 
light in a state of culture. When of age he 
purchased a farm on the Arkport road, in 
North Dansville, which he occupied for a 
time, coming thence to the town of Ossian, 
where he bought the farm now managed by his 



son Elmer. He did not, however, confine 
himself to agricultural work, but established 
a livery business in the village of Dansville, 
conducting it successfully and profitably until 
he was burned out, when he retired to this 
farm, where he subsequently resided, passing 
to the life beyond at the early age of fifty-two 
years. His estimable wife, whose maiden 
name was Mary Jane Covert, still lives with 
her son on the home farm. She has reared a 
family of six children, of whom we record the 
following: Klmer H., of whom we write; 
Stella, wife of O. E. Shays, of Ossian; Min- 
nie, wife of William H. Hampton, now of 
Geneseo; Jennie M., the wife of William 
O. Thompson, a sketch of whose life appears 
elsewhere in this work; Mamie; and Emma, 
the wife of Earl Shay, of Ossian. Mrs. Blank 
was one of the earliest to unite with the Pres- 
byterian church of this place, of which her 
husband was also a member for many years. 
Elmer H. Blank received a good common- 
school education, and early became proficient 
in agricultural labors. After the death of his 
honored father he assumed the entire control 
of the home property, and has since carried it 
on with signal ability, making marked im- 
provements, and each year adding to its market 
value. He is everywhere esteemed for his 
many good qualities, and is popular with his 
associates. In his political views he sup- 
ports the principles of the Democratic party, 
and religiously follows the teachings of his 
parents, and worships at the Presbyterian 
church. 




ILLIAM H. RICHARDSON, of 

Strykersville, N.Y., was born near 
the village in which he now lives, 
July 6, 1 86 1. His grandparents, Charles and 
Sally (Parker) Richardson, the former a na- 
tive of Dracut, Mass., born in 1788, were 
among the first settlers of Western Java, com- 
ing here in 1S19, when the young wife was a 
bride. They settled on lot No. 32, range No. 
4, on which part of the village now stands; 
and the present highway or road through the 
lower end of the town was laid out and given to 
the village by Mr. Charles Richardson. The 



566 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ground upon which the Baptist church stands 
was also given by him, and he was one of the 
principal supporters of that religious society. 
In character he was impetuous and outspoken 
and a stanch friend of the soldiers during 
the late war. He was a man of wealth, 
and the homestead is still owned by his de- 
scendants. 

His son, Charles H. Richardson, was born 
in Strykersville on November 5, 1823. He 
was married in 1844 to Miss Mary E. Balcom, 
of New Jersey. From 1846 to 1859 he was a 
merchant in Java village, but from the latter 
date he was a farmer. Thirteen children 
were born to Mr. and Mrs. Charles H. Rich- 
ardson, two dying in infancy. Seven sons 
and four daughters grew to maturity — 
Frances, wife of James \V. Ives, of Java vil- 
lage; Fayette O. ; Eugene A.; Gilbert, who 
died at twenty years of age, May 20, 1873; 
Charles D. ; Ida, now Mrs. Warner; Everett 
E. ; William H., of this sketch; Carrie, wife 
of R. H. Coatsworth, of Buffalo; Ella, who 
married John Rogers, and died in Minnesota 
at twenty-seven years of age; and George W., 
who is unmarried. Mrs. Mary E. Richardson 
died in 1887, aged sixty-four years. Her 
husband survived her until 1891, when he 
died, leaving a large estate to be divided 
among his heirs. He was Postmaster in 
Strykersville for sixteen years. 

After attending the academy of Aurora, 
William H. Richardson took a practical 
course in that excellent institution, Bryant & 
Stratton's Business College, equipping him- 
self for the emergencies of business and com- 
mercial life. At twenty years of age he was 
employed as a salesman in Java village, Wyo- 
ming County, and filled similar positions in 
Delaware, Cattaraugus County, in later years. 
From 1883 to 1886 he took charge of his 
father's farm, keeping a large dairy, which 
was supplied by thirty-five cows. The com- 
mon and happy fate of the human family 
befell him on the i8th of February, 1885, 
when he was united in the bonds of wedlock 
to Captolia Langmade. 

Mr. Richardson alternately devoted himself 
to commercial and agricultural pursuits until 
his father's death, when he and his brother 



George became partners with Fayette O. in a 
saw and planing mill, barrel and cheese-box 
factory, which is one of the prominent and 
most successful enterprises in Java. Mr. 
Richardson has recently bought his brother 
George's interest, and now has half-control of 
both mill and factory. Two interesting chil- 
dren, Winnie, aged eight, and Marguerite, in 
her third year, make sunshine in the home of 
their parents. Mr. Richardson is a Master 
Mason of the North Java Lodge. 




DWARD R. CREVELING, an es- 
teemed resident of Mount Morris, is 
numbered among the substantial and 
enterprising business men of the place. He 
was born here on September 9, 185 1, being a 
son of John, Jr., and Elizabeth (Rittenhouse) 
Creveling. His grandfather, John Creveling, 
Sr., who was born and reared in New Jersey, 
removed from there with wife and children to 
the Empire State, and settled in Mount Mor- 
ris in 1834, the entire journey being made 
with teams. He was a contractor, and worked 
on the canal during the time of its construc- 
tion, making Mount Morris his place of resi- 
dence until his decease. 

John Creveling, Jr., was born in New Jer- 
sey in September, 1826, being consequently 
but eight years of age when he came with his 
parents to this county. After securing a 
practical education in the district school, he 
embarked in agricultural pursuits, and by in- 
dustrious application and the exercise of good 
judgment in the management of his affairs 
became one of the most successful farmers of 
this locality. He began the work of life on 
a farm in the town of Mount Morris, which 
he occupied till 1865, when he moved on to a 
farm which he purchased in the town of West 
Sparta, and which he still owns. After resid- 
ing there for twenty-five years, in 1890 he 
removed to Tuscarora, in the town of Mount 
Morris, where he has since continued farming 
operations on an extensive scale, owning and 
managing some four hundred acres of land. 
Of his union with Elizabeth Rittenhouse, the 
daughter of Allison and Mary Rittenhouse, 
the following children were born: Wilson 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



567 



M., who married Cora E. Ferine, and has one 
child, Charles; Mrs. Mary A. Williams; 
John E., who married Harriet Hoaglan; and 
Edward R., of whom we write. Mrs. Eliza- 
beth Rittenhouse Creveling died June 11, 
1887, aged sixty years. 

Edward Rittenhouse Creveling received his 
elementary education in the public schools of 
his native town, and this was supplemented 
by a higher course of study at the academy in 
Nunda. He remained beneath the parental 
roof-tree until twenty years of age, when he 
entered the store of Mr. Lyman Ayrault as a 
clerk, remaining thus employed for three 
years. Then taking upon himself the cares 
and responsibilities of married life, Mr. Creve- 
ling turned his attention to tilling the soil, 
but after a year's experience abandoned that 
occupation, and moved with his family to the 
village of Tuscarora. There he opened a 
store for general merchandise, and for a period 
of eighteen years was one of the most success- 
ful merchants of that place. In 1891 he set- 
tled in the village of Mount Morris, and was 
for one year associated with the banking firm 
of Bingham Brothers, by his honesty, fidelity, 
and upright business methods readily winning 
the confidence and respect of all with whom 
he had dealings. 

An important step in the career of Mr. 
Creveling was his marriage with Miss Cora 
E. Bergen, the daughter of Samuel and Har- 
riet J. Bergen, of Mount Morris; and this was 
solemnized in 1874. Three children were 
born of their union, namely: Howard B., who 
is now Deputy Postmaster at Mount Morris ; 
Julia A.; and Edward W. Politically, Mr. 
Creveling has always been a warm supporter 
of the principles promulgated by the Demo- 
cratic party; and his first Presidential vote, 
cast in 1872, was for Horace Greeley. While 
he was a resident of Tuscarora, he served as 
Postmaster from 1885 until 1889, having 
been appointed by President Cleveland. He 
was also Session Justice for two terms, and 
during the past seven years has served as Jus- 
tice of the Peace. Socially, Mr. Creveling is 
a Free Mason, and both he and his excellent 
wife are consistent members of the Presbyte- 
rian church. 




Mrs. 
agred 



up 



EV. WILLIAM T. WILBER, pastor 
of the St. Vincent's Catholic Church 
^s \ in Attica, was born in Lockport, 

Niagara County, N.Y. His father, 
Joshua Wilber, the third of the name, a resi- 
dent of Lockport, N.Y., was born in the town 
of Norwich, Conn. His great-grandfather, 
Joshua Wilber, was a resident of South Kings- 
ton, R.I. His grandfather, Joshua Wilber, 
Jr., a native of South Kingston, R.I., where 
he was a farmer, married Miss Mary Jane 
Allen, of Norwich, Conn. They had but the 
one son, named Joshua, who became the father 
of the chief character of this sketch. The 
grandfather died before attaining to middle 
life; and his widow some time afterward be- 
came the wife of Angell Sheldon, two chil- 
dren being the result of this union. 
Sheldon died in Rhode Island in 1889, 
about eighty-five years. 

Joshua Wilber (father) on growing 
learned the tailor's trade and later the print- 
ing business. He next studied medicine, and 
became a druggist. This was about forty 
years ago. Mr. Wilber married twice. His 
first wife was Miss Mary Hickey, of Ireland, 
a daughter of Thomas and Alice Hickey, who 
came over about 1850, soon after the potato 
famine. They first went to Quebec, but in a 
short time crossed over to the American side, 
and settled in Lockport. Mr. Hickey was a 
farmer of the locality many years, and with 
his wife brought up a family of nine children, 
three sons and six daughters; but all are gone 
now, save two of the daughters. James 
Hickey was one of the sons, and in the time 
of the Civil War was a volunteer in the Irish 
regiment. His poor old mother tried to dis- 
suade him from enlisting; but young blood 
cannot always withstand the excitement of a 
declared war, and James was among those who 
wanted to be in the thick of it. He had his 
desire, but it cost him his precious life. He 
was killed in the sanguinary battle of Cold 
Harbor. He was a young man of valor, and 
his name is treasured among those who laid 
down their lives so worthily for their adopted 
country. 

Mrs. Joshua Wilber, sister of this soldier 
and mother of William T. Wilber, was a de- 



S68 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



scendant of Catholic parents; but her husband, 
Joshua Wilber, was a strict Congregationalist. 
However, after much reading, careful thought, 
and investigation, he was converted to the 
Roman Catholic faith, and has since been a 
devoted adherent of that church. Their chil- 
dren, who were three in number, William T., 
George A., and Joshua Frank, all have learned 
the printer's trade. George and Frank are at 
the present time compositors in the office of 
the Rochester Herald. P'rank is an overseer 
of the type-setting department, where a very 
intricate and delicate machine is used, one 
which has been in an experimental stage for 
the past twenty-five years, but has now be- 
come a finished success. About ten of these 
machines are in use in the building; and, as 
they are so delicately made, only a true 
mechanical genius can handle them. Both 
these brothers are married, and have families. 
Joshua Wilber married for his second wife 
Miss Katherine Spooner, of Brooklyn, N.Y. 

William T. Wilber, the eldest of the three 
brothers, was educated at the Lockport Union 
School and at the Niagara University, where 
he was ordained in 1885, and from which he 
was sent to be assistant priest in West Sen- 
eca, Erie County, and later assistant in Ba- 
tavia, Genesee County. In 1887 he became 
pastor of the church at Dayton, Cattaraugus 
County, where he remained two years ; and in 
1889 he came to Attica to take full charge of 
St. Vincent's Parish. This is a fine church 
property. The edifice was built in 1882, and 
is located on East Avenue and W^alnut Street. 
The present location, so fine and commanding, 
was originally a low mud-flat; and its recla- 
mation is a great advantage to the city. St. 
Vincent's Parish already numbers two hundred 
and twenty-five souls, and is well holding its 
own under the guidance of its present efificient 
pastor and priest, Father Wilber. 

Although comparatively young in years, his 
work represents more than ordinary ability. 
He is a man of research in many fields of 
knowledge, and especially in those writings 
which treat of the tenets of the Roman Catho- 
lic faith. The Rev. William T. Wilber is 
a gentleman of pleasing, genial temperament, 
free from narrowness and dogmatic severity. 



For his many engaging qualities of mind and 
heart Father Wilber is highly esteemed among 
his Protestant brethren, as well as among 
those who are so fortunate as to belong to his 
pastorate. 



EEMUEL C. SHORT, one of the town 
officers of Livonia, Livingston County, 
^ , N.Y., was born in Richmond, On- 
tario County, October 24, 1825. 
His grandfather, Philip Short, was a native 
of Massachusetts, and came to Livingston 
County about 1796, bringing his goods and 
chattels in an ox wagon, and making the jour- 
ney on foot. The tract of land which he 
bought at the foot of Hemlock Lake is still 
owned by one of his descendants. He died in 
1 8 10; and his son, who bore his name, after 
completing the prescribed text-book course of 
the district school, took the management and 
control of the paternal homestead in Livonia, 
building a frame house, which was held to- 
gether by wrought nails, at that time rarely 
used in the country districts. 

Mr. Philip Short, Jr., afterward moved to 
Richmond, Ontario County, where he built a 
log house, in which the original of this 
memoir was born. This humble abode was 
in the course of time replaced by a more com- 
modious frame dwelling, and the father be- 
came prosperous as the tide of years swept on. 
He owned three hundred acres of land in 
Richmond and four hundred in Livonia, be- 
sides other property in the vicinity. He was 
seventy-five years of age when he died. He 
married Miss Alniira Cargill; and to them 
six children were born — Lemuel C, Almira, 
Warren D., Nathan, Caroline, and Sarah. The 
first and second named daughters live in Michi- 
gan. Their mother was seventy-four years old 
when she died. The father had been first mar- 
ried to a Miss Briggs, by whom he had seven 
children. Ransom being the only one living. 

Mr. Lemuel C. Short was educated in the 
district schools of Livonia and at the Genesee 
Wesleyan Seminary of Lima. He purchased 
from his father the farm upon which he now 
lives, and owns one also at Glenville. His 
possessions in the town cover two hundred 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



569 



and fifty acres. The buildings on the prop- 
erty in the country were entirely destroyed by 
fire in 1891, and Mr. Short has since resided 
at his place in Hemlock Lake village. He 
married Mary J. Robinson, of Massachusetts, 
their nine children — Fredlen, Inez, Henry, 
Kitty, Lewis L., Edwin S., Daisy M., James, 
and Nellie — all being deceased except Lewis 
L., Edwin S., and Daisy M. Lewis married 
Miss Carrie Westbrook, and lives in Livonia. 
Daisy, who married Mr. Olis Beam, is also a 
resident of the same town, and Edwin S. is at 
home; so Mr. and Mrs. Short have their chil- 
dren who have been left to gladden their de- 
clining years close at hand to cheer and com- 
fort them. 

Mr. Short deserves the esteem in which his 
neighbors hold him. He has been Commis- 
sioner for six years, having also served as In- 
spector of Elevators and Overseer of the Poor, 
and has discharged the duties of these offices 
faithfully and satisfactorily. His first Presi- 
dential vote was cast for Zachary Taylor, the 
Whig candidate, in 1848. He has been a loyal 
Republican since the formation of that party. 




AD C. PARKER, a resident farmer 
of Sheldon, N.Y., was born at Mar- 
cel lus, Onondaga County, September 
21, 1826. In 1827 his father, Charles Parker, 
settled in Wyoming County, in the town of 
Sheldon, which was originally a part of the 
Holland Purchase. The property was known 
as the Jotham Godfrey farm, and consisted of 
forty acres, ten more of a fine high knoll hav- 
ing been added for a building lot. 

Mr. Parker's grandfather, Samuel Parker, 
who was a man of considerable wealth, also 
came from Marcel lus about eighteen months 
later, and purchased a farm of two hundred 
acres, situated on Barber's Hill, where 
Charles Parker and his family lived for some 
five years. Grandfather Parker was born in 
Vermont in 1777, September 22, and married 
on January 16, 1797, in Onondaga County, 
Miss Asenath P. Lawrence, daughter of Colo- 
nel Bigelow Lawrence. Their children were 
as follows: first, Catherine, wife of L. P. 
Lawrence; second, Sanford C, a lawyer of 



note in Onondaga County; third, Charles, the 
father of Gad C. ; fourth, an infant daughter, 
who died; fifth, Candace D., wife of Jacob M. 
Cook; sixth, Fanny S., wife of Riley Curtis; 
seventh, George B., who was superintendent 
of a salt manufactory, and later associated 
with a bank at Syracuse; eighth, Lawrence, 
who married Fannie Barber, and practised law 
in Lockport, 111. Lawrence Parker died Au- 
gust 21, 1879, at the age of sixty-five years, 
leaving five daughters and one son, all of 
whom had families except George B., who was 
married but had no children. Mr. Parker's 
grandmother died in 1839, aged sixty-five, his 
grandfather Parker in 1849, his mother in 
1869. Sanford C. Parker's wife and George 
B. Parker also died in 1869, so that the num- 
ber nine seems to have had a peculiar signifi- 
cance in the Parker family. 

Charles Parker, son of Samuel and Asenath, 
was born September 26, 1802. He was mar- 
ried April 25, 1825, to Sally Libolt, who was 
born August 28, 1804, in Onondaga County, 
N.Y., of Dutch parentage. It is a family 
tradition that her grandfather in coming from 
Holland lost a large amount of treasure by 
shipwreck. Her father's family consisted of 
the following: Jacob, Abram, Henry, Cathe- 
rine, Eliza, and Almira. In January, 1827, 
Mr. Charles Parker moved on to the Holland 
Purchase, buying fifty acres of land, a part of 
the farm now owned by his sons. Gad C. and 
Guy H., they having bought it of him in 
1868. After the sale of this property Charles 
Parker bought a place for himself in Varys- 
burg with fifty acres of land near the village, 
and living there dealt somewhat in stock, and 
also owned and operated part of a grist-mill. 
In the last few years of his life his health was 
much impaired. He died October 15, 1881. 

Gad C. Parker was the first-born of three 
children of Charles and Sally (Libolt) Parker. 
His sister Eliza was the wife of Dr. Watson, 
deceased, late of Varysburg. In 1868 he and 
his brother, Guy H., bought of their father 
the homestead farm, then consisting of one 
hundred and twenty acres, for which, includ- 
ing the stock and equipments, they paid the 
sum of seven thousand dollars. Previous to 
the Civil War two hundred acres had been 



S/O 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



purchased by Mr. Gad C. Parker, making in 
all three hundred and twenty acres. In Sep- 
tember, 1862, he enlisted in the One Hundred 
and Thirty-sixth Xew York \'olunteer Infan- 
try, Company H., and returned in 1865 as 
First Lieutenant, having served with his com- 
pany from November, 1863, to the close of 
the war. His regiment was with the Army of 
the Potomac one year, and in September, 
1S63, went to the relief of Rosecrans. It 
was with the Army of the Cumberland until 
September, 1864, and then composed a part of 
the left wing of Sherman's army on its famous 
march through Georgia to the sea. Lieuten- 
ant Parker was in twenty-two engagements, 
and skirmishes innumerable, never having 
lost a day's service, and came out in perfect 
condition, merely having been hit by a spent 
ball at Gettysburg. 

He was originally a comrade of Gibbs Post, 
No. 130, Grand Army of the Republic, at 
Warsaw, but later became a charter member 
of Buford Post at Johnsonsburg, and was their 
first Commander, serving five years, and was 
obliged to decline a further election. He at- 
tended Grand Army encampments at Denver, 
Minneapolis, and Pittsburg. 

Mr. Parker is a Royal Arch Mason of War- 
-saw Chapter. He is a Republican in politics, 
and has served as Justice of the Peace. He 
has travelled extensively in this country, hav- 
ing visited seventeen different States in the 
Union. He is unmarried. His brother, Guy 
H. Parker, married Betsey Allen, and has 
three children — George B.. married and a 
teacher; Margaret, aged twelve; and Roy, 
aged eleven years. Mr. Parker is twenty 
years older than his brother, with -whom he is 
associated. They keep twenty-five to thirty- 
five grade Durham cows, sending milk to the 
creamer)' one mile away. Their dwelling was 
erected by their father in 1S36, and thoroughly 
remodelled by them in 1891. 



-OHN BARNARD, Sk., father of Will- 
iam and John Barnard, of Avon, Liv- 
ingston County, N.Y., was born in 
England. He came to Canada as a 
soldier in the English army, and eventually 



settled in Avon, where he was for many years 
a clerk in the Hotel St. George. He after- 
ward devoted himself to agriculture, having 
bought a farm in the village, where he died at 
the age of eighty-four. He married Cathe- 
rine Barrows, who was born on the ocean while 
her parents were crossing from their home in 
England to America. ^Ir. and Mrs. Barnard 
reared these children, namely: Nelson, who 
married Louisa Chase, and had one son, 
Fred; Charles; George, who married Eliza- 
beth Jones; Mary A., who died at the age of 
seventy-four years; Emily, who passed away 
at the age of sixty-nine; Amelia, who married 
Daniel Brown, of Avon; Maria, who married 
William Allison, and had one daughter, now 
the widow of Robert Balch; William; and 
John. 

The two brothers last named are the only 
survivors. They were educated in the dis- 
trict school, and have always lived on the old 
homestead on the bank of the river. They 
can remember when there were no modern 
bridges over the Genesee River, and when all 
the cloth used by the family was woven and 
spun bv their mother. William and John 
Barnard have never married. They have 
voted the Republican ticket since the forma- 
tion of that party, to the principles of which 
they give their hearty support, and all the 
good works of the town receive their cheerful 
co-operation. 




ILLIAM W. KILLIP, a :\Ianxman 
by birth, has been for more than 
forty years a resident of Geneseo, 
N. V. , being a citizen of much prominence in 
civic and social affairs, as well as in musical 
circles. He was born in the Isle of Man in 
June, 1826. His father, whose name was 
John Killip, was the inheritor of a fine farm 
in the parish of Bal laugh, in the northern part 
of the island. He was well educated, a man 
' of influence in the parish, and the fifth John 
Killip who had inherited that farm, and who 
I lived and died thereon. 

Very soon after his death, in April, 1S44, 
, William W. , who had the misfortune of being 
I a third son, came to the United States, and 




W W. KILLIP. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



573 



found employment in a clothing store in Roch- 
ester, N. Y. In September, 1851, Mr. Killip 
moved to Geneseo, where he has since resided. 
He was fairly successful in his clothing store, 
but the business was not congenial. The fam- 
ily was a musical one. He was a fine singer, 
passionately fond of the art, and had conducted 
the music in St. Paul's Church in Rochester, 
where he had a choir of boys in 1850, which 
is believed to have been the introduction of 
boy choirs in this country. Upon his arrival 
at Geneseo he was put in charge of the music 
at St. Michael's, and was the organist and 
conductor of that choir for nearly forty years. 

In the summer of 1857 Mr. Killip gave up 
the clothing store, and devoted himself exclu- 
sively to the study of music in the Normal 
Music School at North Reading, Mass. This 
school was a national one, the students being 
principally teachers of music. Nearly every 
State in the Union' was represented there. 
Dr. Lowell Mason was its principal. Dr. 
George F. Root, George James Webb, and 
others were teachers. 

Mr. Killip soon won a high position in the 
school. He attained great proficiency in his 
chosen profession; and in 1859 he founded a 
normal music school in Geneseo, of which he 
was principal. Professor James M. Tracey, 
then just returned from his studies in Leip- 
sic, and now for many years a teacher in the 
Boston Conservatory of Music, was the teacher 
of the pianoforte. The village soon became a 
centre of musical influence. Messrs. Bassini, 
Bradbury, Cook, North, and other celebrated 
teachers came here and gave lessons. These, 
however, were not connected with Mr. Killip's 
school, which proved a great success. Musical 
compositions of the highest order were ren- 
dered. The "Messiah " was given repeatedly; 
so was the opera of "The Bohemian Girl," 
the cantata of "The Haymakers," and lighter 
works, such as "Lailla" and "The Flower 
Queen." During the winter, when the school 
had no session, Mr. Killip was constantly en- 
gaged as director and conductor of musical 
societies and conventions, and became widely 
known as a skilful and learned exponent of 
music. 

In 1 87 1 he was appointed by General Grant 



Postmaster of Geneseo, being reappointed in 
1875, and again in 1879. The same year 
(187 1) he was appointed manager of the West- 
ern Union Telegraph Company, and still re- 
tains the position. He has also been Com- 
missioner of the United States Deposit Fund 
for Livingston County. He has served the 
town as Assessor, and is now and has been 
for many years its Overseer of the Poor. He 
has been one of the Trustees of the village, a 
member of its Board of Health, and is now its 
Secretary. He is the agent of the American 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Ani- 
mals, and also the Treasurer of the Masonic 
Lodge. He is one of the Wardens of the Plpis- 
copal church, and for a series of years has been 
a delegate to the Diocesan Councils of that 
body, and a member of its missionary board. 

In 1850 Mr. Killip was married to Mary 
Morrison, daughter of Mr. John Morrison, a 
well-known citizen of Rochester. Mrs. Killip 
died in 1888, leaving two daughters. The 
elder, Mary E. , was the wife of Mr. W. K. 
Walker, a druggist residing in Lansing, 
Mich. ; she died in that city in June, 1893. 
Mrs. Walker was an accomplished musician, 
and the first teacher of the pianoforte in the 
Geneseo State Normal School. The other 
daughter, Carrie J., is still living with her 
father. A son, Horace Shepard Killip, 
died in his twelfth year, in 1869. Another 
daughter died in infancy in 1853. 

Mr. Killip is now in great measure retired, 
though still giving valuable service in the 
Geneseo State Normal School, conducting the 
school orchestra, and arranging the music for 
the various societies connected with that insti- 
tution. He is a man of strong personality, 
a natural leader, one who has led a busy life, 
full of kindly aims, generous purposes, and 
useful activities. His portrait on a preced- 
ing page will be recognized and appreciated 
by many who turn over the leaves of this 
volume. 




RNEST ALBERTI DURFEE, a not- 
ably prosperous citizen of Middlebury, 
N.Y., was born July 29, 1826, in 
Fall River, Mass. His paternal grandfather, 



574 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Captain William Durfee, was a farmer in that 
State. Following the old-fashioned method 
of winnowing grain, it is said that Captain 
Durfee caught a severe cold from the draught, 
which resulted in his death. The four chil- 
dren who survived him were: Abbie, Mary, 
William, and Thomas. 

The last-named son, who was born in 1801, 
and who came to Wyoming County in 1831, 
married Sarah Orswell; and of this marriage 
the subject of the present sketch was born. 
Mrs. Durfee's father, Benjamin Orswell, was 
a sailor, whose home was Fall River, ]\Iass., 
where he died at the advanced age of eighty 
vears, his wife living to be ninety. Thomas 
Durfee bought at different times land amount- 
ing to three hundred and thirty acres, upon 
which he put many improvements, and which 
vear by year grew in value. Nine children 
were born to Thomas and Sarah (Orswell) 
Durfee — Thaddeus, who died at ten years of 
age; Ernest A., of this sketch; Orlando, liv- 
ing at home: Regina, who married Mr. John 
Sprague, and died, leaving four children; 
Orpha, who married Mr. Randolph Wight, 
and lives in California; Mary, now Mrs. M. 
Chase, of Warsaw, N.Y.; Abbie, Mrs. George 
Norman, of Boston, Mass. ; Charles, who mar- 
ried Miss Rose Henderson, and lives in Wyo- 
ming, N.Y.: and Thomas, Jr., of Pontiac, 
Mich. Thomas Durfee remained in Wyoming 
from the time of his settlement in this county, 
in his forty-eighth year, until his death. He 
was killed by a falling tree. His widow 
reached the age of seventy-nine. Both were 
liberal supporters of religious and benevolent 
enterprises. He was an active politician, 
being affiliated with the Whig and afterward 
with the Republican party, and was for years 
a Supervisor of the county before its division. 

Ernest A. Durfee was educated in the Wyo- 
ming Academy, and at twenty-one years of 
age went to California in the mining busi- 
ness, but returned to New York in 1850, 
called thither by the death of his father just 
thirteen months after he had left home. He 
immediately took charge of the estate, which 
has under his able management become one of 
the most valuable in this section of the coun- 
try. An orchard of four thousand trees, 



which he set out about twenty years ago, is in 
magnificent bearing condition, and another 
orchard of ten acres 3'ields abundant crops 
of pears of various fine varieties. An osage- 
orange hedge, which he set out some years 
ago, is the finest in the county. Besides 
being the largest and most successful fruit 
grower in this region, Mr. Durfee is also 
greatly interested in stock, and has bred some 
remarkably fine blooded horses, cattle, and 
sheep. Beans and grain are abundant crops 
on the Durfee farm, and Mr. Ernest A. Dur- 
fee has shown an unusual facilit}' in conduct- 
ing the various branches of agricultural and 
horticultural enterprise in which he has been 
engaged. Although he is a single man, his 
busy life seems to be full and complete with 
its daily round of duties and its manifold 
interests. 



SRANKLIN J. CLAPP, a practical 
farmer of the modern type, was born 
in York, in the western part of Living- 
ston County, in 1842, and from that time to 
the present has been a resident of the town, 
although he has not always lived in the same 
place. The first farm purchased by him was 
at Greigsville, where he resided for three 
years. In 1870 he bought the farm of one 
hundred and fifty acres in the south-west part 
of the town which he now occupies. 

His grandfather, Nathan B. Clapp, who was 
born in Connecticut, emigrated from that 
State to New York, and settled in Livingston 
County. He brought his wife and six chil- 
dren, the journey being made in a lumber 
wagon, in which were packed all their worldly 
possessions. Mr. Clark bought fifty acres of 
uncultivated land, which he cleared, and built 
thereon a frame house, one of the first in this 
section of the country. He was industrious 
and energetic, and at the time of his death, 
when eighty-two years of age, was the posses- 
sor of a fine farm of one hundred acres. He 
and his wife, whose maiden name was Eunice 
Durfee, were the parents of the following 
children: Charles, Erastus, Lucy, Emily, 
Carrie, George W., James D., Thomas B., 
and Lowell H. Erastus Clapp, the second 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



S7S 



son of Nathan and the father of the subject 
of this biography, was engaged in farming 
throughout his life, owning one hundred and 
forty acres of land. He married Mary A. 
Rippey, daughter of Hugh Rippey, of York, 
and died at the age of forty-nine years, leav- 
ing two children — Franklin J. and William 
H. Clapp. 

Franklin J. Clapp was educated in the dis- 
trict schools of his native town and at Temple 
Hill Academy at Geneseo. In 1876 he mar- 
ried Helen McElroy, the daughter of Samuel 
McElroy, of York; and they have reared three 
children — Minnie, Ena, and Clarence E. 
Mr. Clapp is a useful and valued citizen. He 
is a member of the Equitable Aid Union and 
also of the Select Knights. He has always 
been a Republican, having cast his first Presi- 
dential vote for Abraham Lincoln in 1864. 




"GRACE ENGLISH was born Decem- 
ber 26, 1 8 14, at Norway, Herkimer 
County, N.Y. His mother, of 
German descent, her maiden name 
being Mary Spraker, was born and reared 
at Sprakers, Fulton County. She married 
Thomas English, and was the mother of four 
children — Rachel, Horace, Elizabeth, and 
Sarah. The father dying and leaving his 
family in very reduced circumstances, the 
mother was forced to take upon herself the 
heavy burden of supporting and caring for 
the children, duties which she discharged 
faithfully and well. She was a devoted 
Christian, of more than ordinary intelligence 
and ability, with a very retentive memory 
and untiring energy. 

Horace's early life was passed in poverty 
and toil, with verj^ few advantages for getting 
an education. His mother taught him his 
early lessons. When he was ten years old, 
he went to live as a farmer's chore boy with a 
Mr. Richards, who was to clothe him and 
.send him to school three months the first 
year. He proved to be a very hard master. 
The boy went without shoes long after the 
frosty nights in the fall; and, being obliged 
to arise in the morning at the dawn of day to 
bring up the cows, he would warm his nearly 



frozen feet by standing on the ground where 
the cows had lain through the night. In the 
fall, when he commenced going to school, he 
was considered well equipped for business, 
being the possessor of a Willet's Geog- 
raphy, Murray's Grammar, and a spell- 
ing-jjook. These he studied until he could 
repeat them from beginning to end. The 
ne.xt year he fared somewhat better. He had 
ten dollars in money, and his mother fur- 
nished some of his clothing. The third year 
he had thirty dollars, and gave his mother fif- 
teen of it to buy a cook-stove. From that 
time he gave her a liberal portion of his earn- 
ings as long as she lived, or till she was over 
eighty years of age. 

He left Mr. Richards after the third year, 
and worked for farmers summers and pursued 
his studies winters, at first in the district 
school and later at the Fairfield Academy, 
then a flourishing institution of learning. 
He and another young man from his neighbor- 
hood roomed together and boarded themselves. 
After leaving the academy he taught school 
for some time, giving great satisfaction, espe- 
cially in grammar and mathematics. He, 
however, soon tired of this, on account of the 
custom in those days of teachers "boarding 
around," which was to him very disagreeable, 
and came to Newport, and was engaged as a 
clerk in the dry-goods store of Perry Brothers 
for several years. They, being anxious to 
dispose of the store on account of the death 
of one of the brothers, persuaded Horace and 
Leonidas Benchley to take it. Horace soon 
found that the business required more capital 
than he could command, and having an offer 
for his interest accepted it. He then went to 
Columbus, Pa., where he engaged in the tan- 
ning business with his brother-in-law, Will- 
iam Weller, as a partner. He did not remain 
in company with him very long, but bought 
out his partner's interest, and shortly after 
added the manufacture of boots and shoes. 
There was very little money in circulation at 
the time, business being mostly transacted by 
exchange, with shingles and lumber for cur- 
rency. Men would build rafts with their 
lumber, then pile the shingles on to the rafts, 
and float them to market on the Allegany and 



S76 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Ohio Rivers to Cincinnati and other points 
along the river. The business was quite 
profitable, but very hazardous. Some lost 
their lives by being washed off the rafts, 
while others would come home suffering from 
rheumatism caused by the great exposure. 

In 1S46, having been in Columbus about 
ten years, Mr. English sold his property, and 
in the fall took a trip through the West as far 
as Kansas, and was very favorably impressed 
with the appearance of the country. He 
formed the acquaintance of several gentlemen 
living there, who were very much interested 
in inducing people to settle, and made him 
some offers which he thought were quite gen- 
erous, so concluded to accept them. He pur- 
chased a lot, let the job of building a ware- 
house; and in March, 1856, he with his wife 
and her brother, Jerome Weller, removed to 
Quindaro, Kan., on the Missouri River, and 
engaged in the forwarding, commission, and 
wholesale grocery business. Besides being 
very dangerous, the business was very hard 
and unpleasant on account of so many steam- 
boats landing in the night. The slavery 
question was being hotly contested at this 
time, and every free-State man was a target 
for the slave-State men to shoot at. Mrs. 
English left Quindaro with some friends from 
Cincinnati the ist of November; but Horace 
remained until navigation closed on the river, 
when he joined his wife in that city, and re- 
mained until spring, boarding in the family 
of Ereeman Cary, brother of the Hon. Samuel 
Cary. 

\Vhen the time came for him to return to 
Quindaro, his evil star seemed to be in the as- 
cendant. In going from the hotel to the sta- 
tion in Cincinnati, his valise was taken from 
the top of the omnibus, probably with the 
expectation that it contained money, as he 
drew quite a sum from the bank tlie day be- 
fore; and it was never seen again. When he 
reached St. Louis the boats had not com- 
menced running, and he was obliged to take 
the stage. When near Boonville the stage 
tipped over, and his head was so badly cut 
that he had to remain there for some time. 
Upon arriving in Kansas he was not feeling 
well, but kept around until the middle of the 



summer, wlien lie was stricken down with a 
fever, and remained ill for a long time. As 
soon as he was able to be about, he arranged 
his business as best he could, and returned to 
Cincinnati, a mere shadow of his former self. 
There are now among his old papers notes for 
large amounts due him from men who were at 
that time hokling high positions in the Terri- 
tory. These notes and accounts were put into 
the hands of a lawyer for collection; but 
nothing was collected, and they were left 
until outlawed. 

In 1S59 he went to Freeport, 111., where he 
took the contract of fitting up the State fair 
grounds, which proved very successful. In 
i860 he came to Arcade, and engaged in the 
tanning business, which he continued for 
about ten years, when his health was so im- 
paired that he sold out to Wilson & Clough, 
and remained out of active business for five or 
six years. He then engaged in the jewelry 
business with A. H. Carter, which partner- 
ship was continued three years, when he pur- 
chased Mr. Carter's interest, and took his son 
Harlow in company with him. They carried 
on the business very successfully together 
until the infirmities of old age were quite 
heav)- upon Mr. English, when he sold out to 
his son, who now carries it on. 

In 1887 Harlow D. W. English, his only 
child, married Sarah E. Schutt, whom he 
brought to the parental home, where they 
lived for some time; and in December, 1SS9, 
a son was born to them — Stuart Gordon Eng- 
lish. Horace English was passionately fond 
of children, and was often seen to place his 
hand upon a child's head and ask God to bless 
it. When he came to have a grandchild of 
his own, his joy and thanksgiving were be- 
yond description. He watched over him with 
the greatest solicitude, and could hardly be 
separated from iiim. His home was the 
pleasantest place on earth to him. He was 
always striving to add to it some new comfort 
or convenience, and never had any time to 
hang around grog-shops and saloons. 

He was a practical business man of large 
experience, with the principles of honesty and 
righteous dealing firmly implanted in his 
nature. He was a member of the Congrega- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



577 



tional church, of which he acted as Treasurer 
for several years. He was a Republican in 
politics, neither seeking for or caring to hold 
office. The last three years of his life were 
very enjoyable. He was a great reader, al- 
ways keeping himself abreast of the times. 
lie departed this life March 4, 1893, at the 
age of seventy-eight years. In his last ill- 
ness he received the kindest and tenderest 
care, not only from his own family, but from 
his neighbors and friends, who seemed to vie 
with each other in showing their love and 
respect. 




RS. SARAH A. ENGLI.SH, 
widow of Horace English, who is 
passing her declining days very 
quietly at her residence at Ar- 
cade, where she enjoyed a most happy wedded 
life for over thirty years, was born at New- 
port, Herkimer County, and is of New Eng- 
land ancestry, being on her mother's side the 
descendant of a pioneer in that county. Her 
father, Israel Weller, established himself suc- 
cessfully at Newport in the hatter's business, 
but had the misfortune to lose it through an 
act of generosity in the indorsement of notes 
for the accommodation of fellow business men, 
who eventually failed, carrying their kind- 
hearted helper with them in the wreck. Mr. 
Weller afterward located at Fowlerville for a 
time, and later removed to Farmersville, Cat- 
taraugus County, where he died at about the 
age of seventy, leaving a widow and a large 
family of children, the former proving her love 
and womanly devotion by being a patient and 
ready helpmate in the hour of his affliction. 

The mother of Mrs. linglish was a daughter 
of Uriah Hawkins, a Revolutionary patriot 
and a native of Rhode Island, who settled in 
Herkimer County, residing at first in a log 
house and undergoing the many vicissitudes 
of a pioneer. He made a good use of the vast 
resources which, until the advent of the pio- 
neer in the Empire State, lay dormant, and 
died at an advanced age upon the farm he had 
industriously brought to a state of fruitful 
cultivation. His wife, Mrs. English's grand- 
mother, whose name before marriage was 



Mary Keith, was a native of Scotland. She 
reared a family of nine children. 

Her daughter, Sally Hawkins, Mrs. Israel 
Weller, the mother of Mrs. I'^nglish, had 
twelve children, ten of whom reached matu- 
rity, among them being the following: Fred- 
erick U.; Sarah A.; John II.; Ralph; and 
Jerome H., who was a Captain in the Civil 
War, and was badly wounded in the shoulder. 
Ralph was also in the war, and was shot 
through the hand, the cords of three of his 
fingers being severed. Lloyd Weller, a 
nephew, and a mere boy, was so fired with 
patriotism that he volunteered, and held the 
rank of Corporal. When on picket duty, he 
was shot through the body, and died in a few 
hours. The other children have all passed 
away. The mother was tenderly cared for 
during the sunset of her life by her affection- 
ate daughter, at whose residence she died at 
the age of eighty-four, having been a member 
of the Congregational church for many years. 




^DWARD A. PIERCE, a highly esteemed 
citizen and e.\-Postmaster of Castile, 
Wyoming County, N.Y., was born 
in the town of Brooklyn, Conn., January 12, 
1 841. His grandfather, Jacob Pierce, was born 
in Connecticut, and was of Welsh descent. 
He carried on a farm in that State, and died 
there before reaching old age, leaving a family 
of seven children; namely, Henry, Charles, 
Jacob, George, Marcia, Lucy, and David. 

David Pierce, the eldest of these children, 
and father of Edward A., was born in Con- 
necticut, November 5, 1787. At the age of 
twenty-five, the W^ar of 18 12 having been de- 
clared, he entered the army as a private; and 
at its close he returned to his former occupa- 
tion in the tanning and shoe business, which 
he had been learning since leaving school, 
and which he now practised with unusual 
success. In 1844 he sold out, and with his 
family moved to the town of Castile in New 
York State, where he purchased about sixty 
acres of land, which had been already put 
under partial cultivation. He remodelled the 
various buildings, and improved the land, 
creating for himself and family a comfortable 



578 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



and attractive home. Here he peacefully 
ended his days, January 6, 1874. 

In May, 1832, David Pierce was married to 
Elizabeth Allen, who was born in 1802, and 
whose father, Ephraim Allen, was a native of 
Rhode Island. He was a sea captain: and at 
the time of the French War he fell into the 
enemy's hands, and was kept in prison for a 
long period of time, but finally, being lib- 
erated, he returned to home and friends, and 
died serenely among them at last of old age. 
He was the father of four children — Eliza- 
beth, Ephraim, Abbie, and Julia. David and 
Elizabeth Pierce had three children. George, 
born June 2, 1834, was a member of Company 
E, Second New York Mounted Rifles, was 
mortally wounded in the battle of Petersburg, 
and died soon after, June 30, 1864, in Mount 
Pleasant Hospital at Washington ; Edward 
A. is the principal character of this sketch; 
Abbie, born May i, 1838, died October 7 of 
the same year. Mrs. Pierce lived to the 
advanced age of ninety-two years, both she 
and her husband being active members of the 
Presbyterian church in Castile. In politics 
David Pierce was a Republican. 

Edward A. Pierce was three years old when 
his father removed from Connecticut to New 
York State, and had the advantage afforded of 
attending the district schools in this locality 
in his boyhood. On reaching his eighteenth 
year he went to Massachusetts to learn the 
machinist's trade; but, as in the case of his 
father, the emergency of the country in the 
breaking out of a war called for his sympathy 
and aid, and accordingly he enlisted in 186 1 
in Company F, Seventh Massachusetts Volun- 
teers, under Captain Bliss. He served as a 
private three years, in 1864 being in the 
Army of the Potomac, which was then under 
the command of General Grant, and was in 
the sanguinary battle of the W'ilderness, May 
5 and 6 of that year. After his discharge in 
June he did not return home immediately, but 
spent three years in railroad operations in the 
West. He went home later, however, and in 
1868 took charge of the farm, remaining there 
for about six years. His father's death at that 
time gave opportunity for a change; and, aban- 
doning farming, he engaged in the insurance 



business, until in 1888 he was appointed Post- 
master at Castile. He was succeeded in that 
office after his term had expired by L. G. Cole- 
man, by whom he was made Deputy Postmaster. 
Edward A. Pierce was married in 1867 to 
Miss Jennie Lynch, who was born August 8, 
1850, in Thomasburg, Ontario. She was a 
daughter of F'rancis and Rachel (Needham) 
Lynch, who were the parents of eight children 

— Elizabeth, Mary, Thomas, Francis, Walter, 
William, Jennie, and John. Mr. Lynch, who 
was a progressive farmer, lived to be seventy- 
eight and his wife to be sixty-eight years of 
age. Mr. and i\Irs. Pierce have two children 

— Cornelia M., born March 6, 1868, whose 
home is at Castile; and Frederick G., born 
April 22, 1872, who is the head book-keeper 
at the Union Car Company's works in Buf- 
falo. Mr. and Mrs. Pierce are members of 
the Presbyterian church in Castile. 

Mr. Pierce is a Republican, and served as 
a member of the legislature in 1886 and 1887. 
Besides being Postmaster, he has been Super- 
visor seven years, a Trustee of the corporation 
in successive terms, and has taken an active 
part in all social and public improvements of 
the town. He is a member of the Oakland 
Lodge, A. F. & A. M., No. 379, at Castile, 
Wyoming Chapter, No. 181, at Warsaw, the 
DeMolay Commandery, No. 22, at Hornells- 
ville, Steuben County, N.Y., a member of 
the Corning Consistory of Corning, the Is- 
mailia Temple of Buffalo, and also belongs to 
the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, No. 
I, of Rochester, and Pierce Post, No. 488, 
Grand Army of the Republic, of Castile. 
Mr. Pierce has a pleasant residence on Wash- 
ington Street in Castile, where he has gath- 
ered the refinements of life about him. He is 
a well-read man, evidently holding that edu- 
cation is a continuous process, and that he 
who would uplift as well as cheer his fellows 
must often hold converse with the world's 
great thinkers. 



"C^/lLLlA^ 
YfeV/ George 



AM O. THOMPSON, son of 
rge Thompson, a Livingston 
County farmer, is a well-known, 
enterprising, and prosperous native citizen of 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



579 



the town of Ossian, Livingston County. He 
made his entrance to this world on the 9th of 
April, i866,.being of Scottish ancestry on the 
paternal side. 

George Thompson was born in Scotland, 
and when a mere boy started with his father 
and mother for America. Both parents died 
on the passage across the ocean ; and he was 
left an orphan without means, having but 
twenty-five cents in his pocket when he 
landed. He spent his early years in Canada, 
where he learned the blacksmith's trade, at 
which he worked until about twenty-five years 
old. Having accumulated some money, he 
came to New York State in 1861, and buying 
his present property engaged in mixed hus- 
bandry. Inheriting in a marked degree the 
habits of industry and thrift common to his 
Scotch ancestors, he made great progress in 
his labors, and continually added to the im- 
provements of his farm, which is now one of 
the best in the locality. He married Jane 
Hewes, a daughter of Owen Hewes, an enter- 
prising farmer, and one of the early settlers 
of the town. Mr. Hewes was one of the 
brave men that Ossian sent to the front dur- 
ing the late Rebellion, having enlisted in 
1862 in Company G, Thirteenth New York 
\'olunteer Infantr)\ with which he served 
twenty months, being an active participant 
in many engagements. Two children were 
born to Mr. and Mrs. George Thompson — 
William O., of the present sketch; and 
George G. Both parents are practical Chris- 
tian people and consistent members of the 
Presbyterian church, of which the father is a 
Trustee. 

^^'illiam O. Thompson has passed the major 
part of his life on the paternal homestead. 
After leaving the village school, where he ac- 
quired his elementary education, he attended 
the Canaseraga Seminarv, and has since de- 
voted his attention to agricultural pursuits, 
he and his brother assisting their father in the 
management of his two farms, one of which 
comprises seventy-five acres and the other 
eighty-three acres of fertile and rich land. 
In addition to general farming they do a 
profitable business in the surrounding country 
during the hanesting season, threshing grain 



and pressing hay, their machines being oper- 
ated by means of a steam-engine. A sketch 
of his brother, George G. Thompson, will be 
found elsewhere in this biographical work. 

In 1885 Mr. William O. Thompson was 
united in marriage with Miss Jennie E. 
Blank, a daughter of Perry and Mary Jane 
Blank, the former of whom was born in Dans- 
ville, and the latter in Ossian. Mr. Blank is 
well known throughout this section of the 
county as an able and skilful farmer and a 
man of influence in his community. The 
union of iMr. and Mrs. Thompson has been 
brightened by the birth of one child, a boy, 
whom they have named La \'erne. In his 
political views Mr. Thompson affiliates with 
the Republican party, and is now serving as 
Justice of the Peace, having been elected in 
1893 for a term of four years. He is a man 
of deep religious convictions, and is a valued 
member of the Presbyterian church. 



■AMES RAFFERTY, of East Java, a 
well-known railroad contractor, was 
born in Paterson, X.J., April 3, 1828. 
His parents, John and Marj- (IMcGuire) 
Rafiferty, were from Ireland, his father being 
a native of County Louth, bom in 1789. 
They came to America in 1825, bringing 
with them their two children; and upon set- 
tling in New Jersey the husband and father 
soon received employment with a silk manu- 
facturing company in Paterson, taking charge 
of the water-power of the factory. A few 
years later, in 1832, he came to Java with a 
horse team, and settled on a hundred acres of 
wooded land near Java Centre. Here he built 
a rough cabin of unhewn logs as a habitation 
for wife and bairns; and the grace of home 
was gradually added to the humble abode as 
the years sped, bringing new cares and joys. 
Mrs. Rafferty"s three brothers — Lawrence, 
Owen, and Richard McGuire — had come to 
Java some time before the arrival of the 
Raffertys. These brothers had drifted into 
Pennsylvania on the ]Maunch Canal, which 
was being built at that time, and from there 
had come to Java Centre, where they bought 
fifty acres of land apiece and one hundred 



sSo 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



acres adjoining for their brother-in-law. 
They were industrious and frugal, and in a 
comparatively short time had cosey homes for 
their families. 

Mr. and Mrs. John Rafferty lost one little 
daughter. The children who grew up were: 
Julia, the wife of John Ouinlin, a farmer near 
Java; John, a conductor on the Grand Trunk 
Railroad, who was knocked from the top of a 
car by a bridge and killed instantly in 1S57, 
when he was but twenty-one years of age; 
Peter, a stock breeder in Finney County, 
Kansas; ^lary, the widow of Michael Murphy, 
who died in Racine, Wis. ; and James, of this 
sketch, who was a child of five years of age 
when his father moved to Java, and remembers 
distinctly the arrival at his uncle's house — 
how the)' left the wagon in the road three- 
quarters of a mile from the cabin, through the 
cracks of which the glint of the fire in the old 
Dutch fireplace gave a cheerful welcome to 
the wayfarers as they approached. 

James Rafferty attended the district school 
in his boyhood, and between school terms 
worked on his father's farm until he was 
twenty. He then ser\ed a three and a half 
years' apprenticeship in Scottsville, Monroe 
County, under a wagon-maker, receiving only 
thirty dollars the first year. In 1850 he went 
to Rahway, X.J., where he followed his trade 
for nearly three years, at the end of which 
time he came to Rochester, where he re- 
mained for ten or a dozen years. Titusville 
in Pennsylvania was at that time making won- 
derful strides in development; and James 
Rafferty and a friend, whose name was Sey- 
mour, decided to try their fortunes in the em- 
brj'o metropolis. So, taking their earnings 
thither, they bought an old disused mill-shed 
there, and opened a wagon-shop, under the 
firm name of Rafferty & Seymour. Notwith- 
standing the evil prognostications of certain 
sceptical friends, the enterprise prospered be- 
yond the brightest anticipations of the young 
men themselves. They soon had established 
a good business at paying prices. Mr. Raf- 
ferty hired a team and driver, and had freight 
transported between Titusville and Pithole; 
and so successful was this enterprise that as 
much as forty dollars was sometimes earned 



in one day in this way. In eight months the 
shop was sold at a clear profit of five thousand 
dollars. Returning to Java Mr. Rafferty im- 
mediately invested some of his earnings in a 
five-hundred-acre farm in Java, and put the 
remaining out at interest. 

It was just after the purchase of this farm 
that he began his railroad career, commencing 
at first as a laborer on the Erie & Pittsburg 
Road, and gradually working his way up until 
his present position was attained. His first 
work was under the Casemans, who were after- 
ward connected with the Union Pacific route. 
A few years later he became a contractor and 
one of the firm of Craigie, Rafferty & Yeo- 
mans, who built the Narrow Gauge Road in 
Potter and McKean Counties, Pennsylvania, 
the elevated road in Rochester, the double 
track in Erie County from Hornellsville to 
Buffalo, besides various lines in New York, 
Pennsylvania, and Michigan. The value of 
the public works built by these gentlemen 
would not be overestimated if counted in the 
millions. In 1881 they built the T. V. & C. 
line, now known as the B. A. & O. ; and to 
Mr. Raffert}', who advanced most of the capi- 
tal for its construction, the honor of its origin 
is due. 

The beautiful Lake Java, which is the 
source of Buffalo and Cattaraugus Creeks, is 
situated on one of Mr. Rafferty's three farms 
near Java. The reservoir is a half mile wide 
and three- quarters of a mile in length. It is 
owned by Mr. Rafferty and Mr. Daniel O. 
Day; and its value can scarcely be estimated 
when one reflects upon its future capacities as 
a fishery or ice and water supply of Warsaw 
or some neighboring town. Mr. Rafferty 
lives on one of his farms in East Java, where 
he dispenses the generous hospitality of his 
bachelor quarters to his friends. He is a 
famous hunter and angler, and may often be 
seen armed with gun or rod, footing it over 
hill and dale in quest of his favorite sport. 
He is in political faith a Democrat and in re- 
ligious belief a Roman Catholic. He has 
contributed to the erection of three of Java's 
churches, one of which is the largest of any 
rural town in the county, if not in the State. 
The modest home near Lake Java is very pop- 




DANIEL MCMILLAN. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



583 



ular, although as yet no mistress has been in- 
stalled therein to enhance or perchance dispel 
the charm of masculine freedom. 



/®Yo 



EORGE HARRINGTON, a former 
% •) I esteemed resident of Wyoming 
County, resided in Gainesville, 
N.Y., from March 31, 1828, to 1885, in 
which year he removed to Warsaw, where he 
died November i, 1888. His father, Eleazer 
Harrington, and his mother, Dimeras, daugh- 
ter of George King, were born in Smithfield, 
R.I., about 1770. George was the seventh 
of their eight children. He was born in Nor- 
wich, N.Y., September 14, 1806. His 
schooling was ended early by the accidental 
death of his father; but he made the most of 
his opportunities, and acquired a considerable 
fund of knowledge by means of a quick per- 
ception, a keen intelligence, and a naturally 
strong memory. He was eminently a man of 
common sense. He knew grammar without 
having learned its technical rules, and he used 
the vernacular with a precision and force 
which many learned men do not attain. He 
devoted himself to mechanical pursuits, and 
had a good general information and technical 
skill in his chosen calling. At the age of 
twenty-one he was a master mechanic, and for 
thirty years was a prominent builder. The 
summer he was twenty he spent in Provi- 
dence, R.I.; and he also visited Albany and 
New York City, coming to the Genesee coun- 
try at the age of twenty-one. His first Presi- 
dential vote was cast for Jackson. He voted 
for Van Buren in 1840 and in 1848, for 
Fremont in 1856, and for the candidates 
of the Republican party afterward. His 
shrewd common sense and practical knowl- 
edge were appreciated by his fellow-towns- 
men ; and he served as School Trustee for 
twelve years, the exceptional excellence of the 
schools during his occupancy of this position 
showing his zealous and intelligent work in 
their behalf. 

He was first married at Gainesville, N.Y., 
to Lamira, daughter of the Hon. William Bris- 
tol. Lamira Bristol was born in Gainesville, 
June 27, 181 5, and died September 14, 1849. 



There were four sons of this marriage — Au- 
gustus, a lawyer at Warsaw; George Sherman, 
born July 21, 1837; Charles Herbert, born 
March 3, 1844, who resides in Chicago; and 
Francis Bristol, born December 21, 1845, 
who has resided in Nebraska since 1874. 
Francis B. was under eighteen at the outbreak 
of the Rebellion. Augustus was Captain in 
the One Hundred and Thirty-sixth New York 
Volunteers. George S. was Sergeant in Com- 
pany A, One Hundred and Thirtieth New 
York Volunteers, afterward known as First 
New York Dragoons, and was wounded in the 
battle of Deserted House, Va. Charles H., 
after two years' gallant service in the Fifth 
New York Cavalry, was commissioned Lieu- 
tenant by Governor Morgan. 

Mr. Harrington's second marriage occurred 
June 17, 1851, to Sarah A. Johnson, who died 
December 4, 1884. The four children of this 
marriage are all deceased. 

Mr. Harrington was a man of symmetrical 
character. His life was without stain, and 
he was upright and faithful in all the duties 
of citizenship. He was an early, earnest, and 
practical worker in the cause of temperance. 
Probably few men with opinions as pro- 
nounced and convictions equally decided cher- 
ished fewer animosities. He felt manly in- 
dignation at wrong, while he had a broad 
mantle of charity for the wrong-doer. He 
was a good citizen, a kind neighbor, a devoted 
parent, a man \vho did his duty as he saw it, 
in every walk of life. 



Ji 



ANiEL McMillan, 1801-1895. 

■ Like a river of water in a dry place. 
Like tlie shadow of a great roc]< in 
weary land." 



No other words could more fitly describe the 
life and character of Daniel McMillan in the 
community where he resided. 

-Scotland bred his father at a time when 
Covenanters and Puritans were made, men of 
iron consciences hammered out upon the anvil 
of adversity. The noble characteristics of a 
sterling ancestry were transmitted and indel- 
ibly stamped upon the son. He was a man 



584 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



of deep religious conviction, an exacting con- 
science, stern probity, and indomitable will. 
No one could justly say of him that he ever 
countenanced or did an unjust act. He loved 
truth and disdained wrong. The stricken- 
hearted found in him a friend, and the needy 
a helping hand. His heart, when moved by 
sympathy, was as tender as a woman's; but, 
when duty called him, he was fearless. He 
had an eye and an iron nerve which few men 
could withstand whenever he was moved to 
action in any matter. 

Large-hearted and fearless, he was foremost 
among the few men who first openly stood up 
against the field of opposition to the freedom 
of the slaves. He organized the antislavery 
movement in the Genesee valley in the face of 
an opposition that burned the buildings in 
which they met above his head. Smooth- 
shaven until Sumter was fired upon, he per- 
mitted no razor to touch his face until every 
slave was free; and ever after he wore his 
beard as the white badge of freedom. 

His father, John Mc^Iillan, came from 
Perthshire, Scotland, during the latter part of 
the last century, and settled in the Mohawk 
valley at Johnstown. He had three sons — 
Duncan, Hugh, and Daniel ; and, as the two 
eldest came to manhood, they chafed within 
the narrow limits of their first home, and 
longed for the freedom of a wider range. 
The fame of the valley of the Genesee had 
reached them ; and in 181 2 the family moved 
into their forest home, and settled at York, on 
the western slope of that most beautiful of all 
the fertile valleys of this or any other country. 
The first journey from Johnstown to this fron- 
tier home was made in eleven days. Ten 
years later the trip was made by carriage over 
the new State road in five days. The last 
visit made by Daniel to his birthplace was 
during his ninetieth year, when the run was 
made from Buffalo to Fonda, a distance of two 
hundred and fifty-four miles, by the "Empire 
E.xpress ' ' in five hours. 

Daniel was the youngest son. He attended 
school at Caledonia, and at one time planned 
to take up the study of medicine; but in 1828 
he married Margaret, daughter of Malcolm 
McNaughton, and settled on a portion of the 



tract taken up by his father. In this same 
year he associated with others, and founded 
the Reformed Presbyterian Congregation of 
York, of which for more than sixty years he 
has been a Ruling Elder. He was active in 
the Presbyteries, and as late as his ninetieth 
year he was a delegate to the synods of the Re- 
formed church. 

Born two years after the death of Washing- 
ton, he lacked less than seven years of span- 
ning the entire century. His first vote was 
cast for General Jackson in 1824, and he lived 
under every President save two. He knew 
Red Jacket, and .sat with him and talked with 
him about the camp fires seventy years ago in 
the forests both east and west of the Genesee. 
He was fond of social companionship, and had 
marked conversational powers. A sincere 
lover of nature and of wide range in travel, he 
had put some of Europe and much of our own 
country under his feet. 

Of his ten children seven lived to maturity; 
but none survive him save his son, the Hon. 
Daniel H. McMillan, of Buffalo, and Mrs. 
John Ackroyd West, of Peoria, 111. His sons, 
the Hon. Malcolm M. McMillan and Duncan 
A. McMillan, died in Boonville, Mo., in 
1880. John D. died in early manhood, in 
1854. Anna F., wife of A. F. McKean, of 
York, died in 1871 ; and Mary C. , wife of the 
Hon. John B. Hamilton, of Rush, died in 
1876. 

Although his physical strength was depleted, 
his intellectual vigor continued with him to 
the end. His life was grand, his death was 
peaceful. God touched him as he sat at the 
table dining with his children and grandchil- 
dren, and the wing of death spread over him 
and he passed to rest. 

As he sleeps in the quiet old churchyard at 
York, the beautiful words of his namesake and 
kinsman seem most appropriate : 

•■ The wind, among the gravestones softly creeping. 
Breathes in low sighs the grief it fears to tell : 
The clouds in sable garb bend o'er him weeping, 
Sent by the hand of Him he loved so well." 

The portrait of this "grand old man," which 
appears on an adjoining page, is a fitting 
accompaniment to this brief memoir. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



58s 



M 



R. ROBERT J. MENZIE is one of 
the best-known citizens of Living- 
ston County, not only on account of 
his old-established and very exten- 
sive medical practice, but also by reason of 
the interest he has shown in public affairs. 
As his name indicates. Dr. Menzie is of 
Scotch descent, his grandfather, Robert Men- 
zie, coming to this country from "the land o' 
cakes " in the latter part of the eighteenth 
century. He had a long and stormy passage; 
and many weeks elapsed before he, his wife, 
and his two children landed at New York 
City. They set forth from that place for 
Johnstown, N.Y., in a wagon; and some idea 
of the task the family had before them in pre- 
paring a home in this country may be gained 
from the fact that by far the most valuable of 
their earthly possessions at that time was 
an ox. 

About 181 I the family removed to Riga; 
and Robert Menzie took up five hundred acres 
of land, so heavily wooded that he had to 
clear a site for the erection of the log cabin 
in which they began housekeeping. The 
dangers incidental to setting up housekeeping 
in a virgin country in those days are illus- 
trated by the fact that the family found it 
advisable to leave the cabin and stand at a 
safe distance from it on many occasions dur- 
ing the first period of clearing the land, for 
fear that the huge tree which was being felled 
would fall on the house and crush it. 

In the progress of time the father of the 
family died, and was succeeded by his son 
John, the father of the subject of this sketch, 
who was born at Johnstown in 1803. He re- 
ceived his education at the district schools of 
Riga, and remained a farmer all his life, 
which was passed entirely on the homestead 
farm, with the exception of the few years 
which had passed between the time of his 
birth and the family's removal there. 

He married Mary Anderson, the daughter 
of Peter Anderson, who was of Scotch de- 
scent; and they reared nine children, whose 
names were: Peter, Ann, Jeanette, Mary, 
Catherine, Elizabeth, Christie, John, and 
Robert J. 

Dr. Robert Menzie was born May 21, 1833. 



He received the rudiments of his education at 
the district schools of Riga, entered upon the 
higher branches at the old Riga Academy, 
and then, after passing a few years on the 
farm, attended a medical school at Pittsfield, 
Mass., and later entered the Buffalo Univer- 
sity, from which he received a diploma in 
1866. Dr. Menzie began the practice of his 
profession at Caledonia in the same year; 
and, as he has remained there ever since, he 
has nearly completed thirty years of active 
service in that town and vicinity in the hon- 
ored capacity of family physician. That he 
perceives the advantages gained by the com- 
munion of those engaged in the same profes- 
sion is indicated by the fact that he is a 
member of the American Medical Associa- 
tion, the New York State Medical Associa- 
tion, the Central New York Association, and 
the Livingston County Medical Society. He 
is interested in educational matters, and has 
been a School Trustee for fifteen years. Dr. 
Menzie is a man of fixed principles and firm 
opinions. He is an earnest believer in the 
Democratic party, cast his first vote for 
Stephen A. Douglas in i860, and has voted 
the Democratic ticket ever since. He holds 
a high position in the esteem of the residents 
of Caledonia and vicinity as a physician, as 
an individual, and as a public-spirited citizen 
who is closely identified with the advance- 
ment of the best interests of the community, 
and who spares neither study nor personal 
effort in the furtherance of causes which have 
to do with the present or future welfare of the 
people. 

Dr. Menzie became a benedict some nine 
years before he received the title of M.D., 
when in 1857 he was married to Anna, the 
daughter of John and Margaret McPherson. 
One child was born to them — Robert A., 
who is engaged in a manufacturing business at 
Caledonia, and who married Jennie Car- 
ruthers, of Bergen. Mrs. Anna (INIcPherson) 
Menzie was removed by death ; and Dr. Men- 
zie took for a second wife Catherine Cameron, 
daughter of Alexander and Lydia (McNaugh- 
ton) Cameron. They have had two children 
— Alexander E. and William D. ; but Will- 
iam died May 5, 1893, at the age of fourteen. 



586 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 




UGUSTUS HARRINGTON was born 
at Gainesville, Genesee (now Wyo- 
ming") County, N.Y., August 14, 
1835. The boy grew up accus- 
tomed to outdoor life, to the woods and fields. 
He could row, swim, skate, ride on horseback, 
walk long distances. Blue eyes, light hair, 
brawn, vigor, love of sport, indicated Anglo- 
Saxon blood. On his father's side his family 
mav be traced to seventeenth century Eng- 
lishmen, "forgotten worthies," who followed 
Roger Williams to Rhode Island, and some 
of whose descendants in the last half of the 
eighteenth century settled in Chenango 
County, New York. His maternal ancestry is 
of English stock, transplanted, generations 
back, into Massachusetts and Connecticut soil, 
and removed to Columbia County, New York, 
before the Revolutionary \\'ar. 

At ten years of age he went, barefooted, to 
a neighboring hamlet, to borrow a dog-eared 
"Arabian Nights." Then he found "Don 
Oui.xote" on the book-shelf of a country phy- 
sician. He also read Dick's "Philosophy of 
a Future State," and soon after "Ivanhoe." 
A volume of "American Military and Naval 
Biography" interested him; and before he 
was thirteen he was a juvenile collaborator in 
a drama founded on the exploits of Marion's 
men, written for a school exhibition. 

At fifteen he attended Genesee Wesleyan 
Seminary at Lima, N.Y., pursued preparatory 
classical studies, and entered Genesee College 
in 1851. The following winter he taught a 
school of seventy pupils at Wiscoy, N.Y. 
Returning to Genesee College in the autumn 
of 1852, he remained four terms, and then 
entered Amherst College the second term, 
Sophomore year, where he received the degree 
of A.B., August 14, 1S56, and A.M. some 
years later. He wrote his declamations Fresh- 
man year. His recitations at Amherst were 
creditable. He spent the long vacations in 
labors that bore fruit which the routine of 
lecture and recitation rooms could not de- 
velop. Ain/tirst Co/h-giatf Maga:;iut\ 1855- 
56, shows his literar)' work on a wide range of 
subjects. The Sweetzer (rhetorical) prizes 
were offered to the Junior class for essays on 
subjects selected by the writers. The first 



prize was awarded young Harrington for his 
essay oh "The Philosophy and Character of 
Franklin." The following year George Mon- 
tague, of Montgomerv, Ala., offered (meta- 
phvsical) prizes to the Senior class for essays 
on assigned subjects. Dr. Field, who had 
the chair of Rhetoric at Amherst, said Har- 
rington would take this prize if he wrote for 
it. The prediction was verified, and he 
again received the first prize for his essay on 
"The Imagination: Its Nature and Province, 
with its Influence on Life and Character." 
This essay appeared August, 1S56, in the 
.h/it-ricijn Journal of luiiicatioii and College 
Rcvicii', published in New York. A footnote 
by Dr. Peters, the editor, called attention to 
the "surpassing excellence and maturity of 
this vouthful production." The second prize 
was awarded to William H. Ward, now editor 
of the New York ludcf^ciulcnt. 

Mr. Harrington's industry and fiMce of 
character gave him position in a class many 
of whose members are positive forces in soci- 
ety — leaders in pulpit, press, law, politics, 
and affairs. He was valedictorian of his 
societies, Psi LTpsilon and Athenre, and re- 
ceived the honors of an "oration" at com- 
mencement and an election to Phi Beta 
Kappa. His oration on "Enthusiasm" at 
commencement received complimentary notice 
in the Springfield Ripublican by Dr. Holland. 
It was an impassioned plea for earnest men in 
literature, politics, and the church. This ap- 
peared November, 1856, in the Student, pub- 
lished in New York, as the selection of that 
magazine from the speeches of the time. 

Senior j'ear he occasionally accepted invita- 
tions to address literary societies in neighbor- 
ing towns. Returning from .Amherst- after 
graduation, voung Harrington heard his own 
magazine article given as a declamation at 
the closing exercises of the academy at Nor- 
wich, N.Y. The unconscious tribute touched 
him, as he was encouraged in undergraduate 
days when his fugitive article appeared in a 
Boston literary weekly. Lowell wrote of an 
appreciative notice, "It makes one feel as 
though the daisies were growing over him." 

In 1856 he was at the head of a scientific 
and classical academy at Millville, N.Y., 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



587 



which he conducted successfully three terms. 
Here he wrote for various publications, con- 
tributing the leading article in the College 
Revieiu iax April, 1857, on "The Prospects of 
American Literature." In 1857 he resigned 
his position, and began the study of law at 
Warsaw, in the office of General L. \V. 
Thayer. While pursuing his law study, he 
was for a time a regular contributor to the 
Wyoming County Mirror. He formed an edi- 
torial connection with the Western New 
Yorker \n 1858. Whig at first, it had lapsed 
into Americanism. He became its editor the 
following May. Elbert E. Farman, late 
United States Consul-general at Cairo, and 
Mr. Harrington were joint proprietors. In 
assuming editorial charge he said: "Our aim 
is to make this, as a newspaper, as a literary 
journal, as a fearless and outspoken supporter 
of good morals and sound policy in public 
affairs, inferior to none. . . . We are thor- 
oughly Republican. The success of the cause 
in i860 is dear to us, and we shall labor to 
secure a Republican triumph in the ensuing 
struggle." 

Introducing its twentieth v'olume, he said: 
"We have striven to be faithful to the obli- 
gations which lie upon every journalist, to 
work as the faithful ally of healthy public 
sentiment and the conscientious advocate of 
the public interest. We scorn to ptostitute 
our position to the ministry of a "party, right 
or wrong ' ; and we hope we shall never so far 
forget ourselves as to follow the lure of politi- 
cal tricksters, where obligations to you and 
proper respect for ourselves would confront 
us. . . . We shall endeavor to make the Neiu 
Yorker a complete family newspaper, ... a 
judicious digest of the occurrences of the day, 
and a frank, fearless, and independent journal." 
Mr. Harrington wrote much in every de- 
partment. Current events, literature, poli- 
tics, all received attention. The demands of 
party journalism were not neglected. Ear- 
nest and timely political articles appeared. 
Local interests were carefully written up. 
Literary and book notices were prepared. 
The social interests had a place; and a corps 
of local correspondents was organized, then 
an unusual feature of country journalism. 



Mr. Harrington came into the Republican 
party with the sympathies of a Free Soil 
Democrat. His first Presidential vote was 
cast for Lincoln electors. The New Yorker 
gave no uncertain sound in the political 
strife which culminated in the Rebellion. In 
its first issue after the State convention of 
1 860 he says : — 

"The ticket presented to the electors of 
New York deserves the best service of every 
Republican. ... A hostile party is ringing 
changes on the 'jobbing, robbery, and corrup- 
tion of the Republican legislation of the 
State.' That party could have defeated every 
corrupt measure in both houses; so its rebuke 
of legislative corruption is wretched charla- 
tanry. But the Republican party was in 
power. Judas and Esau were both in our 
camp. If we indorse the legislation of last 
winter as a party, we are responsible for the 
abomination. Shall the party thus debase it- 
self? ... If a man can show a clean record, 
all honor to him; but the sentence of politi- 
cal death should be pronounced against every 
man who sold himself at Albany. If nomi- 
nating conventions disregard this, we do not 
say the Republican party will be defeated, but 
we do say its triumph would no longer be 
desirable." The convention did not disregard 
this warning. 

A public demand in an emergency called 
Mr. Harrington to this work. When the 
opportunity came, he gladly left it, after 
three years' service, and resumed his law stud- 
ies. William Henry Merrill, now editor of 
the New York World., followed him as editor 
of the Western Ne-M Yorker X\\\ 1875. When 
Mr. Harrington retired from this newspaper 
in 1 86 1, its prospects had never been better. 
Its circulation had quadrupled, and it had 
become the leading Republican journal of 
its section of the State. Warsaw has grown 
nearly threefold, and the paper has been 
published more than half a century with- 
out going beyond the circulation or influence 
it then had. 

In the summer of 1862 Governor Morgan 

authorized Mr. Harrington to raise a company 

of volunteers. Nine days after receiving his 

i credentials he reported at Camp Portage with 



S88 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



the first full company of the new regiment, 
which was mustered as Company D, One Hun- 
dred and Thirty-sixth Regiment, New York 
Volunteers; and he was commissioned Cap- 
tain. Only three captains of the regiment, 
of whom he was one, were present for duty 
November 9; and Company D, which left 
New York ninety-four strong, had only forty- 
five men present for duty in December, 1S62. 
After Fredericksburg the regiment moved up 
the Rappahannock from Falmouth, and did 
picket duty at Bank's Ford. The armies 
faced each other with the river between. 
Plans and preliminary dispositions were made, 
and batteries placed in position for a general 
attack at this point. Rain came, and the mud 
prevented an advance. The bloody repulse of 
December 15 was followed b)' the bloodless 
failure of January 22. Then came the change 
of commanders, so frequent in the first years 
of the war; and Burnside gave place to 
Hooker. The Army of the Potomac went into 
winter quarters, and was inactive till May, 
1863. Captain Harrington tendered his 
resignation, received an honorable discharge, 
and came home with the purpose of entering 
another branch of the service. Circumstances 
afterward rendered this impracticable. 

September 16, 1862, Mr. Harrington mar- 
ried Martha Barnett, of Warsaw, a graduate of 
Elmira Female College in the class of 1S61. 
She had no children, and died October 4, 
1871, at the age of thirty-two. He married 
Sarah Alice Earle, eldest daughter of the late 
Justus Edward Earle, of New York, in that 
city, May 20, 1S74. They have three chil- 
dren — Earle, George, and Alice. 

Mr. Harrington was admitted to the bar in 
Buffalo, May 4, 1864. He soon gained a prac- 
tice, which became varied and exacting in 
time. Sheriff Davis, whose term ended 1871, 
said Mr. Harrington paid him more fees than 
any other lawyer. From 1865 to 1880 he 
labored industriously in his profession; and 
he has carried on a general practice in State 
and national courts for thirty years, though it 
has not engrossed his effort. A considerable 
practice in bankruptcy, under the act of 1867, 
came to him. He has shown a preference for 
equity practice, the system by which '"posi- 



tive law is construed, and rational law made." 
"I don't care for equity, I want to know the' 
law," said a litigious client who sought his 
advice. In his early practice a client in an 
important case said, " You haven't told what 
you want me to swear to." "I want you to 
tell the truth, if it be possible for a man who 
can make that infamous suggestion," was the 
indignant reply. He once said the language 
of Seward was not inappropriate to himself: 
" I knew I was to support mj-self by the prac- 
tice of law. I liked the study of law; but 
only necessity reconciled me to the toleration 
of the technicalities of the practice, to the 
jealousies and contentions of the courts. 
Nevertheless I resigned myself to the practice 
with so much cheerfulness that my disinclina- 
tion was never suspected." Patience, tenac- 
ity, and industry lead to careful trial of his 
cases; and his mastery of language insures 
clear and forcible statement of law and fact 
to court and jury. His intellectual methods 
exact closer study of the principles which 
underlie cases than of the precedents that 
illustrate them. Discrimination in the selec- 
tion of authorities cited and appreciation of 
the issues are evident in his briefs. Facts 
are stated precisely and authorities fairly con- 
sidered. He does not mistake exaggeration 
for strong statement, nor try to win his case 
by misrepresenting an opponent's, realizing 
that, while argument cannot make a weak case 
strong, a clear, incisive, logical presentation 
may be effective when a clumsy argument 
would bring sure defeat. 

Desultory rather than systematic, Mr. Har- 
rington's reading covers a wide range. It 
may be doubted whether much good results 
from prescribed courses of reading. Assimi- 
lation and growth come with interest. Read- 
ing as a task bears little fruit. With 
opportunity the hungry mind selects appropri- 
ate food. The first book he owned, aside 
from school books, was Webster's Unabridged 
Dictionary. At sixteen he bought two vol- 
umes, then book by book, for reference or 
study, as opportunity or need came, until he 
gathered two thousand volumes, as tools for 
use. The titles and dates of purchase tell the 
story of selection, range, and growth. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



589 



This collection of "infinite riches in a 
little room " includes selections from the best 
literature in many departments — samples of 
healthy growth of broad and varied literary 
fields, without their noxious products. Occa- 
sional addresses, editorial writing on ques- 
tions of the hour, discussion of topics of 
public interest, have in part satisfied the duty, 
appreciated by the right-minded citizen, of 
using his powers to promote the general weal. 
In an article published some years ago he 
says the well-conducted newspaper "never 
meddles with a public abuse unless it is fla- 
grant, and is always ready to plead the cause of 
any class in the community which is unable 
to get a hearing for substantial grievance." 

The removal of the county site (1878) and 
the building of the Rochester and State Line 
Railroad (1872-79) were questions of local 
importance. Warsaw bonded for one hundred 
and twent}' thousand dollars to secure the road, 
and the Board of Supervisors passed a reso- 
lution in the interest of removal. The Hon. 
E. C. Holt, an able writer, brilliant and ver- 
satile, and others had advocated removal of the 
county buildings and business from Warsaw, 
in several newspapers from week to week. 
At the solicitation of prominent citizens Mr. 
Harrington helped settle both these ques- 
tions. Two newspapers issued extras filled 
chiefly with his articles in opposition to the 
threatened removal. He addressed a meeting 
of the commissioners of the bonded towns at 
Warsaw, April 16, 1872, and as chairman of 
the committee drafted and reported resolu- 
tions, which were unanimously adopted. The 
third resolution says, "The Rochester and 
State Line Railway promises to become ... 
essentially a trunk line, with varied and im- 
portant connections, creating wealth in the 
country it traverses by developing resources 
hitherto insignificant because merely local." 
The action of this committee contributed to 
the revival of activity which followed in this 
public work, and assured its ultimate com- 
pletion. 

In the summer of 1879 he contributed to 
the Rochester Union and Advertiser a series of 
articles signed "Taxpayer," criticising the 
"management, broken promises, and violated 1 



obligations " of this corporation, and urging 
enforcement of the contract for completing the 
road. In one of these articles he said, "It is 
singular, in an enterprise of this character, 
involving the expenditure of millions of 
money, that, from the beginning of the work 
of building a hundred miles and more of rail- 
way until to-day, through seven years of ex- 
penditure and agitation, no exhibit has ever 
been made showing the disposition of the vast 
sums of money put into the hands of the 
corporation that was nominally building this 
railway." In 1886 Mr. Harrington contrib- 
uted to the Wyoming County Times an article 
in which he said: "The question of the water 
supply of Warsaw has now assumed such mag- 
nitude, and its requirements are so diversified 
and imperious, that the people of Warsaw- 
should control it. The village should own its 
water-works." Municipal ownership of the 
water-works was adopted by a large majority 
of the popular vote a fe\t' years later. 

At the close of the national encampment of 
the Grand Army of the Republic held in Den- 
ver, July, 1883, as one of the guests of the 
State of Colorado Mr. Harrington partici- 
pated in a five days' excursion over the Rocky 
Mountains. As the member from Xew York 
and its chairman, he prepared and presented 
on behalf of the committee a series of resolu- 
tions, which were unanimously adopted and 
widely published. His tact and felicity as an 
after-dinner speaker on patriotic, literar)", so- 
ciety, and anniversar}- occasions have received 
marked recognition. A gentleman who had 
attended public dinners on three continents 
once spoke of Mr. Harrington as one of the 
best toast-masters he had ever met. We 
name some of his lectures, orations, and occa- 
sional addresses: "American Literature: Its 
Achievement and Promise" (1856); "The 
Imagination : Its Place in Actual Life " ; 
"The Many and the Few — Men and Their 
Rulers" (1858); '"The Golden Opportunity for 
Young Men," Independence Day oration 
(1880); "What to Read and How to Read it " 
(1882); "The Heart of the Rocky Moun- 
tains " (1885); "The Significance of ^Iemorial 
Day" (1886); "The Cost of the War to pre- 
serve the Union" (1887); "Asa Burr Merrill, 



59° 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



the Loyal Volunteer," an anniversary oration 
(1889). In 1883 he was one of the speakers 
at the annual dinner of Amherst alumni in 
New York, and he has frequently spoken at 
fraternity banquets of college men. First 
delivered before a literary society, the lecture 
on Imagination was repeated before a pop- 
ular audience by request of a committee of 
citizens, and afterward delivered frequently. 
The Hon. F. F. Fargo said in the Buffalo 
Commercial Advertiser of Mr. Harrington's 
oration July 4, 1S80: "His effort was in every 
respect worthy of the occasion. The address 
was pleasing, hopeful, instructive, and elo- 
quent." Said the Rochester Democrat and 
Chronicle: "An adequate report of this able 
address cannot be given in brief space. Its 
true place is in the hearts of the people who 
heard it, and there it surely shall do its 
work." The Western Sew Yorker %^\A: "His 
speech was a splendid effort, and deserved the 
generous applause it received. ... It was lis- 
tened to attentively throughout." The Times 
said, "His remarks were almost entirely im- 
promptu, and they were eloquently spoken and 
enthusiastically received." 

An editorial notice of the lecture on "The 
Heart of the Rocky Mountains," which was 
delivered in Warsaw four times, by request of 
audiences who had listened to it, said, "It 
was rich in suggestion, clear and exact in 
statement of altitudes, population, industries, 
and possibilities, told by one who possessed 
the rare faculty of clothing excellent ideas 
and sound opinions in the choicest and most 
entertaining language." An editorial notice 
of his Memorial address in 1887 said it was 
"more eloquent, interesting, and suggestive 
than is often heard on such an occasion, and 
was thoroughly appreciated by the large audi- 
ence, as was attested by the fact of his being 
called out the second time, in response to 
which he made a brief but brilliant supple- 
mentary speech." President Gates, of Am- 
herst, said of the oration on Asa Burr Merrill 
that it was a "most fitting and patriotic ad- 
dress." Mr. Merrill, editor of the New York 
World, a brother of Captain IMerrill, styled it 
a "very thoughtful, appreciative, and eloquent 
address." The Hon. Noah Davis said he 



"read this address with great pleasure. It is 
an eloquent and just tribute to the memory of 
Captain Merrill, whose brilliant and gallant 
service it depicts in touching words. What 
it incidentally says of modern modes of educa- 
tion meets my hearty approval." Dr. Ward, 
editor of the New York Independent, said, "I 
like what it says of the new South." The 
Alban\- Laiv Journal gave it a leading edito- 
rial. Mr. Proctor, author of "The Bench and 
Bar," said, "It abounds in learned historical 
illustrations, and contains a well-reasoned 
critique on the manner in which the cavalry 
arm of the sen ice was treated by politicians 
during the early years of the late Rebellion." 
Sketches of the character and career of his 
law preceptor, Thayer, his pastor, Dudley, his 
physician, Palmer, his personal and business 
associate, Farman, his young acquaintance, 
]\Ierrill, are instances of the generous, dis- 
criminating, and candid tributes he has paid to 
worthy friends. Looking backward, he may 
fairly say of these that he has written no line 
he need wish to blot. 

Invited to deliver the address at Warsaw 
on Memorial Day, 1S72, Mr. Harrington 
availed himself of that opportunity to urge 
the erection of a monument for the soldiers 
of Wyoming County. The presentation was 
timely. Resolutions drawn by him were 
adopted, an organization was effected, and 
preliminary work was soon begun. As chair- 
man of the executive committee, he appealed 
to the people, on the platform and in resolu- 
tions, reports, and addresses; and the monu- 
ment is a grand expression in bronze and 
granite of the popular estimate of the ser\-ice 
it commemorates. Mr. Harrington attended 
the Grand Army of the Republic Convention 
held in New York, October 13, 1882, at 
which the Veterans' Rights Union was organ- 
ized. He addressed the convention at length, 
said "discreet counsels should prevail," and 
that " in the Post and at the encampment par- 
tisan politics have no place." As chairman 
of the committee, he prepared a preamble and 
resolutions, which were unanimously adopted 
by the convention. Among them was the 
famous resolution declaring for preference, 
"equal capacity being assumed," to L'nion vet- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



591 



erans in official appointments. The statutes 
of New York have since been modified to 
accord with the spirit of these resolutions. 

He took an early interest in politics. A 
boy of nine, he was heard discussing the tariff 
with a juvenile Whig in the village hotel; 
and he went seven miles to hear Martin 
Grover, then famous as "the ragged lawyer," 
tell why Henry Clay was not fit to be Presi- 
dent. Then the Free Soil movement pushed 
revenue questions to the background. Young 
Harrington's study of economic science began 
in college. With Wayland as a te.xt-book and 
Adam Smith an authority, his early impres- 
sions were along free trade lines. The politi- 
cal strife of that time was attractive to 3'oung 
men, and he took eager part. On one occa- 
sion, in the campaign of i860, from a plat- 
form fronting a public square, in the blaze 
of a thousand "wide-awake" torches, he pre- 
sented the aims and the political ideals of en- 
thusiastic young men of that day, when ideals 
controlled men and parties. As the speaker 
stepped down, a venerable Republican, who 
had come into the new party from the Aboli- 
tionists, grasped his hand, saying, with tears 
on his cheeks, "God bless you, young man, 
that's heavenly." He spoke for Folger in the 
city of New York in 1882. He did not join 
the political brigands who struck the Repub- 
lican candidate to hit another, and led the way 
to the revenue legislation miscalled tariff 
reform. 

The campaign of 1892 interested him 
deeply. His early impressions on economics 
had been corrected by study and observation, 
and he was now a believer in the Ameri- 
can system of protection to our industries. 
His letters and extracts from his political 
addresses were widely published in leading 
Republican journals. A veteran who has 
spoken eloquently in every campaign since 
i860 wrote: "I have just finished reading 
Mr. Harrington's second letter on the issues 
involved in this campaign. It is a full, 
fair, and forcible presentation of the issues 
in controversy between the parties, and en- 
tirely unanswerable." General Sheridan re- 
ferred to it in characteristic language as 
"a strong letter." Commissioner Tanner car- 



ried the letter to Secretary Tracey at the 
Navy Department, said it was worth votes in 
New York, and it should appear prominently 
in the New York Tribune. It filled a column 
of that newspaper October 29. In publish- 
ing this letter, the Albany Evening Journal 
called attention to the "pointed and strong 
answer to a letter from the league secretary 
by Augustus Harrington, the well-known law- 
yer." The Buffalo Express said: "Some time 
ago the Express printed a letter from Augus- 
tus Harrington, of Warsaw, in reply to a cam- 
paign document. . . . The letter attracted 
wide attention, and was warmly commendcfl 
by Republicans. The secretary of the 
league answered him, and Mr. Harrington's 
answer is herewith printed." The Hon. 
Charles E. Fitch said of this letter: "Brilliant 
in rhetoric, it is patriotic in sentiment. I 
am sure it will do great good, and it should 
have the widest circulation." In this letter 
Mr. Harrington said: "It may not be out of 
place to say that, so far as I am a politician, 
I am an amateur, not a professional. I have 
addressed my fellow-citizens on the political 
issues many times, never for reward, either 
money or oflfice. . . . Personally, I expect as 
many favors from Cleveland as from Harrison. 
To me these men stand for the principles they 
represent. The party is stronger than any 
man. Mr. Cleveland's personality has little 
to do with the vital question of the hour. 
He cannot control the men who have seized 
the reins." The Troy Daily Times said, "In 
an admirable address, 'A Last Word to Re- 
publican Voters,' Augustus Harrington makes 
several strong points which citizens should 
consider well in deciding how to cast their 
ballots next Tuesday." Though interested in 
political questions, Mr. Harrington has never 
been a party spoilsman or camp-follower. He 
has done what he could for good government 
and healthy public sentiment. He has not 
refused to vote because politics are base, nor 
indorsed corrupt practice on the plea that it 
will help the party. He once said: "Honesty 
is an element of character, as controlling one 
day or time as another. I have no faith in 
the honesty of a man who is unscrupulous in 
politics, in the piety that shines Sunday and 



592 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



passes under eclipse the rest of the week, or 
in the patriotism that is dormant until it 
scents an office." In 1858 Governor Morgan 
appointed him Commissioner for loaning the 
United States Deposit Fund in Wyoming 
County, and he performed the duties of this 
office creditably during his term. Public 
duties with him have been incidental and un- 
sought. He has never been a candidate for 
office, nor shrunk from any duty which his 
relations to society imposed. When a young 
man, he was nominated by acclamation for 
Commissioner of Schools. He declined this 
"unsolicited compliment" of nomination to 
an office which he said he must decline should 
he receive an election. The Democratic 
Atlas said, "We are sorry for this because, in 
the language of the jSIeiv Yorker, 'the nomina- 
tion was one eminently fit to be made.' " 

Not yet sixty years old, Mr. Harrington has 
been successful as teacher, as editor, in af- 
fairs, and has practised a laborious profession 
for a generation. His writings would fill vol- 
umes. Education, temperance, good morals, 
find a friend in him. Travel has given him 
a large acquaintance throughout the country. 
He has never had the tobacco, opium, or drink 
habit. With a good physique, he stands six 
feet eleven inches, and weighs one hundred 
and seventy pounds. A trained and modu- 
lated voice, with clear enunciation, enables a 
large audience to hear him out or in doors. 
He is at ease on the platform, a practised 
speaker both with and without preparation. 
Plutarch's phrase about the trophies that 
roused Themistocles quickens ardent youth. 
When Lieutenant Stoneman went from West 
Point to his regiment, he met a family in the 
West that he had known in boyhood. The 
uniform he wore touched young Schofield, and 
the ambition then born unfolded into the ca- 
reer of the soldier who is at the head of the 
army. Example is suggestive and inspiring. 
A rising teacher said that Mr. Harrington's 
advice and example led him to enter Yale. 
Other young men have been so urged and 
stimulated. A growing attorney who was a 
student in his office, now gaining prominence 
as a corporation lawyer, said recently that Mr. 
Harrington was the best pleader he knew. 



His commencement oration asserted the need 
of earnestness and positive belief, and gave 
the keynote of his life. He has kept in touch 
with the best social impulse, with the spirit 
that animates the faithful citizen, with the 
life that fills a duty or a need, and does not 
measure ordinary men by the standard of the 
individual here and there who has claim as 
a warrior, as a statesman, or as a hero. 
Whether it fills a page in the history of the 
nation, of the race, or of the neighborhood, 
the significance of any life is in its character. 
In place of formal analysis, we copy here from 
a careful sketch prepared by another, and 
printed some years ago : — 

"Mr. Harrington learns with great rapidity, 
especially by observation, and never allows 
anything to escape his attention that comes 
within his range. . . . He is somewhat re- 
markable in his ability to remember persons, 
and to recognize anything which has once 
secured his attention. . . . He has good con- 
versational ability and no hesitation generally 
for words. He has self-respect, independence 
of mind, and more than ordinary decision. 
. . . He is kind, obliging, liberal; and he 
cannot bear to see the weak, helpless, and in- 
nocent abused. . . . He loves the truth, has 
no fellowship with injustice and wrong, and 
is determined to do what he considers right at 
any sacrifice. He cannot bear disorder, is 
decidedly disposed to have everything where 
it belongs, . . . has a lively and vivid imagi- 
nation and excellent taste, a happy talent for 
comparison, readily detects resemblances or 
discrepancies, can illustrate, analyze, and per- 
ceive analogies or the want of them, has ex- 
cellent powers of generalization and superior 
critical ability, is anxious to know the cause 
of phenomena that attract his attention, has 
a deep, original mind and superior judg- 
ment." 



His 



SAMUEL JOHNSON, an attorney- 
at-law and counsellor in the village of 
Warsaw, was born in Centrefield, On- 
tario County, N.Y., October 28, 1840. 
grandfather, Isaac Johnson, was a New 



England farmer in good circumstances, the 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



593 



date of whose death is uncertain. His widow, 
who lived to a great age, died in Auburn. 
The children of the grandparents were: Fran- 
cis, Horace C, Hiram, Clarissa, and Amelia. 

Hiram Johnson, the father of the subject of 
this biography, was born in the State of Con- 
necticut in iSoo. Though not college-bred, 
he was a man of scholarly attainments, and 
made quite a notable reputation as a civil 
engineer and surveyor. He surveyed and laid 
out the course of one of the earliest railroads 
in Ohio; and his work was esteemed of a very 
superior quality, and has stood the test of 
comparison with many of more modern con- 
struction. After his marriage in 1839 he 
lived near Canadoga, in Ontario, until 1840, 
when he went to Farmersville, where he took 
charge of a farm of three hundred and sixty- 
five acres, besides a smaller tract covering 
ninety acres. Having sustained some heavy 
financial losses through the banking establish- 
ment in Canadoga, he went into the country 
for some years, hoping by retrenching his ex- 
penses to somewhat retrieve his impaired fort- 
unes. He was most successful as a farmer; 
and, after moving to Warsaw in 1857, he for 
eight years gave up the active cares of busi- 
ness life. In 1865 he took his family to 
Powersville, Ohio, where they lived in great 
retirement. Mr. Johnson's first wife was 
Miss Jane Slade, the daughter of a sailor. 
She died in 1869, in the sixty-sixth year of 
her age, leaving five children — Frank H., 
living in Warsaw; J. Samuel, of whom this 
is a record; Eliza, the wife of George H. 
King, of Marion, Ind., the mother of three 
children; Ellen, the wife of W. F. Wilson, a 
machine manufacturer of Chicago, and the 
mother of one daughter; Edgar H., a manu- 
facturer of meat compounds and extracts in 
Marion, Ind., and a member of a company 
having a monopoly of the business in this 
country. He has a son and a daughter. Mr. 
Hiram Johnson was married a second time, 
and was a widower at the time of his death, 
in 1875. 

J. Samuel Johnson studied in the Warsaw 
Academy and Genesee Wesleyan Seminary. 
He began the study of law with General 
Thayer, with whom he read for six months. 



He next studied under Judges Comstock and 
Healy, whose office he left in August, 1862, 
to enlist in Company D of the One Hundred 
and Thirty-sixth New York Infantry. From 
the rank of Orderly and Sergeant he rose to 
that of Lieutenant, and was for eighteen 
months in the Armies of the Potomac and 
Cumberland. He was at last discharged on 
account of failing health, and returning home 
was admitted to the bar in May, 1864, begin- 
ning practice with Mr. M. E. Bartlett, of 
Warsaw, under the firm name of Bartlett & 
Johnson. Two years later he changed his 
place of residence to Arcade, where, in part- 
nership with A. K. Knight of that town, he 
pursued his profession for a decade. At the 
dissolution of this partnership in 1876 Mr. 
Johnson returned to Warsaw, where, either 
alone or in partnership, he has ever since con- 
ducted a large practice. Mr. Bartlett, with 
whom he was connected for a time, went to 
Dakota; and Mr. Johnson's subsequent col- 
league was Mr. H. E. Deane. The present 
firm, known as Johnson & Corell, has been in- 
corporated for the past nine years. Mr. John- 
son is a Royal Arch Mason and a Past Master 
of the Arcade Lodge. He is a member of 
the Mystic Shrine at Rochester, and belongs 
to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
In civic relations he has filled many offices, 
among them that of village President of Ar- 
cade; and during his residence in Warsaw he 
has been Village Trustee and District Attor- 
ney. Pie was elected a member of the As- 
sembly of 1890-91, and was a delegate to the 
Constitutional Convention of 1894, which was 
so strongly supported by the people in No- 
vember of that year, and which was one of the 
strongest and most efficient bodies in the 
State. He was also a member of the Judi- 
ciary Committee of 1890, and was one of the 
Commissioners on Finance, Taxation, and 
Charities. This fact has a deep significance, 
for this State is conceded to be pre-eminent 
in the dispensation and management of its 
charities. He is a Past Commander of Gibbs 
Post of the Grand Army, and is a stanch Re- 
publican. 

Mr. Johnson was married May 5, 1865, 
to Miss Mary McFarland, who was born at 



594 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Twinsburg, Ohio, a daughter of Mr. H. Mc- 
Farland, a merchant of that town. Mr. Mc- 
Farland died in 1885. His widow survived 
him six years. Both lived to be nearly 
ninety. The McFarland estate was divided 
between two sons and four daughters, namely: 
Gilbert, living near Cleveland, a man of 
some property; Edwin, a shipper and real 
estate owner in Cleveland; Cordelia, the 
wife of Mr. Myron E. Bartlett, of this 
place; Mrs. Johnson; Sarah, the widow of 
Mr. Smith, who is living in Cleveland; and 
Amelia, now Mrs. Elbert Newell, of Delta, 
Ohio. 

Mrs. Johnson, who was educated at the 
Twinsburg Academy, is a graceful hostess in 
her pleasant home on Elm Street, where they 
have lived since 1876. They have no chil- 
dren, and perhaps for that reason are more 
closely drawn together in mutual and interde- 
pendent companionship. 




'RANK E. WADE, editor and proprie- 
tor of the Wyoming County Tribune, 
and one of the leading young journal- 
ists of Wyoming County, was born in Castile, 
January 8, 1869, and is a son of James L. and 
Jennie S. (Cooper) Wade. 

Mr. Wade finished his education at Perry 
Academy; and, having a taste for journalism, 
he set himself to acquire complete knowledge 
of the printer's trade, in order that he might 
be thoroughly versed in all departments of 
newspaper v^^ork. The "art preservative," 
which fascinated Benjamin Franklin, and de- 
veloped the inherent greatness in Horace 
Greeley, has its votaries in all walks of life; 
and, once within the sanctum sanctontni and 
familiar with its enthralling mysteries, one 
rarely forsakes this vocation for another. So 
Mr. Wade, after some experience in different 
offices, settled in Castile, his native town, 
where in 1892 he started the weekly Tribune, 
a successful Republican sheet, having a circu- 
lation of nine hundred copies, and rapidly 
growing in public favor. It is a bright and 
newsy paper, up to date in its relation of 
current events, and filled with articles of in- 
terest to its various readers. In fact, it re- 



flects great credit upon its young editor and 
proprietor. 

But Mr. Wade does not devote all his time 
to literary work. He is Secretary of the 
Board of Trade of Castile, an office which re- 
quires financial knowledge and some skill in 
the manipulation of figures; and he is Secre- 
tary of the Wyoming County Editorial Asso- 
ciation. He is a firm supporter of the 
Republican party, and is respected and es- 
teemed by the citizens of Castile and vicinity, 
not only for his journalistic enterprise, but 
because of his enthusiastic interest in all that 
pertains to the welfare of the town. 

In 1893 Mr. Wade married Miss Belle Bis- 
sell, who was born in LeRoy, July 3, 1872. 
She is a daughter of Levi P. and Belona 
(Anderson) Bissell, the former a prosperous 
farmer, who during his later years was en- 
gaged in the real estate business in LeRoy, 
where he died at the age of seventy years, 
leaving a widow and one child, the latter now 
Mrs. Wade. Another daughter, Eunice, died 
at an early age. Mr. and Mrs. Wade have 
one child, Bissell L., born May 11, 1894. 



%^^:, 

m^ 



LEXANDER EDWARDS, a promi- 
ent citizen of Livingston County, 
was born in Bath, Steuben County, 
N.Y., October 13, 1823, son of 
George C. and Hannah (Carpenter) Edwards. 
His paternal grandfather, Edward Edwards, a 
native of Stockbridge, Mass., removed from 
Stockbridge to Broome County, N.Y., but 
later went to Michigan. He reared a large 
family. His son George acquired a superior 
education for the times, and studied law, 
which he practised first in Elmira, N.Y., and 
afterward in Bath, Steuben County, where he 
was County Judge for many years, and occu- 
pied a high position in the regard of his fel- 
low-citizens, both on account of his legal 
knowledge and because of his sterling per- 
sonal character. He died at the age of fifty. 
He and his wife Hannah reared seven children 
out of a family of eight; namely, Mary, 
George, Jesse, Clarissa, Alexander, Mason, 
and John. The mother spent her last years 
in Bath, and died at the age of eighty-three. 




ALEXANDER EDWARDS. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



597 



Alexander Edwards remained in Bath until 
the age of eighteen. Having received his 
early education in the district school, he en- 
joyed the additional advantage of attending a 
select school in that place. He then went to 
Hornellsville, and engaged as clerk in a large 
country store, where he remained three years, 
and acquired a knowledge of business 
methods. He then went to Penn Yan for a 
year, and from there to Hammondsport for 
the same period, after which he returned to 
Bath, and passed a year amid the scenes of his 
boyhood. On September i, 1847, he came to 
Dansville, and obtained a position as clerk, at 
which occupation he remained until 1849, 
when he went into business for himself, tak- 
ing as partner Mr. Matthew McCartney. The 
firm continued in trade until 1855, when Mr. 
McCartney withdrew, and Mr. Edwards con- 
ducted the business alone for two years. His 
health beginning to fail, he sold out, and 
practically retired from active work for a while. 
In 1865 he began to look after the business 
interests of his wife, who is the owner of con- 
siderable property in farm lands in North 
Dansville and adjoining towns, and has occu- 
pied himself in this way to the present time. 
His capacity for business matters has been 
recognized by his neighbors and fellow-towns- 
men, and his opinion is often sought in affairs 
of consequence. He also occupies the posi- 
tion of Superintendent and Treasurer of the 
Dansville Cemetery Association. 

Mr. Edwards was married in 1849 to Eliza- 
beth G. McCurdy, daughter of James Mc- 
Curdy, further mention of whom may be found 
in the sketch of John T. McCurdy. Mrs. 
Edwards was one of seven children, the others 
being: William Gray; Mary Ann, who married 
Samuel Sturgeon; Margaret, who became the 
wife of David McNair; John; Hugh T. ; and 
James M., all of whom are now living except 
William Gray. Mr. and Mrs. Edwards have 
two children — James McCurdy and Eliza- 
beth, now Mrs. Albert Sweet. Faithful to 
their convictions of religious duty, the family 
are active and valued members of the Presby- 
terian church, in which Mr. Edwards is an 
Elder. The annexed portrait of Mr. Edwards 
will be appreciated by many friends. 



M 



-:XTER S. DAVIS, a well-known 
merchant of Varysburg, N. Y., and 
brother of Chester W. Davis, was 
born in the town of Java, in the same 
county of Wyoming, June 5, 1841. His 
father, Salem Davis, a native of the town of 
Wales, Hampden County, Mass., was the son 
of Moses Davis, a farmer of that State. The 
family ancestors were both Welsh and Eng- 
lish. The wife of Moses Davis was a Miss 
Mclntyre, a native of New England, who be- 
came the mother of three sons and two daugh- 
ters, all of whom married, had children, and 
have passed away. Moses Davis died at the age 
of eighty-six, and his wife at over eighty years. 
Two of their sons, Jephthah and Salem Davis, 
came to Varysburg in 1 832, and here established 
themselves as carders and cloth dressers. 

Salem Davis about that time married Miss 
Julia Dodge, of Charlton, Worcester County, 
Mass., daughter of Gibbs Dodge, who was of 
English parentage. Two years later he rented 
his interest in the business, and settled upon 
a farm of one hundred and fifty acres situated 
south of the village of Java, where his son, 
Dexter S. Davis, was born. Seven years later 
Salem Davis returned to Varysburg, and pur- 
chased his brother Jephthah's interest in the 
carding business. He continued to conduct 
the establishment until 1856, when he sold 
out, and in company with his son, Chester W. 
Davis, engaged in mercantile business, which 
they continued one year. Salem Davis then 
bought out the other member of the firm, and 
continued it alone till 1863, when his son. 
Dexter S. , the subject of this sketch, bought 
out the business. Mrs. Salem Davis died in 
1883, at the age of se\^enty-two, having borne 
eight children, four sons and four daughters, 
two sons and two daughters attaining majority. 
George G., the first-born, died at the age of 
twenty-nine years, leaving a wife and four 
children. Mr. Dexter S. Davis has two sis- 
ters living — Mary J., wife of Samuel Ken- 
nedy, of St. Anne, Canada; and Helen L. , 
widow of Edward Madden, late of Varysburg. 
Salem Davis died in March, 1S85, aged about 
seventy-five years, both himself and wife having 
been members of the Free Will Baptist church. 
Dexter S. Davis was educated in the district 



598 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



schools, and from a very early age assisted his 
father in business, remaining with him until 
1 862, when he went to Massachusetts, where 
he worked about a year in a shoe factory. In 
December, 1863, he returned and purchased 
his father's business, his brother, Chester W. , 
having gone to California. Mr. Davis con- 
ducted the business alone for about seven years, 
when his brother returned and bought a half- 
interest in the firm, continuing two years, as 
per agreement. In the fall of 1894 Mr. De.x- 
ter S. Davis refitted the store, putting in new 
goods, and making much needed improve- 
ments. He owns one-half interest in a farm 
of two hundred and thirty-three acres, and 
two other small tracts of land. He also owns 
the post-office block. 

On December 13, 1870, Mr. Davis was 
united in marriage to Miss Alice E. Parker, 
daughter of Nelson Parker, of the neighboring 
town of Orangeville. Her father died in May, 
1887, at the age of si.xty-nine ; and her mother 
is now living, at the age of seventy-eight 
years. Mr. and Mrs. Davis have two children 
— Charles N. , a young man of twenty-one 
years, a graduate of Lima Academy, who is 
employed by his father in the store; and a girl 
of nine years, named Blanche M. Mr. Davis 
is a Master Mason. He is a Republican in 
politics, and was Postmaster twenty-one years. 
Mr. and Mrs. Davis are Free Will Baptists, he 
having joined that church twenty-seven years 
ago. He erected his pleasant residence the 
year previous to his marriage, and has spent 
his married life beneath its comfortable roof. 
He is a busy, energetic merchant, and in every 
way a capable business man. 




ASHINGTON IRVING VAN 

ALLEN, a leading member of the 
legal profession of Livingston 
County, and a prominent and influential citi- 
zen of the town of Mount Morris, is the lineal 
descendant of one of the original Dutch pio- 
neers, one of his ancestors having emigrated 
from Holland about the year 1640, and located 
in the town of Kinderhook, Columbia County, 
which was then largely po])ulated by people of 
that sturdy race. 



John Jay Van Allen, the grandfather of the 
subject of this brief biographical notice, was 
born in Kinderhook during the latter part of 
the last century, and there grew to man's 
estate. He was a tanner and currier by trade; 
and after his marriage to Betsey Cooper he 
removed to Allegany County, where he carried 
on his trade, and was also interested in agri- 
cultural pursuits. He was a most loyal and 
patriotic citizen, and fought for his country 
throughout the War of 181 2, afterward return- 
ing to his homestead in Allegany County, 
where he and his worthy wife remained luitil 
called to their eternal rest. 

His son, wh" was also named John Jay Van 
Allen, was a native of the town of Birdsall, 
and received his preliminary education in the 
district schools of that place, and afterward 
attended the Geneseo Academy. During the 
days of his early manhood he was engaged a 
part of the time as a teacher, subsequently 
being employed as a clerk, both at Angelica 
and at Waterloo. Preferring a professional 
life to any other, and being well adapted for 
the legal profession, he pursued the study of 
law in the office of Hathaway & Woods at 
Elmira, and since his admission to the bar has 
practised law for upward of forty years, hav- 
ing been located the greater portion of the 
time in the town of Watkins, Schuyler County, 
where he has a reputation as an able and ear- 
nest jurist, second to none in that vicinity. 
He has always taken a leading part in public 
affairs, and was the first District Attorney 
ever appointed in Schuyler County. During 
the administration of Governor Seymour he 
was a member of his staff, holding the rank of 
Colonel. He married Sophia Downer, a 
daughter of Joseph G. Downer, of Vermont, 
and they became the parents of four children; 
namely, Charlotte L. , Althea A., Margaret, 
and \Vashington Irving. 

Washington Irving Van Allen was the 
youngest child, and made his appearance upon 
this stage of his existence on July 5, 1856, in 
the town of Watkins. He was a bright and 
studious youth ; and, having finished his aca- 
demic studies in the village of his nativity, he 
took a course at Cornell University. Inherit- 
ing in a marked degree the legal and intellect- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



S99 



ual ability that has characterized his honored 
sire, he began the study of law in the office of 
his father. This he gave up for a time, in 
order to pursue the study of medicine ; but, 
resuming his legal work, he was admitted to 
the bar in Schuyler County in icS//, and con- 
tinued the practice of his chosen profession in 
that county for eight years. Mr. Van Allen 
has since then been successfully located at 
Clifton Springs and in Utica, and in 1890 was 
appointed District Attorney in Schuyler 
County. He has devoted a part of his time to 
writing on legal subjects, and has worked in 
that connection with his father-in-law, Will- 
iam Wait, who is renowned as one of the best 
authorities on the legal questions of the day, 
his works on civil law being highly spoken of 
throughout the country. In January, 1894, 
Mr. Van Allen opened his present office in 
Mount Morri.s, and in the prosecution of his 
calling is meeting with unquestioned success. 
On Memorial Day of that year he was chosen 
to deliver the commemorative address, which 
was pronounced by all who had the pleasure of 
listening to it one of the finest oratorical 
efforts ever delivered in this section of the 
county. In politics Mr. Van Allen has uni- 
formly cast his vote with the Democratic 
party, and he is a prominent member of the 
Masonic fraternity. 

Mr. Van Allen was united in marriage in 
1878 to Miss Harriet E. Wait, the daughter of 
William and Caroline (Van Allen) Wait, the 
latter of whom is a native of Kinderhook, 
N. Y., and a cousin of Mr. Van Allen's father. 
Three children have been born into the happy 
household thus established, as follows: Caro- 
line, John Jay, Jr., and William. Since com- 
ing to Mount Morris, Mr. and Mrs. Van Allen 
have won an assured position in its social cir- 
cles; and their pleasant home is the centre of 
true refinement and genial hospitality. 



-AMES A. STOWE, an independent, 
enterprising, and practical agriculturist 
of Wyoming County, is the owner of 
three farms, aggregating three hundred 
acres, and is one of the valued citizens of the 
town of Warsaw. He was born in Attica, in 



this county, July 4, 1825, and is a son of 
Heman Stowe, who was born in Massachusetts 
in 1782, and died in Attica in 1827. Heman 
was a son of Harrison Stowe, who served 
throughout the entire seven years of the Revo- 
lutionary War. 

After arriving at years of manhood Heman 
Stowe left the State of his nativit)', and, in 
company with four other men, came with an ox 
team to this county. The land was then an 
unbroken wilderness, and they were obliged to 
cut their way through the tangled underbrush 
and thick forests with their a.xes. Mr. Stowe 
took up a tract of land from the Holland Pat- 
ent, about two miles west of Attica, in what 
has since been included in the town of Ben- 
nington. By persevering industry he cleared 
a part of his one hundred acres; and soon after 
his union with Sally Cookings he moved to 
the village of Attica, where he resumed his 
trade of shoemaking, which he had learned in 
Massachusetts. He was a patriotic and public- 
spirited man, and during the War of 181 2 he 
served with characteristic zeal. Of the three 
children whom he reared the following is re- 
corded : Harriet, widow of D. L. Cook, re- 
sides at Silver Springs, Cainesville. Emily, 
the wife of Marvin Hill, the proprietor of a 
fine ranch in Los Angeles, Cal., has been a 
practising physician for twenty-five years, and 
has a wide reputation for skill and ability. 
James A. is the subject of this sketch. One 
daughter, Phoebe, married Valentine Parker; 
and both are now deceased. Mrs. Stowe sur 
vived her husband for a long period, dying in 
1866, in the seventieth year of her age. Soon 
after her husband's death she lost her reason, 
and for fourteen years was an inmate of the 
a.sylum for the insane at Batavia, where .she 
regained the use of her faculties ; and she spent 
the remainder of her life with her children. 

James A. Stowe was but tw^o years old when 
his father died; and the following year he en- 
tered the home of Lyman Brainard, with whom 
he lived until thirteen years of age. Coming 
then to Warsaw, he worked on a farm for three 
years, receiving four dollars a month for his 
labors. Mr. Stowe then learned the trade of 
a carpenter and joiner; and, having a good 
deal of native mechanical ability, he became 



6oo 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



very skilful at his work, which he followed 
with good pecuniary results for thirty years, 
when he turned his attention to farming, which 
has since been his occupation. He has made 
additions to his first purchase, and is the owner 
of three fine farms, which in point of im- 
provements and equipments will compare favor- 
ably with the best in the vicinity. Following 
in the footsteps of his ancestors, who were 
ever loyal and patriotic, fighting in defence of 
their country, his grandfather in the Revolu- 
tion, and his father in the War of 1812, he 
also abandoned civic life during the late Re- 
bellion, and on August 15, 1S62, enlLsted in 
Company E, One Hundred and Thirty-sixth 
New York Volunteer Infantry, and was elected 
Corporal of the company. He was wounded 
by a shell in the left hand, at the battle of 
Chancellorsville; but he continued with his 
regiment until the close of the war, when he 
was honorably discharged. Mr. Stowe is an 
active Republican, and he is a charter member 
of Gibbs Post, No. 130, Grand Army of the 
Republic. Both he and his wife are valued 
members of the Methodist church, where dur- 
ing his membership of forty-one years he has 
filled the various oflfices of the church, occu- 
pying every position excepting that of pastor. 
As a man of sterling integrity, honorable and 
upright in all of his transactions, he is held in 
high respect, and regarded as a valued and 
trusted citizen. 

The marriage ceremony uniting the desti- 
nies of Mr. James A. Stowe and Miss Fanny 
M. Howe was performed in 1 849 by the young 
Justice of the Peace, William Bristol, that 
being his first oflficial act. Two children have 
been born of their union, one of whom died in 
infancy ; and the other, Harry, now a sturdy 
young man of seventeen years, assists his 
father in the manaEcement of his farms. 




iDWARD G. MATTHEWS, a resident 
farmer of Perry, was born in the town 
of Leicester, Livingston County, 
N.Y., September 28, 1824, a son of John and 
Susannah (Taber) Matthews, his father having 
been born in Wales, September 10, 1797. 
The latter was the son of Edward and Mary 



Matthews, natives of Wales, who came to 
America about the year 1800, and settled at 
Pittsford, IMonroe County, N.Y. , which was 
then a wilderness. Grandfather Matthews ac- 
quired about eighty acres, most of which he 
cleared and improved, erecting substantial 
farm buildings, and becoming a well-to-do 
farmer. He lived to an advanced age. His 
first wife died, leaving one child, John ; and he 
married a second, by whom he had another 
son, Elias. 

John Matthews received a limited education, 
and was bound out to a Mr. Haines, of Geneva, 
with whom he stayed till he was twenty-one, 
and learned the carpenter's trade. He then 
came to Perry, where he worked six years. 
On December 18, 1823, he married Susannah 
Taber, who was born November i, 1802, at 
Scipio, Cavuga County, daughter of Gideon 
Taber. Her father was a farmer, who died at 
a good old age in the town of Castile, Wyo- 
ming County. After his marriage John Mat- 
thews removed to Centreville, Allegany 
County, where he purchased a small farm, 
which he conducted in conjunction with his 
regular trade. He remained there until his 
death, which occurred February 13, 1S62; and 
his wife, who survived him, died in the town 
of Perry, Wyoming County, October 23, 1871. 
They were members of the Baptist church. 
John Matthews was a Whig and afterward a 
Republican in politics, having served as As- 
sessor and Poor Master. He reared a family of 
eight children, namely: Edward G., the sub- 
ject of this sketch; Sarah M., born January 3, 
1826; HelonT., born March 16, 1829; Orvil, 
born January 26, 1833; Susan M. , August 5, 
1835; John, July 14, 1837; Cornelia, August 
28, 1839; ?^Iary R., January 29, 1842; and 
Elias, born November 29, 1844, who died Oc- 
tober 10, 1846. 

Edward G. Matthews received his education 
in the common schools, and at the age of four- 
teen began working with his father at the car- 
penter's trade. At twenty-one he commenced 
work for himself as a wagon-maker during the 
season and as a carpenter in the summer. He 
was in company with a Mr. Blanchard at Pike, 
Wyoming County, for five years. In April, 
1868, after relinquishing his trade, he pur- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



6oi 



1853, Mr. Edward G. Mat- 



chased his present farm, which is situated one- 
half mile from the post-office at Perry, and 
consists of one hundred acres under good culti- 
vation. He has rebuilt and renovated all of 
his farm buildings, which present a very neat 
and prosperous appearance. Besides being 
largely engaged in grain-raising, he has an 
orchard of various kinds of fruit-trees, keeps 
some very fine horses and cattle, and makes 
a specialty of feeding sheep winters, keeping 
as many as from three hundred to four hundred 
and fifty head. 

On March 16, 
thews was united in marriage to Mary Lapham, 
who was born February 15, 1830, at Scipio, 
Cayuga County, daughter of Sidney and Jane 
(Macomber) Lapham. Her parents were early 
settlers in that county, but removed to Perry 
soon after her birth, and resided there till Mr. 
Lapham 's death, February 16, 185 1. Mrs. 
Lapham is now living. She was born Sep- 
tember 12, 1806, daughter of Zebediah and 
Rebecca Macomber. Her father was born Octo- 
ber 8, 1785, and her mother August 10, 1787. 
They came from Dutchess County, were pros- 
perous farmers in Cayuga County, where they 
lived to an advanced age. They reared a fam- 
ily of fourteen children — Jane, Egbert, Al- 
bert, William, Smith, Betsey A., Oscar, 
Norman, Herman, Eunice, Jerome, Hannah, 
Dewitt C. , and Emery Macomber. Of these 
but three are now living. Zebediah Macom- 
ber was a Republican in politics, and a mem- 
ber of the Society of Friends. Mr. and Mrs. 
Edward G. Matthews have had three children, 
as follows: Sidney, born May 15, 1854, died 
September 23, 1887. Luella, born November 
16, 1856, is the wife of Joseph E. Cole, resid- 
ing in Perry; and they have three children. 
I'lora, born November ig, 1859, married John 
Higgins, also residing in Perry; and they have 
two children. 

He is a Republican in politics, has served 
as Assessor, and is now Supervisor, having 
held that office for three years. Mr. Matthews 
was for some time interested in the Silver 
Lake Railroad, of which he was superintend- 
ent for si.v years. Mr. and Mrs. Matthews are 
members of the Baptist church, their daugh- 
ters of the Presbyterian. 



IRA T. WHEELOCK is an influential 
farmer and a life-long resident in Leices- 
ter township, Livingston County, N. Y. , 
where he was born September 29, 1833, 
about the time of the attempted secession of 
the "Palmetto State," during the Presidential 
term of Andrew Jackson. Royal Wheelock, 
his grandfather, was an Ontario County pio- 
neer; and more of the family history maybe 
found in our .sketch of Austin W. Wheelock, 
a brother of our present subject. 

The father of Austin and Ira was Harry 
Wheelock, born in Connecticut, on October 
20, 1792, in the middle of General Washing- 
ton's Presidential term. Mr. Harry Wheelock 
came to this section of New York with his 
parents when only a child. He grew up in 
Bloomfield, Ontario County, and fought in the 
War of 181 2, marching from Buffalo. In 
1 819 he came to Leicester and purchased a 
hundred and twenty acres of land, whereon 
a patch of clearing and a log house were the 
only signs of civilization. As his heart had 
already been given to a rosy Bloomfield dam- 
sel, he went back there after her; and they 
began their housekeeping in the humblest sort 
of way, their two eldest children being born in 
the cabin. Rochester was the nearest market 
town, railways were unknown, and for a long 
time, both for farm work and travel, the set- 
tlers were dependent on their patient oxen. 
In due time Mr. Harry Wheelock erected bet- 
ter buildings; but he did not quit the old 
estate till summoned by the Death Angel, on 
June 13, 1873, when over fourscore. His 
marriage took place December 12, 1819, when 
he was twenty-seven years old, the bride being 
Judith Gillett, who was born February 4, 
1797, and died January 28, 1867, something 
over six years prior to the death of her hus- 
band. Their four children were: Charles, 
Austin, Martha, and Ira T. 

The youngest, who is our special subject, 
obtained what education he could at the dis- 
trict school and in the Burkbit Collegiate In- 
stitute, and helped his father on the farm. 
After marriage he went to Bureau County, Illi- 
nois, made arrangements to settle there, and 
returned home for his wife. Poinding that 
family affairs demanded his presence, he 



6o2 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



yielded to his father's importunity, gave up 
his Western projects, and decided to remain 
on the homestead, whereof he eventually be- 
came sole proprietor, so that this has been his 
life-long home. Mr. W'heelock is a Republi- 
can, has served one term as Overseer of the 
Poor and six years as Supervisor. He is a 
member of the Presbyterian church; and his 
life illustrntes the words of that eminent story- 
writer, George MacDonald : "I do not think 
that the road to contentment lies in despising 
what we have not. Let us acknowledge all 
good, all delight that the world holds, and yet 
be content without it." Mr. Wheelock's mar- 
riage to Marcia P'idelia Crosby took place on 
August 27, 1856. shortly after the election of 
Buchanan as President of the United States, 
and just before the famous year of " hard 
times. ' ' She was a Leicester girl, born in 
the same town with her husband, on No- 
vember 29, 183S. the daughter of Hiram 
Crosby, who was born in Hartland, Hartford 
County, Conn., on February 27, iSii. Hiram 
Crosby's father was Jeduthun Crosby, also a 
native of Connecticut, who there married 
Xancv Buel, of the same State. In Connecti- 
cut the Crosbvs remained till 1S19, and then 
came to New York State, settling in what is 
now the township of Leicester, buying land, on 
which they erected buildings, whereon Mr. 
Jeduthun Cro.^by lived till his death. By un- 
remitting industrv he cleared a good farm, and 
became a forehanded man, furnishing his home 
so handsomelv and taking such care of the 
grounds that it was one of the most attractive 
estates in this section of the county. Hiram 
Crosby, Mrs. W'heelock' s father, was but a boy 
of eight when the family came to Leicester; 
and he played with the children of the Indians, 
who had bv no means whollv disappeared from 
the forest. Needless to say that Hiram grew 
up a farmer — a vocation he never forsook. 
Before marriage he bought the farm where his 
widow still resides. At first it was small, but 
he added thereto till he owned two hundred 
and si.\ty-five acres. There he died May 4, 
1 88 1. Air. Crosby was an upright and con- 
scientious man, and a life-long member of the 
Presbyterian church. The maiden name of 
Mrs. Wlieelock's mother was Rachel F. L'nder- 



wood. She was born in the town of York, on 
June 15, 1813, and was married on February 
8, 1837, at the age of twenty-three. Her father 
was Timothy L^nderwood, a Connecticut man, 
who came to New York State, and for a time 
lived in Watertown. Thence he went to 
Rochester, then only a hamlet, with no prom- 
ise of its rapid growth. Securing a tract of 
land near the Rapids, he laid the foundations 
of a home; but the children were stricken with 
fever, so he decided to move farther south, and 
chose a tract of timber land in what soon be- 
came the town of York, in Livingston County, 
though then included in Genesee County. 
Here he built the usual primitive dwelling of 
logs, but in the course of years his ambition 
was gratified by having a well-tilled farm and 
a group of frame buildings. Though not calling 
his house a tavern, he nevertheless entertained 
all sorts of wayfarers. Not only did new- 
comers find a home there while building their 
own cabins, but travelling preachers (and there 
were none other at that time) were alwavs wel- 
come. While rowing with a load of lumber 
he was accidentally thrown into the river, re- 
ceiving injuries from which he eventually died 
in 1S20. The maiden name of Timothy L'n- 
derwood's wife. Mrs. W'heelock's grandmother, 
was Rachel Orris. She was a Connecticut 
woman, and outlived her husband manv years, 
dving at the age of eightv-si.\ ; but her daugh- 
ter, Mrs. W'heelock's mother, is still alive, a 
vigorous woman of eighty-one. stanch in her 
loyalty to the Presbyterian church, which she 
joineil in her nineteenth jear, and of which 
she has been a member for over sixty years. 
Mrs. Crosby is a bright old lady, sound in 
mind and body. 

Mr. and Mrs. Ira T. W'heelock have two 
children — Arthur, born in iv'^57; and Ger- 
trude, born in i860, (iertrutle W'heelock mar- 
ried Thomas P. W'ooster, and has two children 
— Irene E. and John Carl W'ooster. 



ONATHAN MILLER, one of the most 
enterprising and progressive representa- 
tives of the stock-raising interests of 
this section of Livingston Count v, is 
pleasantly located in the town of Nunda, where 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



603 



he is paying especial attention to the raising 
of fancy trotting horses and thoroughbred Hol- 
stein cattle. He is a native of this county, 
having been born in the town of Mount Mor- 
ris, in the month of August, 1829. 

Mr. Miller comes of English antecedents, 
his grandfather, Jonathan Miller, having emi- 
grated from England to America, locating in 
Connecticut, where he was pastor of a Metho- 
dist church for many years. His son, Jona- 
than, the father of the subject of this biogra- 
phy, was born in the Nutmeg State, and there 
reared to maturity. He was a tiller of the 
soil, and, realizing that the pro.spects for ac- 
quiring land were better in a new country, 
removed with his family to this State, and set- 
tled in Livingston County, traversing the en- 
tire distance from the place of his birth to this 
county with ox teams. He took up a tract of 
land one mile south of the River Road Forks, 
at Mount Morris, and, after clearing a space, 
erected a log house for himself and family. 
The nearest mill was at Rochester, and the 
only way of reaching that place was by a nar- 
row path marked by blazed trees. In addition 
to raising all the food for the family, he raised 
flax from which the material for their clothing 
was made, the deft and busy fingers of the 
wife and mother fashioning the garments for 
the entire family. He was an indu.strious and 
hard-working man, succeeding well in his 
efforts to reclaim a farm from the heavily tim- 
bered land, and in the course of years erected 
a substantial frame house in place of the rude 
log cabin, placed the larger portion of his land 
under cultivation, set out a fine orchard, and 
made improvements equal to any in the vicin- 
ity. This valuable estate was until recently 
in possession of the Miller family. He was 
a remarkably intelligent and influential man, 
in politics a Whig, and afterw-ard a Republi- 
can when the old party changed its name, and 
a .strict Methodist in his religious view.s. He 
married Emeline Smith, of New Am.sterdam, 
N. Y. ; and they reared a family of several 
children, as follows: Cynthia, Fanny, Heman, 
Ann, Olive, Eli, Jonathan, Charles, and Mar- 
tha. Eli is now a noted physician and a well- 
known political writer of New York City. 

The subject of this brief personal narrative 



received his rudimentary education in the dis- 
trict schools, and afterward attended the col- 
lege at Lima. He began his career as a 
teacher in the public schools of Mount Morris 
and Nunda, and subsequently learned the jew- 
eller's trade, at which he worked for ten years. 
Returning then to the home of his childhood, 
Mr. Miller assisted his father on the paternal 
homestead for a few years, remaining there 
until 1867, when he bought his present prop- 
erty in the town of Xunda, where he has since 
resided. He is meeting with excellent suc- 
cess in his undertakings, and has attained a 
more than local reputation as a breeder of fine 
horses and cattle, and is regarded as authority 
on all questions concerning his line of busi- 
ness. Mr. Miller is a strong Republican, and 
cast his first Presidential vote in 1852 for 
General Scott. He is a member of the Ma- 
sonic fraternity, and is in good standing in the 
Methodist church. 

In 1852 Mr. Miller was united in marriage 
with Miss Phcebe Roberts, the daughter of 
Wilson and Mary (Davis) Roberts, natives of 
New Jersey. Mrs. Miller, who was an es- 
teemed member of the Methodist church, 
cros.sed the river of death in 1881, being then 
fifty-two years old. She left three children — 
Estelle, Mary, and Myrtie. Mary, who mar- 
ried Charles Wheeler, of Cuba, has two chil- 
dren — Ralph and Lelia. Myrtie, the wife of 
Mr. LaRue, of Bay City, Mich., has two sons 
— Robert and Walter. Estelle is filling the 
place left vacant by her mother's death. 



T^HARLES PRENTICE, the owner of 
I V^ a well-appointed and well-conducted 
^Hs ^ farm, lying in Joint District No. 
13, in the town of Orangeville, Wy- 
oming County, N. Y. , is a native of the Em- 
pire State, and first opened his eyes to the 
light of this world in Saratoga County, March 
2, 1823. He is a son of Charles Prentice, Sr. , 
who was born in Eastern New York in 1790. 
Nathaniel Prentice, the paternal grandfather 
of the subject of this sketch, was for many 
years a farmer in the town of Attica, where he 
settled when the place was in its original wild- 
ness. In 1835 he again followed the tide of 



6o4 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



migration westward, and located in Indiana, 
where he died at a good old age. He was a 
most patriotic and loyal man, and for his brave 
service in the Revolution received a pension. 
He was twice married; and his first wife, who 
died before he moved to this county, bore him 
three children, of whom Charles was the el- 
dest. Of his second union five children were 
born, three sons and two daughters. 

Charles Prentice, Sr. , a shoemaker by trade, 
was married while a resident of New Jersey, 
to Margaret Hayden, their nuptials being cele- 
brated in 1821. He afterward worked at his 
chosen occupation in Gal way, Saratoga County, 
this State, coming thence to Orangeville in 
1832, and the following year moved to Barre, 
Orleans County, where he lived two years. 
In 1835 he bought ten acres of land, a little 
south of the centre of Attica, and, taking resi- 
dence there, worked at shoemaking for five 
years. Selling that property, he subsec[uently 
bought forty acres near by, and in a few years 
purchased thirty-six acres of adjacent land, the 
whole making him a good farm. On this es- 
tate he lived, a hale and hearty man, until his 
decease, August 30, 1877. His devoted wife, 
with whom he had lived in pleasant companion- 
ship for upward of half a century, passed to the 
higher state of existence the spring prior to 
his death. 

Of the seven children born of their union 
we record the following : Abial N., who died 
in 185 1, left three children. George C. 
died in 1853, leaving a widow and two 
children. Josiah R. departed this life in Feb- 
ruary, 1893, leaving four children. Charles 
is the subject of this biography. Samuel, a 
farmer, lives on the old homestead in Attica. 
Archibald lives near Bliss station. Betsey 
J., the wife of Hiram Carpenter, resides in 
North Java. 

Charles Prentice has followed the indepen- 
dent calling of a farmer since arriving at years 
of discretion, and has been the architect of his 
own fortune, having accumulated by hard and 
persistent labor his present snug property. 
He began working for himself on a small farm 
in Attica, where he lived until 1864, when he 
bought the one hundred and eighty acres con- 
stituting his present estate, which he has since 



managed with undoubted skill and ability, 
carrying on general farming. In his political 
views Mr. Prentice is a stanch advocate of the 
principles promulgated by the Republican 
party, and he is content to let others perform 
the duties of public office. 

Mr. Prentice was wedded March iS, 1846, 
to Phcebe Anna Burdick, of Kortright, Dela- 
ware County, where she was born in 1824. 
Her parents, William G. and Abigail (Dibbe) 
Burdick, removed from Kortright to Orleans 
County when Mrs. Prentice was but five 
months old, and in 1831 came to this county, 
and engaged in farming in Attica for some 
years. Removing to Michigan, they settled 
in Allegan County, and there spent their de- 
clining years, the mother dying in 1885, and 
her husband some three years later. Of their 
eleven children, four daughters and two sons 
are now living, all being residents of Michi- 
gan excepting Mrs. Prentice and one sister, 
Mrs. Delight Hayes, of Cattaraugus County. 
Mr. Burdick was a soldier of the War of 1812, 
and for many years was a pensioner. Mrs. 
Prentice is an activ'e member of the Church of 
the United Brethren. 

Three children have been born to Mr. and 
Mrs. Prentice ; and of these Emma, who mar- 
ried Edgar Wilcox, of Perry, died in that vil- 
lage, in September, 1885, aged thirty-four 
years, leaving two sons and two daughters, one 
of whom, Alfred S. , is married, and has a 
bright little girl named Edith. Walter E. , 
a resident of Orangeville, is a widower, with 
two children. William B, has a wife and four 
children, two of them being twin sons. 



■^^NELSON SLOCUM, a prosperous farmer 
and one of the oldest citizens in 
Warsaw, was born in Washington 
County, Rhode Island, May 13, 
1 8 14. He was the son of Peleg and Cathe- 
rine (Hoxie) Slocum. His grandfather, also 
named Peleg Slocum, was one of the earliest 
settlers of Rhode Island ; and, though he was 
a weaver by trade, he owned a small farm, 
where he spent the greater part of his life. 
He lived to be over eighty years of age, and 
reared five sons and four daughters, none of 




JOHN HANBY. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



607 



whom are now living. The younger Peleg 
Slocum, father of Nelson Slocum, was born in 
Newport Kay, R.I. In 1830 he removed to 
Wyoming County, New York, at that time 
Gene.see County, travelling by boat to Albany, 
thence by canal to Brockport, and from there 
by stage and teams to his destination, the Jour- 
ney occupying fifteen days. This was shortly 
after the completion of the lirie Canal, called 
in derision "De Witt Clinton's ditch," but 
now acknowledged as one of the greatest com- 
mercial thoroughfares in the world. It then 
opened for settlement a region of great fertil- 
ity ; and Mr. Slocum, though a carpenter and 
joiner by trade, purchased a farm of ninety- 
three acres, which was under but little cultiva- 
tion, and had .several log houses built upon it. 
He was a hard worker; and his enterpri.se is 
.shown by his .succes.s, as he increased his farm 
from ninety-three acres to two hundred and 
fifty acres. The last years of his life were 
spent with his daughter, Mrs. Hannah Lewis, 
in Michigan ; and he lived to be over eighty-six 
years old. He voted with the Whigs, and was 
liberal in his religious view.s. His wife was 
born in Exeter, R. I. , and died in Warsaw, 
N. Y. , at the age of sixty-eight years. They 
had seven children, three of whom are now 
living — Nelson, the oldest; Phoebe Ann, in 
Michigan, now Mrs. Bartlett ; and Benjamin, 
who resides in Pennsylvania. 

Nelson Slocum, the subject of our sketch, 
was educated in his native town, and came to 
Warsaw with his father when he was si.\teen 
years old. At the age of twenty-one he 
started out for himself, accepting a position as 
clerk in Dansville, Livingston County. He 
afterward went into the grocery and provision 
business for himself, where he remained for 
three years. In 1843 he bought the farm 
which he now cultivates; and, although he has 
given his attention to various enterprises since 
then, he has still kept up his agricultural pur- 
suits. His present estate comprises seventy- 
five acres, and is one of the best farms in this 
vicinity, forming a pleasing .setting for his 
comfortable home. In politics Mr. Slocum is 
a Republican, and he at one time held the 
office of Constable in Warsaw. He is a prom- 
inent member of the Congregational church. 



He has been twice married. His first wife, 
to whom he was married May 17, 1843, was 
Ro.sanna C. Roe, daughter of Harvey and Can- 
dace (King^ Roe, of Perry, Wyoming County. 
She died January 12, 1888; and in Septem- 
ber, 1890, he married Lucy, daughter of Wal- 
ter Hatch, of Warsaw. Mr. Slocum has no 
children. 



OHN HANBY, for many years a promi- 
nent and very successful farmer of 
Geneseo, Livingston County, N.Y., 
was born in this town, March 15, 
1805. His father, William Hanby, who was 
a native of England, on coming to America 
settled in the State of Pennsylvania, where he 
man led and resided for a number of years, 
and then returned to E^ngland, where he died. 
His wife's maiden name was Mary McNeil. 
She was a native of Northumberland County, 
Pennsylvania, and daughter of Robert Mc- 
Neil, who was born in County Antrim, Ire- 
land, and who upon his arrival in America 
settled in Pennsylvania. After residing there 
for some length of time he removed to Liv- 
ingston County, New York, and became one 
of the first settlers of the town of Geneseo. 
His wife was also a native of County Antrim. 
They both spent their last days in Livingston 
County. Mrs. Mary McNeil Hanby, after 
the death of her first husband, married Mr. 
Isaac Hall, father of the late J. Thompson 
Hall, a well-known and highly esteemed civil 
engineer. 

John Hanby was reared to agricultural pur- 
suits, and spent his entire life in close appli- 
cation to this branch of industry. Previous 
to his marriage he had purchased a farm of 
fifty acres, situated about two miles from 
Geneseo, upon which he began his career in 
a log house. Here he brought his wife after 
marriage, and here most of his children were 
born. From time to time, as the fruits of his 
labor began to ripen, he added to his first pur- 
chase little by little, until his acres broadened 
to such an extent that he was designated as 
one of the largest landholders in the county. 
At the time of his decease, February 3, 1884, 
he was in possession of five hundred and forty 



6o8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



acres of land, all under good cultivation, 
together with spacious and convenient 
buildings. 

In the year 1S30 Mr. Hanby was married to 
Miss Margaret M. Begole, daughter of Samuel 
and Margaret (^Schull) Begole, pioneers of 
Livingston County. They reared in all seven 
children, as follows: William Henry, Nancy 
C, John R., Hannah C, Mary S., Margaret 
C, and Helen L. Mr. and Mrs. Hanby were 
members of the Presbyterian church upward 
of half a century. Mr. Hanby was entirely a 
self-made man, commencing life with nothing 
but his own energy and natural abilities, and 
ending it with a goodly share of labor's fruits, 
as a reward for his patient, unwearying dili- 
gence and sagacious thrift. He was always 
an exceedingly liberal contributor to the 
needs of the church, as well as to all other 
worth)- objects, and died a true and faithful 
Christian, respected and beloved by all who 
knew him. 

On a neighboring page may be seen a por- 
trait of the representative agriculturist whose 
life history is here briefly given, and whose 
worth and long-continued usefulness entitle 
him to be held in honored remembrance. 



(5>r RCHIBALD C. McCALL, a prominent 
LA lawyer of Arcade, was born in Eagle, 
/j, , \ Wyoming County, January 19, 

^~^ 1862. His grandfather, John Mc- 
Call, was a native of the Highlands of Scot- 
land, and there spent the greater part of his 
life, tending his flocks, that browsed among 
the heather. About forty years ago he came 
to America, and died in the village of Pike, 
leaving a large family, of which the youngest- 
born, Ronald, was the father of Archibald. 

Ronald McCall was born at Lismore, Scot- 
land, and was about twentj^-five years of age 
when he came to America. In his native 
land he followed the occupation of coast pilot, 
but upon coming to the Western world he be- 
came a farmer. From Caledonia, X.Y.. he 
came to Eagle, where he purchased land, 
which he cultivated until his death, which 
occurred in his fifty-sixth year. His wife 
was born in Airdrie, Scotland. Her maiden 



name was Margaret Liddell; and she was the 
only child of her parents, William and Mar- 
garet Liddell. Nine of the ten children born 
to Ronald and Margaret McCall are still liv- 
ing — Archibald; John; William: Annie, 
who married Frank R. Wilson, of Eagle; 
Guy; James: Charles; Oliver; and Lucy. 
The mother of this large family is still living 
on the old homestead at Eagle. 

Archibald C. McCall spent his boyhood 
days in the towns of Eagle and Pike, and was 
educated in the district schools and at Pike 
Seminary. At the age of eighteen he com- 
menced the stud}- of law with Bartlett & Bart- 
lett, of Warsaw, and was admitted to the bar 
at Svracuse at the age of twentv-one. Dur- 
ing said term he also read law in the offices of 
M. E. & E. M. Bartlett, Augustus Harrington, 
of Warsaw, and the Hon. John N. Beckley, 
of Rochester, all prominent members of the 
legal profession of Western New York. Mr. 
McCall came to Arcade in April, 1884, and 
opened a law office, where he still continues 
in active practice. ]\Ir. McCall was married 
in May, 1887, to Miss Etta A. Beebe, a 
daughter of Dewitt C. Beebe, who was for 
many years a prominent merchant and banker 
at Arcade and one of the leading citizens of 
Wyoming County, but is now deceased. Mrs. 
McCalTs mother is still living. Three chil- 
dren gladden the home of Mr. and Mrs. Mc- 
Call — Hazel, Ronald, and Carlton. 



THOMPSON HALL, who in his 
younger days was a surv^eyor and in his 
latter days was also a farmer, was born 
at Livonia, Livingston County, N.Y., 
October 22, 181 7. His father, Isaac Hall, 
was one of the pioneers of that town, but 
removed to Geneseo, where he settled upon a 
tract of land, a small part of which was 
cleared. He devoted his time to clearing and 
cultivating his farm, upon which he resided 
during the rest of his days. He married Mary 
McNeil, daughter of Robert and Jane McNeil, 
she being the widow of William Hanby, and 
reared six children — Elizabeth, Dorothy L., 
]\Iarv W., Robert J., James Thompson, and 
Eli H. Hall. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



609 



James Thompson Hall was educated at the 
Lima Academy, and became a surveyor, or 
civil engineer. He surveyed and laid out 
several sections and towns. In 1850 he went 
to California, drawn there, no doubt, by the 
gold fever, which reached its height in the 
period of the early fifties. From Cincinnati 
he proceeded down the Ohio and Mississippi 
Rivers, thence across the Isthmus of Panama 
and up the Pacific coast to San Francisco. 
He surveyed and mined in California, and 
also owned and conducted a train of pack 
mules, remaining in that State, however, but 
two years, when he returned to look after his 
interest in the old homestead. He rented the 
farm, and followed his profession, being one 
of the most reliable surveyors in Livingston 
County, and continued thus until his death, 
which occurred March 28, 1880. He added 
considerably to the old homestead, and at the 
time of his death owned two hundred acres of 
land, with good and substantial buildings. 
He never married. The old homestead is 
now owned and conducted by his niece. Miss 
Nancy C. Hanby, daughter of John Hanby, a 
sketch of whose life appears elsewhere in this 
work. Mr. Hall was a Republican in politics 
and a stanch supporter of the principles of 
that party. He served for some years as Su- 
pervisor, and during the war was enrolling 
officer. 




LBERT I. COUNTRYMAN, the 
able editor and proprietor of the Sil- 
ver Springs Signal, was born in 
Geneva, Ontario County, N.Y., 
October 20, 1862. His father, Asa, and his 
grandfather, Nicholas Countryman, were both 
natives of Herkimer County, the latter being 
a mason by trade and following that occupa- 
tion during life. He was born in 1800, and 
died in 1874. The grandmother, Mrs. Ecla 
Countryman, was the mother of thirteen chil- 
dren, some of whom are still living. 

Asa Countryman grew up on the farm, and 
when but a boy made an agreement with his 
father for a small sum of money, by which he 
was able to hire out to neighboring farmers, 
and so in time create a little capital for him- 



self. He attended school in winter, and 
worked in summer after the country custom ; 
but on reaching maturity he relinquished 
farming as an occupation, and after a brief 
stay in Livonia, Livingston County, en- 
tered the ministry, going West and preaching 
in Iowa, Ohio, and other places. For many 
years he labored as a Universalist clergyman; 
but in 1894 he gave up his profession, and is 
now occupied in the real estate business. 
Asa Countryman was twice married, his first 
wife being Sabra Lapham, who reared two 
children, now living. His second wife was 
Sarah Elizabeth Putnam, daughter of John 
Putnam, a merchant of Orange, Mass., an ac- 
tive man in business, who built the first saw- 
mill in the town, and whose life was passed 
in that locality. Her grandparents, of the 
name of Cook, were of Scotch-English de- 
scent, and spent most of their married life in 
Illinois, where they reared a family of three 
children. Mr. Cook was a man of ability, 
and much esteemed in the Methodist society, 
to which they both belonged. Mrs. Country- 
man is still living, and resides with her son, 
Herbert I. Asa and his wife had four chil- 
dren to add to their happiness — Herbert I., 
Halle B. (deceased), Rollin P., and Carl C. 

Herbert Countryman spent his early life in 
various places, accompanying his father as he 
went here and there to preach and carry on 
evangelistic work. He attended the common 
and graded schools in the States of Michigan, 
Ohio, and Iowa, and began farm work, but 
soon relinquished that occupation for the 
printing business, which he learned in Iowa. 
There he was employed in his father's office 
on the paper known as the Iowa Falls Regis- 
ter. Soon after this he took an interval of a 
year, and travelled in the West and South; and 
then in 1891 he joined his father in the pur- 
chase of the Perry Xcius, published at Perry, 
Wyoming County, N.Y. This they con- 
ducted for a short time, and then concluded to 
establish their enterprise in Silver Springs, 
where the outlook was more promising for 
journalistic work. The transfer was accord- 
ingly made; and the Silver Springs Signal, 
the only paper published in the town, soon 
made its appearance, and continues to be re- 



6io 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



ceived as a constant guest in the business 
offices and in the homes of the town and 
neighboring villages. The S/,g-Ma/ is indepen- 
dent in the line of politics, giving a fair show 
on both sides, and consequently has a good 
class of appreciative readers. Mr. Country- 
man is now sole proprietor, having bought his 
father's interest in 1893. 

Mr. Countryman is a member of Logan 
Lodge, No. 162, of the Knights of Pythias, at 
Marseilles, 111., also of Aurora Lodge, No. 
667, of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows, at Silver Springs, N.Y., being at pres- 
ent Secretary; and he is President of the 
Worcester Hose Company of Silver Springs. 
In politics he is a Republican, and is very 
liberal in religious matters. 

He was married in 1892 to Miss Lydia 
Hackshaw, daughter of William and Ellen 
(Dobson) Hackshaw, whose parents resided in 
Illinois, where she was born, one of a family 
of eight children. Her father was a farmer 
there, and died in the West in 1881. Her 
mother, of Scotch descent, died July, 1893, 
at the age of seventy years. 

Mrs. Countryman understands the art of 
printing, and assists her husband in the office 
of his paper. Mr. and Mrs. Countryman have 
one child, Isabella Frances. 




traces 



RLANDO C. CLEVELAND, a well- 
known and successful farmer of Gen- 
eseo, was born in Webster, Monroe 
County, N.Y., January 24, 1837. He 
his genealogy back to Moses Cleve- 
land, who came to America in Colonial times, 
and settled in New England. One of Moses 
Cleveland's direct descendants was Chester 
Cleveland, grandfather of Orlando C. Ches- 
ter Cleveland emigrated from Vermont to 
New York State previous to the War of 1812, 
and settled near Cherry Valley, on a farm 
which he had purchased, living there a num- 
ber of years. As old age approached, he dis- 
posed of his property, and went to the town 
of Webster, to reside with his children. His 
son, Calvin Cleveland, came from Vermont, 
his native State, with his father to Cherry 
Valley, and as soon as he was old enough 



began to learn the trade of carpenter and 
joiner. After reaching maturity, he went 
westward, and located in the town of Web- 
ster. Here he purchased a home, and carried 
on his trade during the remainder of his life. 
He died at the age of sixty-nine. 

The maiden name of Mrs. Calvin Cleve- 
land, mother of Orlando C. Cleveland, was 
Mary A. Morrison. She was a native of 
Monroe County, and was a daughter of Samuel 
Morrison, a pioneer in this State. He was 
born in New England, and was one of the first 
settlers in the town of Penfield, N.Y., where 
he purchased a tract of timber land, erected a 
log house, and proceeded to get the soil ready 
for cultivation. It was a herculean task. He 
was seven miles from the nearest neighbor. 
Deer, bears, and other kinds of wild game 
abounded in the vicinit)'; and Indians still 
lingered. But, undaunted by difficulty, the 
pioneer went bravely to work, and in time re- 
deemed a fine farm. He erected a good house 
and other frame buildings, and was able at 
length to enjoy the fruits of his labors, living 
to the advanced age of ninety-three. Mr. and 
Mrs. Calvin Cleveland had a large family, of 
whom five are still living. Their names are: 
Elizabeth, Orlando C, Amanda, Mary, and 
Sarah. 

Orlando Cleveland commenced when quite 
young to learn the trade of carpenter and 
joiner, working at it until 1876, when he 
went to Geneseo, where he located on the 
farm which he now owns, and which he has put 
under extensive cultivation. There he suc- 
cessfully carries on general farming, and he 
ranks among the most prosperous men of this 
section. 

Mr. Cleveland votes the Democratic ticket, 
and with his family attends the Methodist 
church. 

Mr. Cleveland was married in 1862 to Miss 
Sarah A. Strong, a native of Perrington, 
Monroe County, N.Y. Her father, Mr. De- 
witt C. Strong, was a native of Oneida 
County. Her grandfather, Enoch Strong, 
was born in New England, but migrated to 
the Black River country in New York State, 
and from there moved to Perrington, where he 
was one of the early settlers. Enoch Strong 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



6ii 



was a lawyer, and in addition to practising 
his profession was engaged in farming, resid- 
ing in Perrington till his death. He was 
prominent in public affairs, a man of note 
among his townsmen, and filled various local 
offices, besides serving as a member of the 
Assembly. The maiden name of Enoch 
Strong's wife was Reuhamy Benedict. 

Dewitt C. Strong, his son, father of Mrs. 
Cleveland, followed agricultural pursuits in 
his youth. After his marriage he moved to 
the town of Victor, but remained there two 
years only, when he took his family to Web- 
ster, and was engaged in farming there for 
many years. He spent his last days with his 
daughter, Mrs. Cleveland, dying at the age of 
eighty-one years. Mrs. Cleveland's mother 
before her marriage was Miss Joanna Bennett. 
She died at the age of sixty-seven years, leav- 
ing six children — Sarah, Emeline, Enoch, 
Mary, Amy, and Edith. 

Mr. and Mrs. Orlando Cleveland have a 
family of six children — Mary, Amy, Dewitt 
C, Willie, Emeline, and Cora. Mary is the 
wife of George Pfaff. Dewitt C. married 
Miss Celia Griswold, and has one son, Lewis. 
Willie married Lucile Bills. 




"ERDINAND FROMHOLZER, M.D.^ 
a physician of Strykersville, and a 
member of the firm of Griggs & From- 
holzer, was born in Bavaria, Germany, April 
16, 1862, and is a son of Alois and Theresa 
(Zeller) Fromholzer. His father was a dyer 
and printer of cloth, and died in Germany in 
1880, at the age of forty-eight years. Mrs. 
Fromholzer' s mother was before her marriage 
Mary Stahl, born in America, her father, 
Joseph Zeller, having immigrated from Ger- 
many and become a farmer in Erie County. 
He raised a family of four sons and five daugh- 
ters. Mr. and Mrs. Fromholzer had five sons 
and four daughters, three sons and three daugh- 
ters of whom are now living. The mother 
also is still living, in Germany. The Doc- 
tor's brother Casper came to the United States 
in 1875, and is now a translator of German on 
a newspaper in Pittsburg, Pa. Another 
brother, J. H. Fromholzer, a Catholic clergy- 



man, came in 1876, and died near Buffalo, 
March 4, 1893. 

Dr. Fromholzer received part of his educa- 
tion in Germany; and, when he came to the 
United States, he had with him the necessary 
means with which to pursue his professional 
studies. This he did to the fullest e.xtent, 
finally entering the medical department of the 
Buffalo University, from which he graduated 
in 1885. He commenced practising in Shel- 
don shortly after; and there he continued until 
locating in Strykersville, in March, 1893. 
Dr. Fromholzer has been a close student, and 
is familiar with both European and American 
methods of practice. His familiarity with the 
German language gives him easy access to the 
scientific writings of his fatherland; and this, 
added to his American training, has made him 
a very successful practitioner, and he is recog- 
nized as a skilful and reliable physician. The 
firm of Griggs & Fromholzer has an extended 
practice. Their large and commodious office 
is located near their residence in Strykersville, 
and has the appearance of a well-stocked ]3har- 
maceutical dispen.sary, as they carry a full line 
of medicines. 

July 15, 1885, Dr. Fromholzer married 
Miss Rhoda Marzolf, of Erie County ; and they 
have had six children, one of whom, an infant 
daughter, died. The remaining five are as 
follows: Frank, Matilda, Florence, Otto, and 
Helen B. 



OSEPH C. BUXTON, a salt manufact- 
urer of Warsaw, was born in that vil- 
lage, May I, 1850. At the age that 
most boys are pursuing their studies, 
Joseph Buxton was compelled to earn his own 
livelihood. The period of his school life was 
brief, and the advantages of the ordinary school 
at that time were somewhat limited; but the 
lad possessed energy and perseverance, and at 
the early age of fourteen secured a clerkship in 
the hardware store of Messrs. Morris & Lewis, 
in whose employment he remained for six 
years. At twenty-one he made an indepen- 
dent business venture in the establishment of 
a coal trade, which proved a financial success, 
and in which he continued for five years. He 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



was after that the station agent for the Roch- 
ester & State Line Railroad for about seven 
years, and subsequently became Assistant Su- 
perintendent of the Warsaw Salt Works, under 
General Superintendent J. M. Duncan. He 
held this position for two years, and then en- 
gaged in salt manufacturing. The Pearl Salt 
Company, of which Mr. Buxton is Secretary 
and Treasurer, has its works on Pearl Creek, 
Covington, and employs a force of forty men. 
One hundred and fifty barrels are shipped per 
week to the market. This enterprise, which 
is very thriving, is owned by a stock company, 
and is on a firm basis. Mr. Buxton is also 
interested in the Watkins Salt Works, and is 
\'ice-President of the Glen Salt Company, of 
which Mr. George C. Otis is President. The 
capital stock of this new enterprise, which is 
already winning a wide reputation, is one hun- 
dred thousand dollars; and it bids fair to be 
one of the commercial successes of the United 
States. Both companies are incorporated 
under the laws of New York. Mr. Buxton is 
a fine example of the self-made man. He 
takes an interest in public affairs, and at the 
polls votes the Republican ticket. 

On December i6, 1874, Mr. Buxton was 
married to Miss Alice F. , daughter of Roswell 
and Marilla (Beckley) Gould. The bride's 
father was a native of Vermont, and her 
mother's place of birth was LeRoy, N. Y. 
The house Mr. and Mrs. Buxton now occupy, 
No. 8 Court Street, was built by Mr. Gould 
about half a century ago ; and in it Mrs. Bux- 
ton was born and reared. Her parents came 
to Warsaw in 1843, and from that date up to 
185 1 Mr. Gould was a drv-goods merchant. 
He afterward dealt in produce, and during his 
residence in Warsaw was County Treasurer, 
Supervisor, and Justice of the Peace. 

Mr. Gould died in 1868, aged sixty-two. 
His wife reached the age of seventv-two, and 
died in 1882. They rest in the Warsaw cem- 
etary. Mrs. Buxton had two sisters, who died 
in their youth — Helen L. , a little girl of ten 
years; and Caroline, aged sixteen, whose per- 
sonal charm of manner and lovely nature en- 
deared her to all who came within her gentle 
influence, and from whose death the bereaved 
parents never recovered. One brother, Frank 



C. Gould, is living in \\'arsaw. The marriage 
of Mr. and ^Irs. Buxton has been blessed by 
four children — Kate C. , a girl student at 
Rochester, where her mother also was edu- 
cated ; Helen L. , who is at school in Warsaw; 
Alice, a little lassie of ten, whose interests 
are still centred in dolls and fairytales; and 
Edward Homer, a bright little fellow of three 
and a half rears. 




ARREN P. HA SKINS was one of 
the best-known and most highly re- 
spected citizens of Avon ; and since 
his death, which occurred April 11, 1894, he 
has been seriously missed by many of the resi- 
dents of this town and its vicinity, although 
he had some years previously retired from 
active business life. His father was Solon 
Haskins, a native of Vermont ; but the subject 
of this sketch came to New York State at a 
comparatively early age, and took up his resi- 
dence in the town of LeRoy, where he carried 
on a saw-mill and a grist-mill in company with 
a brother. They remained associated in that 
business for several years, when he disposed of 
his interest in the property to his brother, and 
removed to Avon. 

Here he bought a well-equipped mill prop- 
erty, which he carried on successfully for a 
long period, improving it in various ways, and 
finally 'increasing its utility by the addition of 
a cider-mill. He retired from active business 
some six years before his death, which was 
undoubtedly hastened by domestic troubles ; 
for, although Mr. Haskins was one not easily 
discouraged, still he had sorrows, disappoint- 
ments, and rebuffs to overcome, which were 
severe enough and frequent enough to strain 
even the strongest nature, and, although he 
manifested courage, endurance, and unselfish- 
ness in his battle with them, they must have 
sapped his strength and shortened his days. 

He was married twice, his first wife being 
Louise Gushing, the daughter of John and 
Elizabeth Gushing, of Vermont. No children 
were born to them ; and they adopted a little 
girl, now Mrs. Fred Hall, of Avon. They 
gave her a comfortable and loving home, and 
could not have treated her more kindly and 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



613 



tenderly had she been their daughter by birth. 
The most interesting book that was ever written 
tells us, "Cast thy bread upon the waters, and 
it will return after many days." In this case 
it was not a very great number of days before 
it returned, and it returned in such a manner 
as to thrice bless those who had cast it forth. 
A great deal of sickness came to the house, 
visiting both the father and mother; and the 
little girl had to leave school at the early age 
of twelve to minister to the wants of her par- 
ents, and to keep house for them. This she 
did, not only willingly, but gladly and skil- 
fully ; and she never returned to school, for 
her constant presence at home was indispensa- 
ble. She married Fred E. Hall, who is in the 
employ of the Wells Fargo Express Company, 
and is stationed at Avon ; and they have had 
one child born to them whose name is Ida L. 

Warren P. Haskins was a religious man, 
not simply in form and in profession, but in 
every-day life. He was a member of the 
Baptist church when he resided at LeRoy ; 
and, after he came to Avon, he joined the 
Methodist church. His w'hole life was act- 
uated by a true religious spirit. Not but 
that he had his weaknesses, as all of us have; 
but, to use a colloquial but most expressive 
phrase, "his heart was in the right place," 
and few men were more earnest and constant 
in their adherence to the principles of the 
Golden Rule. 




|ARLE D. KEENEY, a popular and en- 
terprising druggist of Arcade, is a na- 
tive as well as resident of Wyoming 
County, having been born in Attica, Novem- 
ber 3, 1846, son of Austin D. Keeney, a 
native of Middlebury, Wyoming County, 
N.Y. Austin D. Keeney married a Miss 
Sayres, who was born in Attica in the same 
county, where her parents were early settlers. 
Mr. Keeney's grandfather on the paternal 
side was a farmer of Middlebury, so the fam- 
ily may well be considered as representative 
citizens of Wyoming County. 

Austin D. Keeney, the father, was a boot 
and shoe maker by occupation, and spent his 
early years in Middlebury. He now lives 



retired in Johnsonsburg, in this county. The 
mother died at the early age of twenty-eight, 
when the subject of this sketch was but two 
years old, so that he was deprived in early 
childhood of that loving care that only a 
mother can bestow. Three other children 
were left to mourn her untimely death, 
namely: Sarah, who on attaining womanhood 
became the wife of George Jones; Kate, who 
married A. P. Ward, a substantial farmer of 
North Java; and Addie, whose life came to 
a close at the age of thirteen. 

Earle D. Keeney spent his early years up 
to the age of si.xteen in Arcade, where he 
attended school. The Civil War, which was 
then raging, diverted his mind from the chan- 
nels of every-day affairs, and inflamed his 
youthful patriotism to such an extent that he 
enlisted in Company K, Ninth New York 
Cavalry, as a private, and served one year, or 
until the close of the war. He took part and 
served with credit in a number of engage- 
ments, among them that of Harper's Ferry 
and the capture of Early's men, and was 
honorably discharged at Frederick City, 
Md. He then returned home, and was fur- 
nished employment by his father for about 
two years, after which he went to Skaneateles, 
Onondaga County, where he had an uncle in 
the grocery business, with whom he worked as 
clerk for two years, later spending a year at 
Bricksburg, N.J., where he was engaged in 
the fruit business. He then spent five years 
in the .State of Georgia, engaged in the for- 
eign export business, and while so engaged 
made several trips to England, crossing the 
water in 1872, 1873, 1874, and 1875, mak- 
ing one trip each year. At the end of this 
time he returned to the North, and went into 
the drug business, opening a large store in 
Lancaster, Erie County, N.Y., and remaining 
there three years. In November, 1880, he 
came to Arcade, and purchased the largest 
store in the place at that time. This he kept 
until 1892, when he bought the building he 
now occupies, which has the finest location in 
Arcade, and fitted up a store according to his 
own ideas, which w-ere of a rather aspiring 
nature, as may be seen from the amount and 
value of his stock. His supply of patent 



6.4 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



medicines is large, and includes all the best- 
known and most useful compounds of that 
class. He also carries a line of fine station- 
ery, perfumes, and toilet articles, besides 
school books and lighter literature. The 
wants of the sporting element in this town 
have not been forgotten, for his assortment of 
fishing tackle and other sporting goods is well 
up to the times and of standard quality; and 
the juvenile portion of the community who 
frequent his store find it hard to withstand 
the tempting array of fine candies, confec- 
tions, etc., which make deadly havoc in their 
finances. In fact, his drug storq is said to 
be the finest in Wyoming County, and will 
bear comparison with anv in Western New 
York. 

From 1 884 to 1 890 Mr. Keeney was e.xten- 
sively engaged in the apiarian business, keep- 
ing between three hundred and four hundred 
colonies of bees, and shipping annually from 
ten thousand to fourteen thousand pounds of 
boxed honey. He also made a specialty of 
raising and shipping to all parts of the 
country queen bees, and took first prizes in 
all of the large fairs. That Mr. Keeney is 
an alert and wide-awake business man may be 
gleaned not only from the foregoing, but 
also from the fact that he is now extensively 
engaged in real estate operations in the city 
of Buffalo, being a director in several land 
companies engaged in the buying and selling 
of city lots. Mr. Keeney naturally occupies 
a high position among the prominent citizens 
of Arcade. He has served as a Trustee of 
the School Board two years, and is Chief of 
the village fire department. He is a member 
of Torbett Post, No. 2 1 8, Grand Army of the 
Republic, and was twice Adjutant; and he is 
a member of the Yorkshire Lodge of the An- 
cient Order of United Workmen. 

Mr. Keeney is a stanch Republican in his 
political views, and he and his wife are popu- 
lar members of the best society of the village. 
Mr. Keeney was united in marriage March 
30, 1879, to Miss Hattie M. Morehouse, only 
daughter of Myron Morehouse, of Johnsons- 
burg, N.Y. ]Mrs. Keeney was born in 
Wethersfield, Wyoming County, where her 
father was at one time a grain and produce 



dealer, and where the family were early set- 
tlers. She is a refined and cultured lady, 
and is the mother of one child, a daughter, 
Jessie M., now thirteen years of age. Both 
Mr. and ]\Irs. Keeney attend the Congrega- 
tional church, of which Mrs. Keeney is a 
member. 




ORIDON S. THOMSON, a well- 
known and highly successful business 
man of Attica, Wyoming County, 
was born May 13, 1823, at LeRoy, 
Genesee County, N.Y., where his father, 
Asahel Thomson, a native of Scotland, had 
settled as a farmer when a very young man. 
Asahel Thomson died about the year 1S26, at 
the age of thirty years, leaving a widow and 
four children, the youngest of whom died 
when two years old. There are now living 
William H. Thomson, residing in New 
Buffalo, Mich., a retired farmer about sev- 
enty-seven years of age; Warren A., a retired 
railroad man of Columbus, Columbia County, 
Wis. ; and Coridon S. The widow married 
again in 1838, her second husband being 
Chapin Farnham, by whom she had one son, 
George Farnham, now a resident of Chicago, 
111. She died in Columbus, Wis., in 1885, 
at the age of seventy-nine years. 

Coridon S. Thomson resided with his ma- 
ternal grandfather, Amos Spring, a farmer of 
LeRoy, until arriving at the age of twelve 
years, when he began to support himself by 
working on the farm for his uncle, Willard 
Weld, at Lockport, N.Y. ; and at the age of 
seventeen he began to learn the trade of a 
tanner and currier in Lockport, serving three 
years and receiving fifty dollars per year. 
Having mastered his trade, he went to Roch- 
ester, where he worked for six months as a 
splitter, and then accepted a position as fore- 
man of a tannery at Churchville, Monroe 
County, at three hundred dollars per year and 
expenses. He remained there four years, and 
in 1846 came to Attica, forming a partner- 
ship with James H. Loomis, for the purpose 
of conducting the tanning and currying 
business, under the firm name of Loomis & 
Thomson. Their tannery was situated about 




C. S. THOMSON. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



617 



one-quarter of a mile east of the village, and 
they did a very prosperous business for that 
period. Mr. Thomson managed the tannery, 
while his partner was at the head of the boot, 
shoe, and harness factory, which was estab- 
lished in conjunction with the former enter- 
prise and carried on in the brick building 
where the Loomis Bank is now located. This 
firm conducted a very prosperous business for 
three years, when it was dissolved, Mr. Thom- 
son becoming sole proprietor of the tannery, 
and Mr. Loomis continuing the manufacturing 
enterprise. Mr. Thomson purchased the prop- 
erty of James Loomis, Sr., and successfully 
operated it for twenty years, during which 
time he enlarged its capacity, added many 
improvements, and in 1865 fitted up the estab- 
lishment with steam-power apparatus, which 
placed his enterprise upon an equal footing 
with any similar factory in the coimtry. 

After the completion of the improvements 
he sold the entire establishment to Benjamin 
W. Leland, and remained out of business for 
one year, during which time he travelled a 
great deal, visiting different parts of the coun- 
try. In 1867 he engaged in the banking 
business with his late partner, James H. 
Loomis, the firm being Thomson & Loomis, 
private bankers, Mr. Thomson managing the 
bank and Mr. Loomis attending to the hard- 
ware business, which was his private busi- 
ness. This firm was in successful operation 
for a period of six years, at the end of which 
time failing health compelled Mr. Thomson 
to relinquish active cares for a time; and he 
sold his interest in the firm to the Loomises, 
a son of his former partner, Mr. Charles E. 
Loomis, taking charge of the bank. One 
year later, in improved health, Mr. Thomson 
purchased the grist-mill at Alexander, Gen- 
esee County, which is a full roller mill with 
two ran of stone for feed, etc., and eight sets 
of rollers, with a capacity of forty barrels of 
flour and some three hundred and f^fty bushels 
of grain. The mill receives its power from 
two turbine wheels of seventy-five horse- 
power. 

On May 10, 1847, Mr. Thomson married 
Miss Sarah A. Fargo, of Stafford, Genesee 
County, daughter of Isaac Fargo, a farmer. 



whose father, Robert Fargo, was an early set- 
tler of that locality. Isaac Fargo died in 
1858, leaving a family of eight sons and one 
daughter, who inherited from him a good 
estate. Six of these sons are still living, two 
in Wisconsin, one in Des Moines, la., one in 
Dakota, and two in Genesee County. Mr. 
and Mrs. Thomson have no children of their 
own, but adopted a daughter, who became the 
wife of Albert W. Leland, a resident of 
Knoxville, Tenn. She died at the age of 
thirty-one, in 1885, leaving one son, now a 
young man of nineteen, Willard C. Leland, 
who resides with his grandparents, and has 
received a good business education, being a 
graduate of Bryant & Stratton's Commercial 
College. The family reside in a large sub- 
stantial brick mansion at No. 90 Main Street, 
which they have occupied for twenty-five 
years, and which was erected in 1871. Its 
spacious rooms have been the scenes of many 
famous social gatherings, but of late, owing 
to the retiring habits of the family, are seldom 
opened. 

Mr. Coridon S. Thomson is the oldest busi- 
ness man in Attica with the exception of his 
former partner, Mr. Loomis, who was in busi- 
ness four years earlier than he. 

Mr. Thomson is a Republican in politics, 
and has served as Assessor and a member of 
the village board. He owns some valuable 
real estate in Attica, consisting of a large lot 
at the corner of Main and Water Streets, upon 
which is a brick block, and also the warehouse 
opposite. Mrs. Thomson is a member of the 
Baptist church, which Mr. Thomson attends, 
and to which he renders much financial support. 

Among the portraits which enrich the pres- 
ent volume of biographies will be found a 
very good likeness of this enterprising citizen 
of Attica, who, having no direct heirs to his 
name and virtues, does well thus to give to the 
world a counterfeit presentment of himself. 



RS. ELIZABETH ACOMB, widow 
of Thomas Acomb, late of Dans- 
ville, was born in Springwater, 
daughter of Henry Flora, one of 
the pioneers of that locality. Mrs. Acomb's 




6i8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



father spent his early days in Scottsburg. 
He afterward owned a large farm in Sparta, 
which is still in possession of the family, and 
carried on by a son. Her father in his latter 
years removed to VVayland, where he died in 
1880, aged eighty years. Mrs. Acomb's 
mother was Catherine Hanly, a native of 
Germany. She was a lady of intelligence 
and strong character, a member of the Lu- 
theran church up to the time of her death, 
which occurred when she was seventy-three 
years old. She was the mother of eight chil- 
dren, as follows: John, Elizabeth, William, 
Mary, Henry, Harriet, George, and Rhoda. 
On May 15, 185 1, the subject of this sketch 
was married to Thomas Acomb, a wealthy 
farmer of Dansville; and she has since re- 
sided in that village. Her husband was of 
English birth, and came to America with his 
father, who brought his family with him, and 
settled upon a farm in South Dansville, be- 
coming a pioneer of that town. At the time 
when the cholera swept over this country, he 
volunteered to take charge of patients, and 
succumbed to the dread disease, and died, 
leaving a wife and four children. Thomas 
Acomb was his eldest son, and was reared to 
agricultural pursuits. He was educated at 
the district schools, and on reaching manhood 
took possession of the homestead, eventually 
becoming a successful farmer and acquiring a 
large property. At the time of his decease, 
which occurred in 1893, when he was sixty- 
six years old, he owned one thousand acres of 
land. Mr. Acomb was a prominent man in 
the town, and was Supervisor for two terms. 
With his wife he was a regular attendant at 
the Presbyterian church. 

Mrs. Acomb has reared a family of nine 
children, as follows: William H., Mary E., 
Franklyn J., Annie, Minnie S., Jennie P., 
Fred, Daniel, and Nellie F. The Acomb 
family for many years have been residents of 
Dansville, Steuben County, where they en- 
joyed the highest respect and esteem of their 
neighbors. One daughter is still at home, 
and she and her mother are professing mem- 
bers of the Presbyterian church. 

Of her many children, who are all indus- 
trious and highly intelligent, her son Daniel 



G. remained in business at Dansville. He is 
a boot and shoe dealer, carrying on a lucra- 
tive trade, and is also engaged extensively in 
buying produce. He was born at South Dans- 
ville, October 30, 1868, and has shown re- 
markable business ability since entering 
mercantile life. 




ARSHALL J. COWDIN, a retired 
farmer and at the present time 
Justice of the Peace of Varys- 
burg, was born in Orangeville, 
August 3, 1 82 1, and is the only survivor of 
ten children of John S. Cowdin, who was born 
at Fitchburg, Mass., in 1785. His paternal 
grandfather was Craig Cowdin, a well-to-do 
Massachusetts farmer, who reared seven sons 
and four daughters, four of the sons becoming 
pioneers of Wyoming County. 

John S. Cowdin, son of Craig, journeyed 
from Massachusetts on horseback to Buffalo 
by way of Rochester; but the fever and ague 
caused him to relinquish his intention of set- 
tling at either of these places, although he 
was urged to purchase for one thousand dollars 
one hundred acres within the present city 
limits of Buffalo. He brought with him from 
Massachusetts twelve hundred dollars in cash, 
and declining to invest his money at the above 
named places came by the old Buffalo Road to 
W^yoming County, where he purchased one 
hundred acres near the present fine county 
farm, paying four hundred dollars for it, two 
hundred of which was rendered in boots and 
shoes. The tract was provided with a small 
log cabin and an ox barn. In 181 1 three 
other of the Cowdin brothers came and ac- 
quired each a tract of land adjoining, making 
in all six hundred and sixteen acres. Their 
names were: Craig, Putnam, and Nathaniel, 
the latter unmarried. 

John S. Cowdin was married in 1810 to 
Miss Rhoda Hall, of Coxsackie, N.Y. He 
was a soldier in the War of 181 2, stationed at 
Buffalo, and was present when the village was 
burned. He was hotly pursued by a blood- 
thirsty Indian, and when very nearly ex- 
hausted managed to elude the savage by 
dodging beneath a bridge, having the satisfac- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



6ig 



tion of hearing his enemy, who had lost sight 
of him, pass over above his head. In this ad- 
venture he contracted rheumatic fever, which 
affected him for the remainder of his life. 
He at one time owned one hundred and 
eighty-eight and one-half acres of land, but 
was so crippled by rheumatism as to be inca- 
pable of conducting farm operations. He and 
his wife had ten children, two of whom died 
in California, a daughter in Wisconsin, and a 
son, William, of yellow fever in Mississippi; 
the remains of five others are interred at 
Orangeville. The father died suddenly of 
apoplexy in 1 86 1, at the age of seventy-si.\, 
and the mother after a short illness in May, 
1864, at the age of seventy-five. 

Marshall J. Cowdin remained at home, as- 
sisting his father. He was married June 21, 
1848, to Sybil Richards, who was born at 
the county house farm, which her father first 
settled in 181 1, having come from Rutland, 
Vt., on foot, and purchased about one-half of 
a square mile of that productive land at four 
dollars per acre, first buying one hundred and 
twenty acres, and later the balance. There 
were four brothers of the Richards family who 
came to New York State from Vermont, and 
Paul Richards became a Judge of Wyoming 
County. Mrs. Sybil Richards Cowdin died 
very suddenly in 1872, leaving four children, 
namely: Marilla, widow of George Pettibone, 
having three sons; Frank, who is married, 
and resides at the old home, having one son 
and one daughter; Lafayette, a resident of 
Sturgis City, S. Dak., who has a wife and 
two daughters: and Irwin, a resident of 
Warsaw. 

Mr. Cowdin married for his second wife in 
1874 Mrs. Louise Colby, widow of Theodore 
Colby, and daughter of Frank Horton, of Wy- 
oming County. Mrs. Cowdin has three chil- 
dren by her first husband — Jasper, a resident 
of Ypsilanti, Mich., having two sons and one 
daughter; Frank, residing at Currier's Cor- 
ners, having one son; and Nellie, wife of 
Earl Jones, a railroad man at Buffalo. Mr. 
and Mrs. Cowdin settled in their pleasant 
home at Varysburg in 1882. He is serving 
his third term as Justice of the Peace, an 
office he would willingly relinquish if his con- 



stituents would permit. He is a member of 
the Methodist church, and also a Steward. 
He comes of a stalwart race, having a very 
commanding presence, standing six feet and 
well-proportioned. He was a model farmer, 
and still keeps one or two fine horses and 
other stock on his villaKC farm. 




AMUEL FISHER, late of Warsaw, 
N.Y., was born in Londonderry, 
N.H., May 8, 1808. The advent- 
ures of Mr. Fisher's grandfather, 
who was the emigrant ancestor to this coun- 
try, are as thrillingly interesting as the record 
of a hero of fiction. The facts are as follows: 
Samuel Fisher, who was born of Scotch an- 
cestry in the north of Ireland in the year 
1722, embarked for America in 1740, in the 
nineteenth year of his age. The vessel was 
so scantily supplied with food that it was 
called the "Starved Ship." As the rations 
were gradually reduced to a tablespoonful of 
oatmeal and a proportionately small allowance 
of water for each individual's daily suste- 
nance, the sufferings of the men were well- 
nigh intolerable. One day Mr. P'isher went 
to the officer in charge for a tablespoonful of 
water with which to moisten his meal, and 
was refused. There were only two-thirds of a 
quart bottle of water on board the vessel and 
a distance of several days' sailing before the 
coast of America would be reached. The sit- 
uation was appalling. Many of the crew 
sickened and died, and the miserable sur- 
vivors were at last compelled to subsist upon 
the dead bodies of their companions or perish. 
For fourteen days the starving passengers and 
ship's crew thus preserved their lives, but at 
last this resource failed. Lots were cast, it 
being decided that one must give his life for 
the others; and the fatal number was drawn 
by Samuel Fisher. "Providentially, how- 
ever, a vessel hove in sight; and, their sig- 
nals of distress being observed, they obtained 
relief, and were saved. So deep an impres- 
sion did the horrors of that passage make 
upon the mind of Mr. Fisher that in after life 
he could never see without pain the least 
morsel of food wasted or a pail of water 



620 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



thrown carelessly on the ground." Having 
landed at length on the shores of the New 
World, which had been reached by such an 
amount of sacrifice and suffering, Samuel 
Fisher was content to spend his life in Lon- 
donderry, N.H., where he settled and planted 
a posterity. He was a Ruling Elder of the 
church in the West Parish. He died at Lon- 
donderry, April lo, 1806. His son John was 
born in Londonderry, where he lived until 
1834, when he moved to Warsaw, to which 
point he came on the canal. L'pon his arrival 
here with his family, he purchased a tract of 
land which was at that time covered with forest 
trees, but which is now included in the vil- 
lage limits; and here he died October 13, 
1838. In 1798 he was married to Miss Bet- 
sey Dean, who was born June 24, 1776, and 
died November 20, 1858. They were both 
members of the Presbyterian church, of which 
Mr. Fisher was for many years a Deacon. 
They reared nine children, three of whom 
studied for the ministry. 

Samuel Fisher, son of Deacon John Fisher, 
was educated in his native town, and moved 
to Warsaw when he was about twenty years of 
age. Much of the surrounding country was 
wild and uncultivated, and Warsaw was at 
that time included in Genesee County. Mr. 
Fisher entered the employment of Dr. Augus- 
tus Frank, with whose family he made his 
home until his father's arrival in 1834. 
Father and son joined in the purchase of a 
farm, which afterward became the property of 
the son. This year was the date of his mar- 
riage to Miss Armina Dryer, which was 
solemnized on the loth of June. After one 
brief year of wedded happiness she died, on 
August 27, 1835. Three years later he mar- 
ried Miss Lucy Woodward, who died Septem- 
ber 17, 1853, leaving three children — James 
Ellis, Phineas D., and John C. Mr. Fisher's 
third wife was Mrs. Lucy M. (Woodruff) 
Phillips, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere 
in this volume. 

Mr. Fisher was a prominent citizen of War- 
saw, and was closely identified with the best 
interests of his town and county, holding vari- 
ous local offices and for many years being a 
Ruling Elder in the Presbyterian church in 



Warsaw. He died May 30, 1885. The farm 
is now, 1895, in possession of his son. Dr. 
John Crocker Fisher, who after a residence of 
five years in Beirut, Syria, as a medical mis- 
sionary, came home, and established on the 
beautiful west hill the Sanitarium known as 
the Warsaw Salt Baths. Dr. F"isher was mar- 
ried May II, 1880, to Miss Mary Shaw, of 
Grinnell, la. They have three children — 
Edith, John C, and Albert Shaw. James 
Ellis Fisher married in May, 1872, Elizabeth 
McMasters. They have two sons — Charles 
Samuel and Phineas McMasters. Phineas 
Dean Fisher married in 1876 Eunice Pinck- 
ney. They have had three children — Mattie, 
Phineas D., and Frank Wvman. 




ILLLVM F. LEWIS, one of the 
leading men of the town of Arcade, 
and a progressive and thriving 
farmer, was born in Freedom, N.Y. , October 
15, I S3 5. He is the son of Laban Lewis, a 
native of Chesterfield, N. H., and grandson of 
Reuben Lewis, who also was born in New 
Hampshire. The latter was a farmer in his 
native State, and at an early date removed 
with his wife and family to P^eedom, N.Y. , 
where he settled. His son, Laban, was brought 
up a farmer, and after his marriage came to 
Jefferson County, bringing his wife with him. 
He worked at farming for some time in Jeffer- 
son County, then removed to Freedom, Catta- 
raugus County, where he purchased a farm, 
upon which he resided for many years. He 
died at the age of seventy-three. His wife, 
the mother of our subject, was Sarah Tarbull, 
a native of Massachusetts. She removed to 
the State of Michigan after the death of her 
husband, and died there, after attaining the 
remarkable age of ninety-nine. She reared 
a family of thirteen children, four of whom 
are still living, namely: Nelson; Jane, who 
married Elihu Austin; Lester; and Will- 
iam F. 

William F. Lewis spent his early years on 
his father's farm in Freedom, obtaining a 
knowledge of agricultural methods, and acquir- 
ing a fair education at the district school. He 
lived at home until attaining his majority, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



621 



then went to a farm in the town of Eagle, 
Wyoming County, and found employment 
there for about fifteen years. At the end of 
that time he removed to Arcade, and was em- 
ployed on different farms until coming to his 
present estate in 1890. Here he has a well- 
cultivated and productive property, its condi- 
tion and appearance showing thrift, industry, 
and good judgment on the part of the owner, 
and fairly entitling him to rank among the 
intelligent and progressive agriculturalists of 
the county. Mr. Lewis is a member of the 
Arcade Lodge, No. 698, of the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows, and belongs to the 
Ancient Order of Lhiited Workmen. He is 
a Republican in politics, and has served as 
Highway Commissioner one year and Excise 
Commissioner three years, and in both offices 
has manifested business ability and sound judg- 
ment, giving full satisfaction to his townsmen. 
Mr. Lewis was married in 1861 to Miss 
Wilson, daughter of Ezra Wilson, a farmer of 
the town of Freedom. She died April 6, 
1890, at the age of fifty-two, leaving six chil- 
dren, as follows: Wilson; Fred, who married 
Nettie Haskell ; Addie, who became the wife 
of Joseph Duncan; Rena ; Frank; and Lulu. 
Mr. Lewis has since married Mrs. Rosalind 
Weir, daughter of W. P. Day, a physician 
who came from Ohio, where Mrs. Lewis was 
born, to the town of Eagle when she was six 
years old. After practising in this vicinity 
for some years, he settled in Great Valley, 
Cattaraugus County; and there his last days 
were .spent. Mrs. Lewis is a lady of many 
domestic virtues, and is a member of the 
Methodist church. The children have all re- 
ceived a practical education, qualifying them 
to make their way in the world ; and Rena has 
spent some time teaching school. 



~f^TENRY .S. imEWER, a prominent 
L^-l miller and farmer of the town of 

II 9 I Springwater, Livingston County, 

^■■^ N.Y., was born in Sparta, Octo- 
ber 24, 1862. His father, William Brewer, 
was also a native of that town. His grand- 
father, Abraham Brewer, came from Vermont 
to this part of New York State as a pioneer, 



clearing a tract of land, and living for some 
time in a log cabin. Subsequently he moved 
to Springwater and became a prominent farmer 
in that town. He purchased a farm, and car- 
ried on a system of cultivation till his death, 
which occurred at an advanced age. 

William Brewer, his son, father of Henry 
S. Brewer, lived at home in his youth, attend- 
ing school, and later employing himself about 
the farm. When he became of age, he pur- 
chased a farm in Sparta, and resided there 
some years, later moving to an estate known 
as the Brewer farm, which was situated on the 
line between Springwater and Sparta. From 
there he went to a farm near the home of his 
son, at the same time leasing a mill, but fol- 
lowing farming in the main. Finally he pur- 
chased the present mill and the farm connected 
with it of his son, and here his last years 
were spent. At the time of his death he was 
in possession of three farms containing three 
hundred and fifty acres. He died July 7, 
1 89 1, aged sixty-seven years. Mr. Brewer 
was highly esteemed by his townsmen, and 
held the office of Highway Commissioner for 
many yea.rs in Sparta and also in Springwater. 

The wife of Mr. William Brewer was Miss 
Nancy Spencer, daughter of a well-known 
farmer of Portage, Livingston County, where 
she was born. Her parents were among the 
early settlers of Portage. Mrs. Brewer is still 
living on the old homestead, and is a member 
of the Presbyterian church. 

Mr. and Mrs. William Brewer were blessed 
with five children — Henry S. ; Florence, who 
married Dr. Becker, a practising physician of 
Springwater; Hannah, a school teacher in 
Springwater; Maud, who is connected with 
the local newspaper, the -Springwater Enter- 
prise; and one other daughter named Lizzie. 

Henry S. Brewer spent his early life on his 
father's farm in Sparta, going with the family 
to Springwater when he was seven years old. 
He attended the district school, and later the 
normal school, teaching during one winter; 
but after that he concluded to leave the desk, 
and purchased a farm in Springwater. This 
he carried on for several years, also conducting 
his father's farm at the same time. When his 
father's death occurred, he took control of the 



622 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



mill and of the other farms, and has kept all 
in a prosperous condition. An extensive busi- 
ness is carried on at the mill, buckwheat flour 
being the leading product, and some flour 
being produced for the local market. Mr. 
Brewer is a member of the Maccabees, hold- 
ing the rank of Sergeant in the Springwater 
branch. He is a Republican in politics, and 
is a very popular young man, constantly add- 
ing to his host of friends, though so busy in 
developing the large estate under his care, and 
also taking part in local interests. It is a 
pleasant feature, one prognosticating the future 
well-being of a town, when younger men, as 
in this instance of Mr. Brewer, indicate that 
they have the qualifications which are requisite 
to the material advancement of the locality 
in which they live. 

Henry S. Brewer was married February i6, 
1 888, to Miss Emma Willis, a daughter of 
Nelson Willis, a representative of one of the 
old families of Springwater. Her father was 
a native of the town, and her grandfather was 
one of the pioneers of the locality. Mrs. 
Brewer died in March, 1894, at the early age 
of thirty-three years. She was a member of 
the Methodist church, and was the mother of 
four children; namely, Willie, Fitch, Ried, 
and Charlev. 



^/TrLING OSGOOD, a retired farmer 
\fs and an old resident of Bennington, 
'^ near Folsomdale, was born at Lancas- 
ter, Worcester County, Mass., January 27, 1808, 
and is now eighty-seven years old. His father, 
Moses Osgood, was born at Lancaster in i 779, 
and was the son of a Massachusetts farmer, who 
lived and died on his farm in that State. The 
maiden name of his first wife, the grandmother 
of Virling Osgood, was Rugg. She bore four 
sons and several daughters. By a second mar- 
riage Mr. Osgood's grandfather had two sons. 

Moses Osgood married Hannah Sargent, 
whose birth occurred on the day following that 
of her husband. They were married about the 
year 1807, and moved to Lewis County, New 
York, in 1820, when Virling was twelve years 
old. There they resided for six years, mov- 
ing from the latter county to Alden, in Erie 



County, and in 1831 settled in Bennington, 
Wyoming County. He was a man of slender 
means, and met with severe losses, but was 
very industrious. He reared ten of eleven 
children, one child having died in infancy. 
Six sons and four daughters grew to maturity, 
married, had children, and have all passed 
away except the subject of this sketch. Moses 
Osgood died at Lorain, Ohio, in 1854, aged 
seventy-five years; and his widow died there in 
1868, aged eighty-nine. 

Virling Osgood was the fourth son and the 
fifth child of his parents, and received a lim- 
ited common-school education. He became 
familiar with the duties of farm life in his 
youth, and in early manhood owned a farm of 
forty acres near Bennington. In 1835 he 
moved to Chautauqua, where he rented a farm 
for two years, working meanwhile for Dr. 
Henry Wilcox, at a salary of three hundred 
and sixty-five dollars per year, as general 
superintendent of his large farm. While 
there Mr. Osgood purchased a farm of fifty 
acres, situated directly opposite his present 
home, which he sold about ten years since, at 
that time buying the farm upon which he now 
resides. This comprises fifty acres, and at 
the time of purchase was valued at eight 
hundred dollars. L'nder Mr. Osgood's man- 
agement the estate has been greatly increased 
in value, and he has been offered twenty-eight 
hundred dollars for the same piece of property. 
Some years ago Mr. Osgood injured his hip by 
a fall, and since then he has been obliged to 
use crutches. This misfortune and the added 
infirmity of increasing years debar him from 
active pursuits; but he has not lost his inter- 
est in public affairs. He votes the Republi- 
can ticket, and has been Highway Commis- 
sioner for a year; and he still retains his con- 
nection with the Baptist church. 

On September 12, 1830, he married Lucinda 
Adams, who was about his own age; and they 
lived together as husband and wife fifty-eight 
years, she dying in 1890, January 21. Their 
only son, who was born in 1837, died at the 
age of seven months. He was a very pre- 
cocious child, and was a great loss to his par- 
ents, who subsequently adopted Virling D. 
Osgood, the son of Mrs. Osgood's sister, who 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



623 



was born in 1840. Viiiing D. Osgood was a 
.soldier in the Civil War, enlisting from Ben- 
nington in Company H, One Hundred and 
Thirty-sixth New York Infantry. He served 
as a musician three years, at one time nar- 
rowly escaping death at the hands of a captain 
in the navy, who threw a knife at him, inflict- 
ing an ugly wound upon his forehead, the scar 
of which is plainly visible to this day. Vir- 
ling D. Osgood is a Democrat in politics, 
has been Highway Commissioner one year, and 
is now serving as Justice of the Peace. He 
is large of stature, and has the appearance of 
a typical soldier. 

On January 10, 1S67, \'irling D. Osgood 
was married to Julia Ann Whitney, daughter 
of Zelotus and Cornelia (Johnson) Whitney, 
the former from Massachusetts, and the latter 
from New Hampshire. Mrs. Virling Osgood 
was born in Morley, St. Lawrence County, 
September 26, 1849. She had four children, 
namely: Orange D. , who was married May 
10, 1893, to Miss Emma G. Griswold, and re- 
sides with his parents; Millie L., wife of 
Charles Meisner, a farmer in the vicinity of 
Bennington; Elmo B. , a youth of sixteen, 
residing with his parents; and Edith, a daugh- 
ter of nine years, now attending school at 
Alden. 



4 ^«*» 



WILSON WOODRUFF 
an industrious farn 
Livingston County, 



'FF HAMILTON, 
farmer of Livonia, 
ity, N.Y. , was born 
there March 8, 1821, the year in which Spain 
ceded Florida to the United States. His 
father, George Hamilton, was born in the 
north of Ireland, but came to America at an 
early period, settling first in Pennsylvania, and 
afterward in Livingston County, New York, 
where he took up a hundred and six acres of 
wild land in a place remote from any town or 
large settlement, so that at first he was obliged 
to draw grain and all other farm produce to 
Rochester. Building a log house, he spent all 
the rest of his days there, wearing homespun 
clothing, his peaceful life uninterrupted by 
embarrassing conventionalities or hollow 
shams. His wife was Sarah Geddes; and they 
reared several children — William, Joseph, 



Samuel, George, Paul, John, James, Wilson, 
Margaret, Mary, and Betsy Hamilton. Wil- 
son, our subject, is the only surviving member 
of this large and flourishing family. Mr. 
George Hamilton died in 1828, the year when 
the new Whig tariff, imposing duties on im- 
ports, was enacted. 

Wilson Woodruff Hamilton was educated in 
the district school of Livonia, and remained at 
home until he was sixteen years of age. In 
1837, the year of the great "panic," he 
learned the trade of carpenter and joiner, and 
in 1839 joined his fortunes in matrimony with 
Miss Sarah Decker. In 1840, while Martin 
Van Buren served as President, Mr. Hamilton 
moved to the farm he now occupies, and in 
1852 the Erie Railroad cut through the old 
homestead. Although the march of civiliza- 
tion has spoiled the primitive beauty of the 
estate, it greatly enhanced the financial value 
of the land; and Mr. Hamilton is by no means 
a poor man. Always taking a lively interest 
in the welfare of his country, Mr. Hamilton 
has been a Republican since the formation of 
the party, being a \\'hig previous to that time. 
He cast his first Presidential vote in 1844 for 
Henry Clay; and, though his candidate was 
defeated, he had the pleasure of voting for the 
next President of the United States, General 
Zachary Taylor, a man who knew not what 
defeat meant. 

Mrs. Hamilton is the daughter of Henry and 
Martha Decker, of Livonia, and is a member 
of an old fafnily in the town of Lima. Mrs. 
Decker's parents had four children as follows: 
Myron H. ; John C. , deceased; Wallace 
T. ; and ]\Iartha E. , mother-in-law of our 
subject. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton have four children 
— Martha May, Myron H., Hazel I., and 
Frederick Woodruff Hamilton. Martha Ham- 
ilton married C. H. Armstead, of Avon, but 
has no children. Myron H. Hamilton married 
Emma Aldrich ; and they had a family, of 
which one child, John B. , survives. 

We cannot doubt that Mr. and Mrs. Hamil- 
ton were fitly mated, as they have lived to- 
gether fifty years, celebrating their golden 
wedding with appropriate ceremonies Decem- 
ber 31, 1889. As has been said by Madame 



624 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



de StaeU: "However old a conjugal union, it 
still garners some sweetness. Winter has 
some cloudless days, and under the snow a 
few flowers still bloom." 




Sidne 



iRS. EDNA S. HATHAWAY, an 
artist and teacher of painting in 
the town of Silver Springs, Wy- 
oming County, N. Y. , was born in 
Delaware County. Her father's name 
was Dellan Lee Beckwith. He was a black- 
smith, and was a native of Windsor, Broome 
County, where he lived as a young man and 
learned his trade. After marriage he moved 
to Sidney, and began business there for him- 
self, and continued to make it his home for 
many years. Later he went to Cochecton, 
Sullivan County, with his daughter, Mrs. 
Hathaway, and her husband. Mr. Beckwith 
lived to be ninety-three years old, and was 
blind in the latter part of his life; but this 
great trial was made easier to bear by the 
constant care of his daughter and Mr. Hatha- 
way. He became a member of the Methodist 
church at the age of eighteen, and retained his 
connection with it during his life. Mr. Beck- 
with's wife was Miss Sally Ann Bebee, a 
native of Windsor. She was also a member 
of the MethodLst church, and died at the age 
of fifty-seven years. Mr. and Mrs. Beckwith 
were the parents of eight children, four of 
whom are still living — Daniel R. ; Jane, the 
wife of Myron Hathaway, of Sidney; Sarah, 
who has been twice married, her first husband 
being Samuel Hathaway (deceased), and her 
second husband Milor Phelps, also of Sidney; 
and Edna S. , wife of William B. Hathaway. 
In this famil}' three sisters married three 
Hathaway brothers. 

Mrs. Hathaway spent her life at home until 
her marriage, which took place July 8, i860. 
Her husband at that time was a clerk in a 
store in Sidney. Later he was employed by 
a railroad company as telegraph operator, and 
afterward was station agent at Cochecton, on 
the Erie Railroad, where he remained eigh- 
teen years. At the end of that time he went to 
Faribault, Minn., and was there two years and 
a half as proprietor of the Arlington House. 



His death occurred there in 1888, when he was 
forty-nine yeais old. Mr. Hathaway was a 
member of the Knights of Honor, and of sev- 
eral other organizations. In politics he was a 
firm supporter of the Republican ticket. 

Mrs. Hathaway came to Silver Springs after 
the death of her husband ; and she and her son 
built the pleasant home in that village which 
they now occupy. .She received her art educa- 
tion at the well-known Silver Lake Art 
School ; and, after completing the course of 
instruction in drawing and in painting in oils 
and water-colors, she received her diploma. 
She has a wide reputation throughout this sec- 
tion of the country for her skilful and pleasing 
work. The country, with its varied hills and 
valleys, furnishes all that an artist could de- 
sire in the way of scenery; and Mrs. Hatha- 
way inspires her pupils to a fine appreciation 
of the beautiful in nature. Mrs. Hathaway is 
an active member of the Methodist church. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hathaway were blessed with 
one child, a son, Harry D., at the present 
time an active, enterprising young business 
man. He was educated at the Granville Mili- 
tary School, and, on leaving there, took the 
position of telegraph operator at New Bruns- 
wick, on the New Jer.sey Central Railroad. 
After working there six months, he took his 
father's former position at Cochecton, Sullivan 
County; and later he went West, remaining 
six months. On his return he located at 
Lockport as telegraph operator, and afterward 
came to Silver Springs as agent, acting in that 
capacity for some time. He subsequently 
went into the wholesale cigar manufacturing 
business, selling on the railroad for about three 
years. At the end of that time he trans- 
ferred his interest to the Buffalo Scale Com- 
pany, and has remained with them up to the 
present time. Harry Hathaway married Miss 
Susan O'Reiley, of Cochecton, a daughter of 
Thomas O'Reiley. 



(OVURORA D. NEWTON, a well-known 

L^ and influential citizen of York, Liv- 

Jj\\ ingston County, N.Y., son of a 

^~^ pioneer settler, was born in this 

town sixty-seven years ago, on March 12, 












ELIJAH YOUNGS. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



627 



1828. His father, Dudley Newton, belonged 
to the New England family of Newtons, being 
a native of Colchester, Conn., and of English 
ancestry. When about twenty years of age, 
he left the scenes of his childhood and youth, 
and with a stout heart and hands inured to 
labor set forth to seek a new home in the dis- 
tant wilds of Western New York. He first 
settled, about the year 1800, in the town of 
Avon, then called Hartford, in what is now 
Livingston County, but was then a part of 
Ontario County. A little later he took up a 
tract of land now included in the town of 
York, Livingston County. He built a sub- 
stantial log house, and, engaging in farming 
in this fertile and productive region, here 
spent the remainder of his long, industrious, 
and useful life. He married Miss Hannah 
Deitz, a native of Hagerstown, Md., and of 
German descent. They became parents of 
eight children, the youngest of whom was Au- 
rora D., the subject of this brief narrative. 
The others were Daniel B., Jeremiah, Cor- 
delia, Orrille H., Alonzo, Newell, and Susan 
Amanda. The father died in 1862, aged 
eighty-two years. The mother died the same 
year, aged seventy-five years. 

Aurora D. Newton grew up with his 
brothers and sisters on the homestead, and, 
attending District School No. 10 in York, 
obtained an education sufficient for practical, 
every-day purposes. When but a little lad, 
he began to do his part in the lighter labors 
of husbandry, and naturally was led to adopt 
this calling for a livelihood. His years have 
all been spent in the place where he was born, 
and for which he has a strong attachment. 
The farm has an area of one hundred and fifty 
acres, and is thoroughly cultivated. In the 
early half of the century it yielded abundant 
crops of wheat of excellent quality; but in 
later years it has been devoted to a greater 
variety of products, including large fields of 
beans. This portion of the yearly harvest, it 
is to be trusted, eventually finds its way to 
Boston markets. 

In 185 1 Mr. Newton was married to Miss 
Elizabeth Eraser, daughter of Donald G. and 
Margaret (Eerguson) Eraser, and a descendant 
of one of the intelligent and thrifty Scotch 



families who were among the early settlers in 
the north part of the town. Mrs. Elizabeth 
Eraser Newton died in 1853, leaving a son, 
Walton A., now a resident of Lansing, Mich. 
On March 17, 1864, Mr. Newton married for 
his second wife Miss Henrietta Clark, of 
Caledonia, by whom he has one daughter, 
Stella H. Newton. The mother died Septem- 
ber 22, 1868. Her parents were Charles and 
Amanda Clark. The people of York have 
evinced their regard for Mr. Newton and their 
confidence in his ability, integrity, and public 
spirit by electing him from time to time to 
various town offices, notably those of As- 
sessor, Highway Commissioner, and Super- 
visor, which last he held for seven consecutive 
years, two years of which he ably served the 
board as its chairman. His first Presidential 
vote was cast for General Winfield Scott in 
1852, but he has been a Republican since the 
formation of that party. Rev. William Ar- 
thur, father of the late President Arthur, was 
at one time settled as pastor of the Baptist 
church at York, and was an intimate friend of 
the Newton family. 

Mr. Newton has long been a leading mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church at 
Eowlerville, which he has liberally helped to 
support. In it he has held all the offices as 
a layman, and he has been a delegate a num- 
ber of times to the Lay Electoral Conventions 
of the Genesee Conference. Both of his 
wives were also faithful and esteemed mem- 
bers of this church. Such a life as is here 
briefly portrayed may well call to mind the 
poets' lines: — 

■' If man aspires to reach the Mount of God, 

O'er the dull plains of earth must lie the road. 
He who best does his lowly duty here 

Shall soar the farthest in that loftier sphere." 




LIjAH YOUNGS, a retired merchant of 
Geneseo, Livingston County, N.Y. , ex- 
Sheriff and sometime farmer, was 
born at West Sparta, in this county, October 
27, 1825. His father, Elijah Youngs, Sr., a 
native of Connecticut, after marriage removed 
about the year 1 8 1 5 to Cayuga County, New 
York, and there resided until 1818, when he 



628 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



again moved to that part of Ontario County 
now included in Livingston, purchasing 
a tract of timbered land in the town of 
West Sparta, which he proceeded to clear for 
cultivation. In the log house that he built on 
his farm, and in which his children were born, 
Elijah Youngs, Sr. , continued to live until his 
death, which occurred in 1832. The maiden 
name of his wife was Martha Palmer. Her 
parents, James and Pamelia Palmer, were pio- 
neers of Cayuga County, having moved there 
from Connecticut. Mrs. Martha Youngs died 
at the home of her son George W. Youngs, 
in Liberty, Jackson County, Mich., in i860. 
She had reared three sons — Elijah, William 
Morgan, and George W. The latter now re- 
sides in Jackson, Mich., and William M. in 
Jones County. The first-born, Elijah, named 
for his father, pursued his studies in the dis- 
trict school at L^nion Corners, in West Sparta, 
until 1836, when he went to Grass Lake, 
Mich., where he continued to attend school. 
Means of travel in those early days were, of 
course, exceedingly primitive; and his journey 
to the West was necessarily tedious. A team 
was the conveyance to Buffalo ; thence he went 
by way of the Lakes to Detroit, and again by 
team to his destination. At this time nearly 
the entire State of Michigan was an unbroken 
wilderness, the land being owned by the gov- 
ernment. Deer were abundant, and wolves 
and other wild animals roamed at will through 
the virgin forests. After residing in Grass 
Lake for three years, young Elijah, aged four- 
teen, returned to Union Corners, and learned 
the .shoe trade. In 1848 he moved to Tusca- 
rora, and engaged in the manufacture and sale 
of shoes, continuing in this enterprise until 
1 866, when he decided to try farming, and for 
that purpose settled upon a place situated two 
miles south-west of Tuscarora. After chang- 
ing farms two or three times, his last venture 
as a farmer being at Nunda, in 1874 he was 
elected Sheriff and removed to Geneseo. 
Here in 1877 he built a block, and embarked 
in the hardware business, which he continued 
to carry on until 1S89, when he sold the busi- 
ness to his sons, and he went into retirement. 
In 1882 Mr. Youngs erected a summer cottage 
on the west side of Conesus Lake, one mile 



south of Long Point. This was the first sum- 
mer residence erected upon the shore of the 
lake, and at present there are from one hun- 
dred to one hundred and fifty cottages already 
completed. 

In 1848 Mr. Youngs married Miss Jane 
Suydam, daughter of Daniel P. and Cynthia 
Suydam of Mount Morris, she being twenty- 
one years of age at the time of her marriage. 
Their five children are as follows: Charles 
A., Clarence, Ella Jane, E. Fred, and Frank 
E. Mr. Youngs cast his first Presidential 
vote for General Taylor, and has been a Re- 
publican in politics ever since the party was 
formed. He was State Superintendent of 
Canals four years, and was appointed commis- 
sioner of recruits for the army in 1864. He 
was elected Sheriff in 1874, and also Super- 
visor of Nunda. He is a member of Mount 
Morris Lodge, No. 122, A. ¥. & A. M., and 
of Mount Morris Chapter, R. A. M., and is 
also a life member of Livingston County 
A. S. Society. Both himself and wife are 
members of the Presbyterian church. 

Mr. Youngs, besides being a successful 
manufacturer, merchant, and farmer, and fill- 
ing with signal ability many positions of pub- 
lic trust, has also shown himself a competent 
and trustworthv auctioneer, finding time amid 
his many other duties to transact a great deal 
of business, and effect many important sales. 
He is a man of marked intelligence, both in 
business and other directions ; and his faithful 
adherence to honest principles has given him 
a high place in the esteem of his fellow-citi- 
zens of Livingston County. His portrait, 
which graces this collection of Livingston and 
Wyoming County worthies, is an unmistakable 
likeness of the original, and will be highly 
appreciated by many who know him. 



EFRED YOUNGS, one of the most suc- 
cessful and progressive young business 
— ' men of Geneseo, and President of the 
village, was born at Mount Morris, Livingston 
County, X. Y. , February 9, 1857. He is the 
son of Elijah and Jane (Suydam) Youngs, an 
extended sketch of whom appears elsewhere in 
this work. Mr. Youngs commenced his edu- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



629 



cation at the public schools, and afterward 
attended the Nunda Academy. At the age of 
eighteen he entered his brother's hardware 
store as a clerk, and continued there until 
1 88 1, when he engaged in the shoe business, 
which he has successfully conducted up to the 
present time. In addition to this, he is agent 
for the Wells Fargo E.xpress Company, and 
also does a general insurance business. 

Mr. Youngs possesses many sterling traits 
of character, and is noted for his intelligent 
understanding of public affairs and his lively 
interest in all important matters pertaining to 
the welfare of the community in which he 
lives. He is never slow to appreciate efforts 
to increase the advantages and enhance the at- 
tractiveness of Geneseo, and his progressive 
ideas have placed him in a prominent position 
among its citizens. He was one of the most 
earnest promoters of the scheme to introduce 
electricity as a means of lighting the village, 
and was elected its President solely ujjon that 
issue, being nominated by the Republicans, of 
which party he is a stanch adherent, and in- 
dorsed by the Democrats. Mr. Youngs is a 
member of Geneseo Lodge, No. 214, A. F. & 
A. M., being Senior Warden. He is also a 
member of the Wadsworth Hose Company, 
and has been Chief Engineer of the fire de- 
partment. 

In 1 88 1 Mr. Youngs married Miss Martha 
A. Doty, of Geneseo, daughter of Colonel L. L. 
Doty, of whom a sketch is elsewhere given in 
this work. They have three children — Sara 
E. , Lockwood F., and E. Bruce Youngs. Mr. 
and Mrs. E. Fred Youngs are communicants 
of the Episcopal church. Such, in brief, is 
the career, thus far, of one of the brightest and 
most promising young business men of Living- 
ston County. He has started well, being as 
yet on the sunny side of forty ; and it is safe 
to say that his influence in counsel and in 
action will more and more be felt as the years 
go on. 




ARREN G. AUSTIN, Postmaster 
at Cowlesvijle, in the town of Ben- 
nington, Wyoming County, is a 
promising young man, of good business abil- 



ity, popular among his associates, and occupy- 
ing a good social position in the community. 
He is a native citizen, his birth having 
occurred the first day of March, 1871. 

The Austin family was among the earliest 
settlers of this part of Wyoming County, and 
numerically is still one of the strongest. 
John P. Austin, the paternal grandfather of 
the subject of this sketch, was born in Massa- 
chusetts in the early part of the present cen- 
tury, and migrated to Wyoming County, New 
York, when a young man, attracted hither by 
the cheapness of the unimproved lands. In 
1826 he married Nancy Pearce, who was born 
in Genesee County in 1806; and they became 
the parents of thirteen children, eleven of 
whom grew to adult life. Ten of these 
children are yet living, the youngest being 
fifty-two years old, and the eldest si.xty-si.x 
years. 

James R. S. Austin, one of the sons of John 
P. and Nancy (Pearce) Austin, was born Au- 
gust 12, 1839, in the town of Bennington, and 
was here reared to maturity. He was a man 
of much enterprise and energy, and, as land- 
lord of the village hotel for a period of four- 
teen years, won a large circle of friends. Two 
years he was proprietor and manager of a hotel 
in Depew. He married Helen E. Pettingill, 
a native of this town, being the daughter of 
Frederic and Melinda (Cole) Pettingill; and 
of their union three children have been born, 
as follows: Warren (j., whose name opens the 
present sketch ; Carrie, the wife of Frank 
Castle; and Barnett, who lives at home, and is 
a clerk in the store. 

Warren G. Austin was but twenty-one years 
of age when he received his appointment as 
Po.stmaster in 1893; and since that time he 
has attended to the duties of his position with 
fidelity and promptne.s.s, and to the entire sat- 
isfaction of all concerned. Besides loyally 
serving Uncle Sam as a dexterous distributor 
and expeditious forwarder of mail matter, Mr. 
Austin is also engaged in business on his own 
account, being the proprietor and active man- 
ager of a store of general merchandise and 
a meat market at Cowlesville, and unques- 
tionably a diligent, energetic, and useful 
citizen. 



630 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



TT^HARLES F. WILLIAMS, proprietor 
I v^ of the Opera House Block, Attica, is 
\ris intimately connected with the man- 

ufacturing interests of Wyoming 
County, and is one of the leading men in his 
line of business. He is a native of New York 
State, and was born August 28, 1853, in 
Batavia. His grandfather, John Williams, 
was born in Vermont, and with his parents 
removed from that State to Genesee County, 
being one of the earliest settlers in the town 
of Alexander. He assisted in cutting the road 
through the woods, and after their settlement 
aided in clearing and improving a farm. He 
subsequently became a Captain in the State 
militia, and was familiarly known as Captain 
Williams. 

Captain Williams's son, Erastus C. Will- 
iams, was born in Alexander, and there reared 
and educated. In 1850 he was joined in mar- 
riage to Rebecca Frazer, also a native of Alex- 
ander, and the daughter of a pioneer settler 
from the Green Mountain State. Soon after 
his marriage he abandoned farming, and, open- 
ing a livery stable in Batavia, remained there 
two years. He subsequently established him- 
self in the same business in Attica, continuing 
thus employed until the time of his death, in 
August, 1880. He also managed the West- 
ern Hotel for some three years, and was quite 
popular as a host. His widow survived him 
several years, passing away March 9, 1894, at 
the age of sixty-six years. They were the par- 
ents of two children — Charles F. and John 
C. The latter, who is the proprietor of the 
Edwards House of Attica, married Alice 
Blakeley; and they have one child. 

Charles F. Williams received a good com- 
mon-school education, and began when young 
to make himself useful in the livery stable, 
and ably assisted his father in carrying on the 
business. In 1882 Mr. Williams established 
his present manufacturing business, beginning 
on a small scale to bottle and manufacture 
ginger ale and other soft drinks; and this he 
has gradually enlarged until now he ranks with 
the foremost manufacturers of the county. In 
1 88 1 he erected the fine Opera House Block, 
which in its architecture is a credit to his 
taste and an ornament to the town. It is built 



of red brick, the front being of pressed brick ; 
and the block is one hundred and ten feet by 
sixty-three feet, and sixty feet in height. The 
auditorium, which will comfortably seat seven 
hundred people, is seventy-five feet by fifty- 
three feet, with ceilings twenty-five feet high. 
On the lower floor are three stores, and the 
office and bottling works of Mr. Williams are 
in the rear. This capacious and substantial 
block was built at a cost of thirty-three thou- 
sand dollars, and is one of the handsomest and 
most conspicuous buildings in the place. 

On October 17, 1879, Mr. Williams was 
united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Madi- 
son. An extended sketch of the Madison fam- 
ily, of which she is a member, will be found 
elsewhere in this volume. Mr. Williams is 
a keen, far-sighted man of business, well 
known for his integrity and ability, and per- 
forms to the utmost his obligations as a man 
and a citizen. In politics he affiliates with 
the Republican party. He is a member of 
the fire department, and Treasurer of that 
company. 




RS. CAROLINE ROYCE BEEBE 
was born in the town of Leicester, 
Livingston County, N.Y., Feb- 
ruary 28, 1 82 1, daughter of Sam- 
uel Royce. Samuel Royce was born in the 
town of Lyme, Conn., and with his bride, 
Betsy Reed, of that State, came to Western 
New York, making the journey in wagons 
through what was then a vast wilderness. 
He bought a tract of eighty acres of land, 
erected the log cabin in which Mrs. Beebe 
was born ; and a few years later, as a good 
opportunity for trade occurred, he exchanged 
this farm for another in the same locality, 
upon which he resided until his death, when 
sixty-two years of age. He and his wife 
reared a family of ten children, six of whom 
are now living. Mrs. Betsy Royce lived to 
be seventy-six years of age. 

Caroline Royce received her education in 
the town of Leicester, in her girlhood assist- 
ing in the work of the household, which in 
those days was indeed arduous, as all the 
clothing of the family and even the material 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



631 



thereof was home-made. All the daughters 
were taught to spin and weave by their 
mother. There were then no railroads or 
canals; and the farmers were obliged to team 
their grain to the Genesee River, and from 
there it was sent in flatboats to Rochester. 
Miss Royce resided with her parents until 
she was twenty years old, when she was mar- 
ried to James Beebe. He was born in Leices- 
ter, August I, 1 8 16, and was the son of 
Russell and Orilla (Bell) Beebe, who were 
among the early pioneers of this town. 
James Beebe engaged in farming throughout 
his life, and for a few years after his marriage 
resided on his father's farm, but finally 
bought the place upon which Mrs. Beebe now 
resides. Mr. Beebe possessed exceptionally 
good judgment, and showed great ability in 
all his undertakings, owning at his death a 
fine farm of two hundred acres, located about 
one mile from the Genesee River, from which 
an extensive view may be had. Mrs. Beebe 
has three children — Emily, who married 
Charles Beckmits, and is the mother of two 
children — Edward and Milly; Sarah, who 
married Augustus Burt, and has three children 
— Monte, Lula, and Julia; and Ruth. 



who 



-OHN D. HILLMAN was born in Low- 
ville, Lewis County, N.Y., November 
16, 1 8 16. He has long resided in 
Avon, and is a representative citizen 
generally known and highly respected. 
His father, David Hillman, was born on the 
island of Martha's Vineyard, Dukes County, 
Massachusetts; and his grandfather was also 
a native of Eastern Massachusetts, he having 
been a New Bedford man by birth. 

The grandfather's name was Benjamin; 
and, as he came from old New England stock, 
and was born in New Bedford during the 
period when many vessels were sent out from 
that port, it is hardly necessary to say that he 
followed the sea. He began before the mast, 
worked his way up to a master's berth, and for 
years was in command of a whaling-vessel 
hailing from New Bedford. But he did not 
wish to have his sons go to sea, for he knew 
by experience that there was a good deal of 



hard work and danger and very little romance 
or profit in a seafaring life; but he also knew 
that his sons would take to the sea as naturally 
as a duck takes to the water if he remained in 
New Bedford, so he and his family migrated 
to Lewis County. New York, in wagons, and 
he passed the rest of his life there. 

David Hillman was educated in Massachu- 
setts, removed with his parents to New York, 
and bought a farm near the homestead farm in 
Lewis County. The land was in a wild state; 
and after he had cleared it he sold it, and 
bought another farm. He married Lucinda 
Cole, daughter of Bethuel Cole, of Lewis 
County; and they reared eleven children — ■ 
Mary, Aaron, David, Mary A., Lucinda, 
Emily, John D., Silas, Charles, Hannah, and 
James. There are now but two survivors of 
that large family, the subject of our sketch, 
John D., and Hannah. David died in Michi- 
gan; and the remainder of those who have been 
removed by death, in Avon. Silas and Han- 
nah never were married; and she still resides 
on the old homestead farm, to which the fam- 
ily removed from Lewis County in February, 
1833. It is located a mile on the road to 
East Avon, and is an excellent farm of two 
hundred and twenty acres with good buildings. 
It was the home of the father and mother 
until the end of their days; and their days 
were far beyond the "threescore years and 
ten" mentioned in the Scriptures, for ninety- 
two years had passed over the heads of each 
of them before they were called to their final 
rest. 

John D., seventh child of David and Lu- 
cinda Hillman, as named above, received his 
early education in the Lewis County schools, 
and completed it with a course at the Avon 
schools and one year at the academy. He has 
always been a farmer; and before the death of 
his father he bought a farm near the home- 
stead, and worked it for some thirty-five years. 
He also owned a farm near Conesus. In 
1884 he bought the place where he now re- 
sides, in the village of Avon. 

He was married in 1839 to Louisa, the 
daughter of James and Nancy Austin. Their 
only child, James D., died in 1886, at the 
age of forty-four. 



632 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



As a hard-working farmer who has had his 
own way to make in the world, and has always 
preferred to do what he wanted done himself 
instead of depending upon somebody else to 
do it, the subject of this sketch has not had 
time to hold public office to any extent, even 
were he so disposed. But, as a matter of 
fact, it is doubtful if he would have accepted 
many public offices even if he had much more 
time at his disposal ; for, although he has his 
full share of public spirit, and takes keen 
interest in questions of public policy, still he 
prefers to have the administration of govern- 
ment performed by other hands. Not a resi- 
dent of Avon has a higher reputation as a 
conscientious, fair-minded citizen, or has 
done more in a private capacity to promote 
the best interests of the town. John D. Hill- 
man has been a Republican from the organ- 
ization of that party. He cast his first 
Presidential vote in 1840 for William Henry 
Harrison, and has voted the Whig or Repub- 
lican ticket ever since. 



/T^HARLES H. ROWE, an energetic 



^ 



y young lawyer and rising politician 
Is ^ of Dansville, .N.Y., where he is 
Justice of the Peace, was born in 
Springwater, May 17, 1856. Both his father, 
George, and his grandfather, Erhard, were 
natives of Pennsylvania, from which State 
the latter after marriage moved to Dansville, 
where he kept a hotel for some little time. 
He then purchased a farm in the town of 
Sparta, where he followed agricultural pur- 
suits with much success, becoming an exten- 
sive real estate owner. 

Erhard Rowe was the father of seventeen 
children, twelve sons and five daughters, 
George being the sixth son. He was reared 
to a farmer's life, and resided with his par- 
ents until reaching his majority, when he 
learned the trade of a carpenter, and worked 
at that for some time. He later purchased 
a farm in Springwater, which he successfully 
conducted for many years. In 1869 he retired 
from active labor, and removed to Dansville, 
purchasing a residence in this village, in 
which he still resides. He and his wife, a 



native of Pennsylvania, whose maiden name 
was Sarah Johns, have reared a family of chil- 
dren, four of whom are now deceased. The 
four still living are: Lile; Emma; Frank E., 
a druggist in Rochester; and Charles. One 
son, Orville, who was a graduate of the Mich- 
igan university, died while practising medi- 
cine in Tuscarora, at the age of twenty-eight 
years. Emma married James Kingsley. The 
parents are members of the Methodist church. 

Charles passed his early life in Spring- 
water, obtaining his elementary education in 
the schools of that place, and between terms 
assisting his father on the home farm. 
Later he pursued his more advanced studies 
at the Dansville Seminary and at Cook Acad- 
emy in this State, where he took a year's 
course. He then studied law with the late 
Judge Vanderlip, of Dansville, and afterward 
with Messrs. Noyes and Hedges, who are 
also now deceased. In 1879 Mr. Rowe was 
admitted to the bar at Utica, and immediately 
began the practice of his profession in Dans- 
ville, where he has attained an enviable repu- 
tation as a careful and reliable attorney. His 
many attainments making him a possible 
candidate for various positions of public 
trust, he rapidly sprang into popularity. He 
has been three times elected a Justice of the 
Peace, in which capacity he is still serving, 
and was elected a Trustee of the village, but 
failed to qualify on account of being ap- 
pointed Postmaster on May 7, 1890. In this 
office he remained until July 31, 1894. He 
has filled all the offices in the fire depart- 
ment, and is still an active member of the 
Protective Company, which he joined in 1876. 
In 1883 he married Miss Adina Krein, daugh- 
ter of James Krein, a sketch of whose career 
appears elsewhere in this work; and they 
have one child. Marguerite. Mrs. Rowe is 
a communicant of St. Peter's Church, which 
Mr. Rowe also attends; and she is socially 
a great favorite. 

Mr. Rowe is a Director of the Merchants" 
and Farmers' National Bank of Dansville, 
and is the bank's attorney, being also at- 
torney for the Dansville Loan Association, 
which he assisted in organizing. Although 
a Republican, Mr. Rowe was elected a Jus- 




CHARLES H. ROWE. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



63s 



tice of the Peace, running six hundred and 
sixty-two votes ahead of his ticket, while the 
Democratic Supervisor received only three 
hundred and fifty-eight majority. At his 
second election for Justice, he ran two hun- 
dred and thirty-four ahead of his ticket, 
against Fred VV. Noyes, a popular Democrat 
and attorney of the town. In the third 
election, in opposition to Frederick D. 
Knowlton, he ran about the same number 
of votes ahead of his ticket. Mr. Rowe is 
now counsel to the corporation of Dansville. 
Dansville being a Democratic town, this is 
a flattering display of the confidence in which 
he is held by his fellow-citizens. The op- 
posing candidate in 1890 for the office of post- 
master was the Hon. J. B. Morey, a very pop- 
ular man in the town; but the friends and po- 
litical associates of Mr. Rowe stood by him, 
working in his behalf, and secured for him 
the appointment. He has been a delegate to 
the State Convention several times, and his 
political reputation extends beyond his' own 
locality. Aside from his legal and political at- 
tainments, Mr. Rowe possesses agreeable social 
qualities, which make him a favorite among 
a large circle of friends and acquaintances. 



T^OLONEL ABRAM B. LAWRENCE, 
I V^ who was born in Warsaw, N.Y., May 
^is^^ 18, 1834, is a descendant of an old 
and noble English ancestry. The 
name, which is derived from the Latin Lau- 
rentius, and signifies "a flourishing green bay- 
tree," seems to have been first borne by Saint 
Laurence, chief deacon to Sextus, Bishop of 
Rome. The family, now so numerous in the 
United States, is traced to an ancestor, Rob- 
ert Lawrence, of Lancashire, England, born 
in 1150, an attendant of King Richard Coeur 
de Lion on his crusade to the Holy Land, and 
knighted by that sovereign as "Sir Robert 
Lawrence, of Ashton Hall." The American 
branch of the Lawrence family has for eight 
generations been distinguished in business, 
professional, and public life at home, and in 
the United States diplomatic service at for- 
eign courts. 

The grandparents of Colonel Lawrence, 



Nathaniel and Sarah (Stephens) Lawrence, 
reared two sons and one daughter — Albert, 
Lyman, and Phebe. Lyman died in Canaan, 
Conn., without male issue. Mrs. Nathaniel 
Lawrence was a native of Canaan, where her 
husband farmed, and where he died at sixty- 
eight years of age and she at the age of sixty- 
six. Albert Lawrence, the father of Colonel 
Lawrence, was married on September 28, 
1822, in Albany, N.Y., to Miss Mahala 
Burtt, who was born in Canaan, Conn., Octo- 
ber 29, 1796. In 1826 they moved from Ca- 
naan to Warsaw, making the journey with a 
horse and wagon into the wilds of "the Gen- 
esee country." Here their infant daughter, 
Phebe, grew up, and married on June 14, 
1849, Horace E. Lyman, of Orangeville, 
N.Y., in which place she died April 15, 
1862. Mr. Lawrence was a man of literary 
ability, a teacher and writer before he went 
into mercantile life. His wife was a daugh- 
ter of Colonel Abram and Nancy (Wetherell) 
Burtt. The former, a native of Taunton, 
Mass., was a man of military distinction and 
an ironmonger. 

Mrs. Albert Lawrence was at the date of 
her death, December 25, 1887, in her ninety- 
second year, the oldest person in Warsaw. 
She had been the witness of two great mili- 
tary struggles, being a girl of sixteen at the 
breaking out of the War of 1812, in which 
her father, Colonel Burtt, was a participant, 
and being an aged mother when the fury of 
the Civil War broke over the Union, in which 
her son, Colonel Abram B. Lawrence, so 
worthily sustained the family reputation for 
military talent. Mrs. Lawrence's longevity 
was undoubtedly due to her early habits of 
industry and frugality, learned in the pioneer 
life of her voung wifehood. Her force of 
character, kindness of heart, and sympathetic 
nature were not less notable than her strength 
of intellect. She had inherited an aptitude 
for letters, and had devoted much of her early 
life to literary pursuits, often delighting her 
friends even in her later years with her pro- 
ductions. She was held in grateful recogni- 
tion by the generation she outlived, and will 
long be remembered by that which survives 
her. One son, the subject of this sketch, and 



636 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



six grandchildren — Hermon, Burtt, Ward, and 
Phebe Lyman, of Iowa, George M. and Sarah 
Virginia Lawrence, of Warsaw — survive her. 
Their son Abram, who was an advanced stu- 
dent in the Warsaw High School, at twelve 
years old was placed in a book-store in War- 
saw, and when nineteen was an accountant in 
a publishing house in Buffalo, where he was 
efficient in the discharge of his duties. In 
1856 he purchased a drug store at Niagara 
Falls, where he established himself as an 
apothecary. In 1858 he returned to Warsaw. 
He was engaged in mercantile, foundry, and 
machinery business, and with some others 
projected, built, and was operating the War- 
saw Gas Works when the Civil War broke 
out, by which his course of life was com- 
pletely changed. He was active in placing 
the regiment later known as the First New 
York Dragoons in the field, of which he was 
Quartermaster. Arriving in Virginia, how- 
ever, he was in addition placed on detached 
service in the Commissary Department, Peck's 
Division, Seventh Army Corps, and sub- 
sequently assigned to duty in Sheridan's 
Cavalry Corps, later, with commission by 
President Abraham Lincoln of Captain and 
Assistant Quartermaster, United States Vol- 
unteers, ordered to report to General Grant. 
Later he was assigned to the headquarters of 
the Eighteenth Army Corps, and made Chief 
Quartermaster, being soon after promoted to 
the rank of Major in the Quartermaster De- 
partment, Eighteenth Army Corps, and sub- 
sequently Lieutenant Colonel and Chief Quar- 
termaster, Twenty-fourth Army Corps and 
Army of the James. It was he who by order 
of General Grant at Appomattox Court-house, 
Va., bore the compliments of that com- 
mander to defeated Confederate General Lee, 
to whom he presented the thirty thousand 
rations for the Southern soldiers, who for 
many days had assuaged the pangs of hunger 
by eating shelled corn, foraged for man and 
beast from the impoverished inhabitants. In 
gathering the fruits of that great victory Colo- 
nel Lawrence was by orders of General Grant 
made Chief Quartermaster of the United 
States forces at Appomattox Court-house, and 
directed to receive and make disposition of 



the surrendered propert)* of General Lee's 
army of Northern Virginia, furnish supplies 
and transportation by rail and wagons, etc., 
to their homes, also to distribute to the de- 
serving poor of that vicinity the unserviceable 
public property, which the commendable fore- 
sight of General Grant saw would be, as it 
was, a bond of peace and good will. In 1865 
Colonel Lawrence was sent on duty to the 
Rocky Mountain regions by Secretary Stanton, 
in making transfers from volunteer to regu- 
lar troops, and in 1866 was mustered out 
upon his own application, and discharged 
with life brevets by nomination of the Presi- 
dent, and confirmed by the Senate "for 
faithful and meritorious services during the 
war." 

Since the war he has been a prominent 
figure in the business life of his locality and 
vicinity, as well as in all military manifesta- 
tions. On the 26th of March, 1857, Colonel 
Lawrence was married to Miss Elizabeth 
Faulkner, of Wheatland, Monroe County, 
N.Y. Two children came of this union — 
George M., born at Niagara Falls, and Sarah 
Virginia, born at Warsaw. The Colonel is 
an earnest member of the Congregational 
church, to which his entire family belongs, 
and has for forty years been active in church 
and Sunday-school work, in which latter 
branch of religious training he has been 
deeply interested. 

Colonel Lawrence is on the paternal side a 
lineal descendant of that John Lawrence who 
landed in New England with Governor Win- 
throp in 1630, and has through his mother's 
side a distinct strain of Welsh and French 
blood. This combination has produced a rare 
result, in which gallantry, coolness, and 
steadfastness conjoin in the formation of a 
character to be admired and imitated. 




iRS. LUCY WOODRUFF FISHER 
was born in Farmington, Conn., 
July 23, 1816. Her father, 
Ozem Woodruff, was born on the 
same estate upon which his father, Timothy, 
was born and lived. He was a lineal descend- 
ant of Timothy Woodruff, one of ten men 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



637 



who came to this country in 163S, and pur- 
chased from the Indians the large tract of 
which Farmington (Tunxis) is the centre. 
The paternal grandmother of Mrs. Fisher, 
Lucy Treadwell, was a sister of Governor 
Treadwell. Her mother's mother was Lois 
North, from England, who was married in 
1768 to Samuel Scott. He was a soldier of 
the Revolution, was wounded in the battle of 
Saratoga, and reached home to die. 

Lucy Woodruff was educated for a teacher, 
and in 1836 went with her brother to New 
Orleans to engage in that profession. She 
taught there for a time, after which she went 
to Baton Rouge, where she established the 
Baton Rouge Female Seminary, one of the 
first Protestant institutions of learning in 
Louisiana. Miss Woodruff was married De- 
cember 25, 1838, to Phineas D. P'isher, a 
native of Londonderry, N.H., by whom she 
had two sons — John P. F"isher and George 
Albert F"isher. Mr. Fisher studied for the 
ministry, but taught with his wife until his 
death in 1843. In 1848 Mrs. Lucy Woodruff 
Fisher was married to John Phillips, who 
died of yellow fever in November, 1853; and 
in 1855 she was married to her third husband, 
Samuel Fisher, of Warsaw, where she has 
since been a resident. A sketch of Mr. Sam- 
uel P'isher, who was a brother of her first hus- 
band, may be found on another page of this 
volume. He died May 30, 1885. Mrs. 
Fisher has two daughters by her second lius- 
band, Mr. Phillips; namely, Mary Isett and 
Lucy Matilda. The latter is the wife of 
James Vick, of Rochester, N.Y. They have 
three children — Ethel Phillips, Albert 
Fisher, and Dorothea Louise. Mrs. Lucy 
Woodruff Fisher is a woman whose mind has 
been broadened by liberal education, earnest 
thought, and varied experience; and her influ- 
ence is notably felt in the town of her birth, 
where she is known and loved. 



TT^HARLES R. MASON, who conducts 
I St-' a general mercantile business at Sil- 
^^1^ ver Springs, carrying a large and 

varied stock, was born in Buffalo, 
N.Y., February 12, 1863. His father, An- 



drew S. Mason, was born in that city, Sep- 
tember 12, 1 8 19. His paternal grandmother, 
who was of German descent, was also a native 
of Buffalo; but his grandfather Mason was 
born in Scotland. 

Andrew S. Mason was one of a family of 
three sons and two daughters. When a young 
man he began to work for the firm of Bidwell 
& Carrick, ship builders at Black Rock, Buf- 
falo; and he continued in the ship-building 
business up to the time of his decease. The 
firm changed to Bidwell & Banty, with Mr. 
Mason as foreman, continuing thus till 1857, 
when he became a partner, the firm being 
Mason & Bidwell. They did business under 
that name till September, 1870, when they 
sold out to the present owners, the Union 
Dry Dock Company, or the Erie Railroad 
Company. In 1861 Mr. Mason bought a farm 
at East Hamburg; and the family lived for 
six years at that place, the daughter being 
born there. This farm Mr. Mason sold; but, 
on his retirement from business on account of 
failing health, he bought a second farm at 
East Hamburg, which was the home of the 
family till the death of the father, December 
24, 1870. The wife of Andrew S. Mason 
was Mary Elizabeth Rosa, who was one of a 
family of six sons and three daughters. Her 
father, who fought in the War of 181 2, was 
born in Albany, N.Y., and died in Buffalo in 
1873. Her mother was born in Cornwall, 
N.Y., and died in Steward, 111. Mr. and 
Mrs. Rosa were living in Niagara, Canada, 
at the time of their daughter's marriage at 
that place in 1847. Mr. and Mrs. Andrew S. 
Mason had nine children, all of whom are liv- 
ing except Jacob W., the fourth, who died 
young. They are as follows: Andrew S., 
George W., Arthur C, Jacob B., William J., 
Jennie A., Charles R., and Joseph R. 

The family remained on the farm until the 
mother's death in 1874, after which they 
removed to East Aurora, where they lived 
three years, and then went back to Buffalo. 
Charles R. Mason received his education in 
the public schools of the city, and at about 
eighteen years of age served his apprentice- 
ship with John C. Harvey, of Buffalo, to learn 
the carriage manufacturing trade. He con- 



63S 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



tinued to work at this in different parts of the 
country till 1887, when he came to Gaines- 
ville with his brother-in-law, W. F. Johnson, 
a dealer in general merchandise, for whom he 
worked as a clerk three months. He re- 
mained with Mr. Johnson four years longer, 
having charge of his store two years and 
being in partnership with him the last two 
years. Mr. Mason then bought out his part- 
ner's interest, and since 1889 has conducted 
the business alone and with marked success, 
having a large and well-appointed establish- 
ment, his stock consisting of boots, shoes, 
dry goods, hardware, and gentlemen's fur- 
nishing goods. 

In 1887 Mr. Charles R. Mason was united 
in marriage to Miss Luella F. Riley, daugh- 
ter of Reuben Riley. She was born in Har- 
rison, Me., where her father worked in the 
shoe manufacturing business. Mr. and Mrs. 
Mason have one child, a daughter, Lila. Mr. 
Mason was formerly President of the Silver 
Springs fire department. He is a member of 
the Masonic Lodge at Castile and of the In- 
dependent Order of Odd Fellows at Silver 
Springs, also a member of the Maccabees at 
this place and of the Foresters; and he takes 
sreat interest in these fraternal societies. 
Mr. IMason is a Republican in politics, but 
has never sought office, preferring to devote 
any time which he could spare from his busi- 
ness to church work and the cause of Chris- 
tianitv. In this he is ably seconded by his 
worthv wife, who like himself is a member of 
the Methodist church, of which he is a Trus- 
tee and Treasurer.. He is also President of 
the Young People's Society of Christian En- 
deavor of Silver Springs and assistant super- 
intendent of the Sunday-school. 




kKLVIN R. HAMILTON is a well- 
known and respected farmer of the 
town of Avon, residing upon and 
operating one of the finest farms 
in Livingston County, located one mile north 
of East Avon. He was born in Lima, Liv- 
ingston County, X.Y., February 16, 1S57, 
son of William Hamilton. 

Mr. Hamilton is one of the most progres- 



sive and successful farmers of the county, 
and takes a natural pride and interest in 
the beautiful farm he is operating, and 
which he is fast bringing into a high state of 
cultivation. He is practical and scientific in 
his methods, having made a careful stud)' of 
agriculture, and is prompt to see and quick 
to adopt new and improved methods and 
machinery. 

February 20, i88g, Mr. Hamilton was 
united in marriage to Miss Frances A. 
Crouse, of Lima, daughter of James H. and 
Frances A. (Carey) Crouse. Mrs. Hamil- 
ton's father is one of the largest land owners 
in Livingston County, owning nearly two 
thousand acres in farm lands in the county 
and vicinity, besides property in Michigan. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton have three bright 
and promising children — Mabel, Helen, and 
William James. The family attend the Bap- 
tist church of Lima, of which the parents are 
members. Theirs is a well-ordered and 
Christian household, thoroughly representa- 
tive of the best agricultural element of the 
State. 




UV P. MORGAN, a farmer residing 
near the village of Hermitage, in the 
eastern part of Wethersfield, N.Y. , 
was born in this town September 14, 1830. 
Mr. Morgan's great-grandfather, Edward Mor- 
gan, was for many years a resident of New 
London, Conn. ; and both his grandfather, Guy 
Morgan, and his father, Justus Morgan, were 
born in that State. Grandfather Morgan came 
from Connecticut to Wyoming County, N.Y., 
and first bought a tract of wood land near Java 
Lake, but was there only a short time before 
he came to Wethersfield, being one of the first 
settlers in the town. He built a log house, 
and proceeded to clear and improve his land. 
Some years later he removed to Ohio. He 
was Justice of the Peace in Wethersfield for 
a number of years, and was elected County 
Judge in Ohio, but died before his official 
term began, aged forty-six years. 

Justus ;\Iorgan was the eldest of Guy Mor- 
gan's nine sons. Upon coming of age he 
bought his father's farm; and this he managed 




MATTHEW WIARD. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



641 



until 1850, when he bought property in the 
eastern part of Wethersfielcl, where he passed 
the remainder of his natural life, which ex- 
tended over a period of seventy-five years. 
Mrs. Justus Morgan, Miss Celesta Pickett 
before marriage, was a daughter of Mr. Rod- 
ney Pickett, a millwright in Onondaga 
County, where she was born. She was of 
Dutch ancestry, and her forefathers were 
among the early settlers of the Mohawk valley. 
Of her seven children, five are now living — 
Guy P., of this memoir; Nancy, who married 
Mr. R. Landon ; Lucius, whose first wife was 
Mary P^astman, his second Augusta Peck; 
Lucy, who married Mr. Volney Smith ; Mary, 
who became the wife of Mr. Dayton Elastman. 
Their mother died in Wethersfield at seventy- 
five years of age. 

Guy P. Morgan was educated in the district 
schools and at the Warsaw Academy ; and, 
shortly after attaining his majority, he left the 
paternal roof, and came to his present farm, 
which at that date, 1854, was only partially 
cleared. The original boundaries of his estate 
have been greatly enlarged since his first pur- 
chase, and the land under his careful and in- 
telligent tillage brings forth abundant crops. 
In the same year that he became a land owner 
Mr. Morgan acquired another dignity, for in 
1854 he was married to Miss Sophia Wolcott, 
of Wethersfield. This lady's grandfather was 
one of the early settlers of the place, coming 
hither in 1810. Her father died here, and 
her mother is still living Two children have 
been born of this marriage, a son and a daugh- 
ter. Augustus Morgan married Miss Carrie 
Stearns, of Warsaw, is the father of two chil- 
dren — Eva and Elva — and lives on a farm 
adjoining that of his father. The daughter, 
P^lora Morgan, married Mr. Fred Gill, and died 
at twenty-si.\ years of age, leaving two chil- 
dren — Lulu and Lena. 

Mr. Morgan is a Republican in politics. 
He has held the ofl^ces of Collector and As- 
sessor for seven years, that of Justice of the 
Peace for a decade, and has presided in the 
judicial chair of the Warsaw court. Mr. Mor- 
gan is an attendant of the Baptist church 
at Hermitage, and is a man whose influence 
extends in various directions. 



•-rtVrVATTHEW WIARD, having first 
tz I =:* seen the light of day in Avon, on 
J JJU C the 8th of September, 1813, is 
now nearly eighty-two years of 
age. His father, Thomas Wiard, was a man of 
strong individuality, with great force of char- 
acter, and was not at all afraid to depart from 
beaten paths and strike out for himself in 
order to attain any honorable end. He was 
a native of Connecticut, but soon left that 
State' to become one of the early pioneers in 
Livingston County. He first settled at Gen- 
eseo, where he remained some twelve years, at 
the end of which time he removed to Avon, 
bought a farm, and added farming to his regu- 
lar trade, which was that of a blacksmith. 

But Thomas Wiard was no ordinary me- 
chanic, being decidedly superior to the average 
even in those days, when the blacksmith had 
to make "everything out of nothing," and 
never thought of refusing a job just because 
he had not the best facilities for doing it. 
The farm he bought in Avon was almost en- 
tirely unimproved, the only building on it 
being a tumble-down log cabin, and there was 
a good deal of clearing to be done before there 
could be much land to cultivate. For some 
years he carried on the blacksmith-shop as 
subordinate to the farm; but, when he had got 
the latter fairly under cultivation, and his sons 
had become old enough to help him out on 
farm work, he began to rapidly build up his 
mechanical business. Starting with ox and 
horse shoeing, he soon added the repairing and 
the building of wagons, then the manufactur- 
ing and repairing of guns, farming tools, etc., 
until finally many of his productions attained 
a much more than local reputation ; and before 
his death he was running a large factory at 
East Avon entirely devoted to the manufacture 
of ploughs and other agricultural implements. 
Some of his sons were associated with him in 
this business; and to one of them, Thomas, 
Jr., is due the invention of the celebrated 
Wiard plough. 
Thomas Wiard, 



Sr., 

early age, taking for 
Hall, of Connecticut. 



married at quite an 
his wife Miss Susan 
Their first-born child 



was Matthew, the subject of this sketch; and 
eight more children were born to them in the 



642 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



following order: Henry, George, Thomas, 
William, Seth, Mary A., Margaret, Rachel. 
The father of the family remained in Avon as 
long as he lived, served as Justice of the 
Peace, as Supervisor, and in other public ca- 
pacities, and died at the age of sixty seven. 

Matthew was educated in the district schools 
of the town; and most of his life has been 
passed as a farmer, although he has had no 
little experience at mechanical work, and at 
one time resided in Canada, where he was as- 
sociated with a brother in the manufacture 
of ploughs. All together, Mr. Wiard has been 
identified with that branch of industry for 
about a score of years. He has never taken to 
himself a wife, apparently preferring the free- 
dom of celibacy to the comforts of matrimony. 
Firm and steadfast in his political affiliations, 
he has always voted with the Republican party 
since its organization. As a U'hig he cast his 
finst Presidential ballot in 1836 for the great 
defender of the Constitution, Daniel Webster. 

Matthew Wiard held a commission as Jus- 
tice of the Peace for a score of years, served 
four terms as Supervisor of the town of Avon, 
and might easily have had many other public 
offices had he desired them ; for he has long 
enjoyed the full confidence of his fellow-citi- 
zens, and they appreciate his ability as well as 
his sterling integrity. His standing in a com- 
munity where he has lived more than eighty 
years of busy and useful life affords the best 
possible testimonial to his character, and ren- 
ders mention of him necessary in a work treat- 
ing of the representative men of these parts. 
The presentation herewith of his portrait also, 
we are confident, will meet the especial ap- 
proval of our readers. 



T^HARLES E. LOOMIS, a banker of 
I v-^ Attica, of the firm of Loomis & Sons, 

yris^^ was born in this town, December 
14, 185 1. He is the third son of 
James H. Loomis and his wife, Janette Howe, 
daughter of Jacob and Azuba (Sprout) Howe. 
(See sketch of James H. Loomis elsewhere in 
this volume.) 

Charles E. Loomis was educated at the Al- 
legany College, of which his uncle, George 



Loomis, was President for thirteen years. 
On finishing his education he returned home, 
and was engaged at once in the banking busi- 
ness with his father, who had established it 
and continued it as a personal enterprise. 
Charles E. went into partnership with his 
father, and still continues to hold the position 
of partner and Cashier. 

Mr. Charles E. Loomis was married to 
Miss Amy Wicks, daughter of the Rev. 
John Wicks, of the town of Attica. Mrs. 
Loomis was a graduate of Wells College 
at Elmira, N.Y. Their union has been 
blessed with three children, one of whom died 
in infancy. Two bright boys remain — • 
Charles W., born May 15, 1890; and Van 
Wick, born December 16, 1891. Mr. and 
Mrs. Loomis have taken three different tours 
abroad. In 1877 they went through Ireland, 
Scotland, England, France, Switzerland, and 
Germany. In 1882 the)' made a classical 
tour, going into Spain, Northern Africa, 
Egypt, Palestine, Turkey, Greece, and Italy. 
In 1 888 they again crossed the Atlantic, to 
wander awhile among the historic cities and 
towns of the old world. 

Mr. and Mrs. Charles E. Loomis built for 
themselves in 1889 a fine residence on Main 
Street, which they continue to occupy. Mr. 
Loomis is President of the water company. 
His political principles are like those of his 
father and brother. He votes the Republican 
ticket. Although he has thus far been too 
closely occupied with other interests to under- 
take municipal offices, his influence is felt 
in local public matters and in social affairs. 
He is a member of the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows. Both Mr. and Mrs. Loomis 
are Presbyterians, and Mr. Loomis is an Elder 
in the church and also one of the Trustees. 



7TAHARLES J. GARDNER, of Warsaw, 
I s-^ was born in Attica, May 12, 1843. 
^1^ His grandfather, Asher Gardner, 

came to Attica from Massachusetts 
in 1808 with his two brothers, Roswell and 
Adolphus, his brother Parley following a few 
years after. Asher took up one hundred acres 
of wild land from the Holland Land Com- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



643 



pany, half a mile south from the village of 
Attica, on the Creek Road. Two or three 
years later he went back to his former home in 
Massachusetts, and on his return brought with 
him a bride, whose wedding journey was made 
in a wagon, and who began housekeeping in 
a log cabin built by her husband's hands for 
her habitation. His wife's maiden name was 
I'hilinda Patrick, and she must have had a 
loyal and brave heart to have dared such a 
hardy life for love's sake. Here they made 
a permanent home for themselves and the 
group of children who were gradually gathered 
about their knees, and, as the years passed, 
enlarged their little domain and grew more 
prosperous. 

Patrick Gardner, the son of Asher, and 
father of Charles J., married Miss Jenette E. 
Munger, of Attica, a daughter of Hiram Mun- 
ger, of that place. Mr. and Mrs. Patrick 
Gardner were life-long residents of Attica, 
where the former was an industrious farmer 
and held the office of Assessor and Justice of 
the Peace for several years, and was a Repub- 
lican in politics. Eight children were the 
issue of this marriage, three sons and five 
daughters. Two daughters died in childhood. 
Three of the daughters and three sons are now 
living in the vicinity of Attica. Patrick R. 
Gardner died June 15, 1870, aged fifty-eight 
years; and his widow died in Attica, June 20, 
1894, aged seventy-four years. 

Charles J. Gardner, after leaving the dis- 
trict schools of the neighborhood, entered the 
Genesee and Wyoming Seminary, where he 
was a student for two years. The Civil War 
was now at its height ; and at the age of nine- 
teen he entered the ranks of the Union army, 
enlisting August 6, 1862, in Company C of 
the One Hundred and Thirtieth New York 
Volunteers. A few months later the regiment 
was changed to a cavalry regiment, and was 
afterward known as the First New York Dra- 
goons. On the organization of the company 
at Portage, N.Y. , Mr. Gardner was made Cor- 
poral, and later was promoted to Sergeant. In 
the fall of 1864, in the beautiful valley of the 
Shenandoah, in Virginia, which Sheridan's 
invading forces so devastated that the "crows 
had to carry their rations" through its war- 



wasted boundaries, Mr. Gardner lost his right 
leg. He was taken to Baltimore, where, at 
the Camden Street Hospital, the limb, which 
had been fractured by a minie-ball, was ampu- 
tated seven inches below the knee. Gangrene 
developed after the operation, which had to be 
performed a second time. Mr. Gardner was 
discharged from the army April 28, 1865, and 
on July 30, 1S65, was married to Miss An- 
nette R. Terry, of Batavia, a daughter of 
William M. Terry, of that place. Soon after 
his return from the army he was appointed 
a postal clerk on the Erie Railway, and held 
that position for three years. He removed to 
Warsaw, January i, 1874, to accept the office 
of County Clerk, to which he had previously 
been elected. He held the office two terms. 
He was afterward appointed Postmaster at 
Warsaw, N. Y. , by President Chester A. Ar- 
thur, and resigned that office, December i, 
1887, to accept the office of Sheriff of Wyo- 
ming County, to which he had previously been 
elected. He is a member of Gibbs Post, 
Grand Army of the Republic, No. 130. Mr. 
Gardner has three children — one daughter, 
Martha, now Mrs. PLdward T. Montgomery, of 
Warsaw, N. Y. ; and two sons, William P. 
Gardner and George W. Gardner. Since Jan- 
uary I, 1874, the family has resided in the 
pleasant house on West Court Street, pur- 
chased at that time. 




ILLIAM H. GROVES, a well- 
known farmer occupying a fine es- 
tate in the town of York, Living- 
ston County, was born in that place, Septem- 
ber 13, 1863. His father, Mr. Robert 
Groves, was born in the picturesque and beau- 
tiful part of Ireland commonly termed the 
north, whence have come the ancestors of 
some of our greatest men — men noted for 
pluck and perseverance. The climate, being 
so cold, perhaps adds something of hardiness 
to the inhabitants. Perhaps, also, the fierce 
and terrible Danes and Northmen, who rav- 
aged the island in olden times, and left traces 
of their Celtic tongue in the rich brogue of the 
inhabitants, may have left traces likewise in 
their strength and prowess. The salt seas 



644 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



which rave perpetually in the caves of the 
rugged shores of Ireland, and the storms and 
tempests of its winters, which are so bitter, 
but symbolize the storms of adversitj" which 
have for long and wear)- years won the people 
of the entire country to a patience and cheerful 
endurance which signalizes them everywhere 
as a nation. 

Mr. Robert Groves came of Scotch ancestr), 
and he had the brave spirit which alwavs char- 
acterizes the Scotch-Irish. He was a poor 
laborer when he set out with wife and two 
children to find a home in the land of the free. 
This was in 1841. After reaching New York 
he made his way up into this section of coun- 
try ; and, when he arrived in York, he had but 
eighteen cents in his pocket to start in his new 
career. But the worst was over. His strong 
arm was his capital, and he soon found a home 
and bread for himself and family. He worked 
for a time by the month, then for a number of 
years on shares, running a farm with Mr. Alex 
Reid, of that town. After a time he suc- 
ceeded in buying a small place, in which he 
lived for a while with his family. Later he 
sold this; and in 18S3 he bought one of the 
most attractive residences in York village, 
commanding a beautiful view across the Gen- 
esee valley to Geneseo. In connection with 
this he also bought twenty-eight acres of 
land. This place was long and familiarly 
known as the Bowden estate. It was here that 
Robert Groves spent his later years, and here 
he died at the age of si.xty-eight. As he took 
out naturalization papers at an early day, he 
was soon able to vote; and this he always did 
on the Republican side. 

Mr. Robert Groves married Miss Margaret 
McFadden. Her death occurred ten months 
before that of her husband, on April 14, 1888. 
Seven children were born to them, whose 
names are here given : Mary A. , Agnes, John 
H., Susanna, Elizabeth, Slargaret D. , and 
William H. These parents suffered a terrible 
bereavement in 1861. Within two weeks the 
first five of the children were taken from them 
by that malignant disease, diphtheria. Phy- 
sicians did not then understand the nature of 
it so well as now ; and, though science has not 
found the preventive, much has been done 



through scientific investigation to cure many 
and to relieve the sufferings of those whose 
lives are doomed. 

This was in the old home. The new one is 
very pleasant, and Mr. William Groves resides 
there with his sister Margaret alone. The 
brother carries on the farm work, and his sis- 
ter keeps the house. William Groves is a 
faithful and capable steward, who .spares no 
pains in preserving and improving his inheri- 
tance; and in manv things he follows the ex- 
ample set by his father. Like him, he votes 
the Republican ticket. His first Presidential 
vote was in 1884 for James G. Blaine. 




Conn., 
infant 
which 
all of 



OX. WOLCOTT J. HUMPHREY, 
who died at his home in Warsaw, 
X.Y., on January' 19, 1890, aged 
seventy-two, was bom in Canton, 
November 11, 181 7. He was but an 
when his father moved to Sheldon, 
was then in Genesee County, so that 
his earliest recollections and associa- 



tions were of New York State. Here he grew 
up, and became a farmer, and later in life fol- 
lowed the trades of tanning and shoe and har- 
ness making. His great-grandfather, Sam- 
uel Humphrey, was a native of Connecticut, 
as were his grandfather, Theophilus, and his 
father, who bore the same name. Mr. The- 
ophilus Humphrey, the younger, married 
Cynthia Hayden, of Torringford, Conn. ; and 
thev became the parents of seventeen chil- 
dren, Wolcott J., of this memoir, being the 
sixth son. 

Besides the district-school education Wol- 
cott J. Humphrey received a brief course of 
instruction from a Congregational clergyman 
of the neighborhood. His mind was naturally 
a studious one. and by obser\ation and a 
varied experience in life he became a man of 
culture as well as of deep insight. That 
quality of mind called common sense was one 
of his chief characteristics, and insured him 
success in his business ventures. For 
twenty-four years he continued in mercantile 
business, being successively engaged at Varys- 
burg, Sheldon Centre, North Java, and 
Bloomington, 111., from which place he re- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



645 



turned to his native town. Some successful 
land speculations in the West added consid- 
erably to his fortune. Coming to Warsaw in 
1864, he here conducted a large tanning busi- 
ness until 1869, in which year he became a 
stockholder in the Wyoming County National 
Bank. In 1871 he was chosen President of 
the bank, a position he held until his death. 
He was for many years President of the town 
water-works and gas company, in both of 
which he held stock. Amid the multiplicity 
of his business affairs he still found time to 
devote to the interests of suffering fellow- 
creatures, to whom his warm heart went out 
in tender sympathy, and for whom his gener- 
ous nature expended itself in deeds of loving 
charity. He was for eight years Trustee of 
the Institution for the Blind at Batavia and 
President of its board for three years, and was 
always identified with the best interests of his 
town and county. As a young man he took a 
lively interest in military training, and was 
at twenty years of age a member of the State 
militia. In 1840 he was elected Colonel of 
the Ninth Regiment of the Brigade of New 
York State, but resigned his commission in 
1844. 

For political sagacity, remarkably good 
judgment, and firmness of purpose he had no 
superiors and but few equals. In politics Mr. 
Humphrey was active and efficient. He 
served his party faithfully and well. Of him 
it could be fitly said : — 

■• A strong man; 
For where he fixed his heart he set his hand 
To do the thing he willed, and bore it through." 

Mr. Humphrey held during his life many 
offices of trust, and was a man of wide influ- 
ence in the community. He was several 
times Supervisor, Postmaster in 1849, '853, 
and i860, and was marshal in charge of the 
census taken in 1850. In the same year he 
was elected to the Assembly of New York and 
again in 1851, and was Chairman of the Com- 
mittee for Railroads, and reported the bill for 
the consolidation of the Central Railroad with 
valuable restrictions. He was in charge of 
the Prohibition Liquor Law passed that ses- 
sion, and made an able speech in its behalf, 



and was elected to the Senate from the Sixty- 
third District, which included Wyoming, 
Livingston, and Allegany Counties, in 1865, 
and again, 1867, by a majority of five thousand 
two hundred and forty. 

During his service in the Senate he was 
recognized as one of the most able Senators, 
was Chairman of the Committee on Roads and 
Bridges and on Commerce and Navigation, 
also a member of the Committee on Internal 
Affairs, Printing, Finance, and Banks. He 
was always acknowledged as a leading man in 
his section of the State, having been a mem- 
ber of the Republican County Committee for 
thirty years. Also during the last twenty 
years he was a delegate in more than half 
the Republican State Conventions that have 
been held, and he was a member of the 
National Republican Conventions of 1876 and 
1880. 

On March 30, 1841, Mr. Humphrey was 
married to Miss Amanda Martindale, a daugh- 
ter of Major William S. Martindale, of Dor- 
set, Vt. She died in California June 17, 
1873. He was married a second time to 
Hannah Adams, a daughter of Hugh and Isa- 
bella (Adams) Mulholland, of -Parma, Monroe 
County, N.Y. The two children born of this 
union were Annabel and Wolcott Julius. 

Mr. Humphrey during his long business 
career amassed a large fortune, which he ex- 
pended with a generous hand. In private and 
public life he was large-minded and liberal, 
and many an orphan relative owed his success 
in life to the sympathetic interest and finan- 
cial aid he was always ready to bestow. A 
liberal supporter of the gospel, he was espe- 
cially generous to that particular branch of the 
religious body — the Congregational church — 
to which he was attached, and was for twenty 
years the Trustee. The last years of his life 
were spent in a futile quest for the vigor of 
health and strength, which neither money nor 
effort could discover. In the relations of 
father, husband, friend, and citizen, he was a 
lofty example and worthy model ; and the 
death of few men has been regarded as such 
a public calamity as was his. Noble, gener- 
ous, just, and kind, his deeds live after him, 
and "blossom in the dust." 



646 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 




>RS. HANNAH ADAMS HUM- 
PHREY is of Scotch-Irish extrac- 
tion. Her father and mother, 
Mr. and Mrs. Mulholland, came 
to America when they were young children. 

Mrs. Humphrey was educated in Rochester, 
where for fifteen years she taught in the 
schools, five of which she was principal of 
the Glenwood School, a position she filled 
with marked ability and success. She was 
married to the Hon. Wolcott J. Humphrey, 
July 8, 1874, and passed the first year of her 
married life in travelling on the Pacific Coast. 
She then with her husband returned to War- 
saw, where the remaining years of their 
wedded life were spent. Two children, a son 
and daughter, blessed this marriage. Anna- 
bel, the daughter, is now at the far-famed 
Ogontz School near Philadelphia; and Wol- 
cott Julius, who bears his father's name, is 
a student at the Hill Preparatory School at 
Pottstown, Pa. 

Mrs. Humphrey resides in her spacious 
and delightful residence, "The Elms," where 
she dispenses hospitality with gracious and 
charming cordiality. P^nergetic, capable, and 
public-spirited, she holds various offices rarely 
filled by women, being a Director of the Wyo- 
ming County National Bank, a member of the 
Board of Trustees of the Institution for the 
Blind at Batavia, President of the Society 
for Village Work, and also of the Board of 
Trustees of the Industrial School. F"ew 
women have taken such a prominent part 
in the local affairs of their village and 
county as Mrs. Humphrey, whose name is a 
synonym of womanly strength and beneficent 
influence. 



-fgTOVVLAND SHERMAN, a well-known 
1-^ citizen of the town of Avon, was 
lb I born in Pawling, Dutchess County, 
' N.Y., April 12, 1872. He is a di- 
rect descendant in the ninth generation of 
Philip Sherman, who came to Massachusetts 
in 1633, and settled first at Roxbury, and a 
few years later was an associate of Roger 
Williams in the founding of Rhode Island. 
He was Secretary of that colony in 1639, 



Deputy in 1665-67, and was a man of much 
courage and ability. The great-grandfather 
of Howland Sherman, Benjamin Sherman, was 
born in Dartmouth, Mass. When a young 
man, he made a voyage on a whaling-ship, 
and with other members of the crew was for 
five days lost in the fog in a small boat with- 
out food, and when rescued was in a perishing 
condition. This experience sufficed for a sea- 
faring life; and upon arriving at his home 
Benjamin Sherman started for Dutchess 
County, where he settled at the foot of 
Quaker Hill in 1764. His house was for a 
time the headquarters of General Washington, 
and it was under his roof that the trial of 
General Schuyler was held. He and his son 
Abiel were wagon-makers and farmers, Whigs 
in politics, and always interested in public 
affairs, Abiel serving as a member of the 
State Assembl)'. The wife of Abiel was 
Joanna Howland, of Dutchess County. 

Henry Sherman, father of Howland, fol- 
lowed the trade of his ancestors, and in 1836 
came to this vicinity to seek a new location 
for his home. The journey was made in a 
wagon; and in the following year he returned 
with his family, sailing up the Hudson from 
Poughkeepsie as far as Albany in a sloop, 
then going by way of the Erie Canal to Pitts- 
ford, and thence by teams to the town of 
Rush, Monroe County, where he bought land. 
He died at the age of seventy-six. His wife 
was Emma Halloway, of the town of Pawling, 
Dutchess County, daughter of Joseph Hallo- 
way and grand-daughter of William Halloway, 
who was an officer in the Revolutionary War. 

Howland Sherman was in his sixteenth year 
when he left the old home with his parents, 
and on a pleasant Sunday morning landed at 
Pittsford. The rest of the journey of ten 
miles to the future home of the family was 
then made on foot. Being a natural me- 
chanic, he learned his trade in his father's 
shop, and when ready to begin housekeeping 
made much of the furniture himself. He 
bought a small farm at first, improved it, and 
then sold it to good advantage, and bought 
another. In 1856 he purchased the farm 
which he now owns and occupies; and on it he 
has erected buildings of the best and most 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



647 



substantial kind, and carries on a thriving 
business. 

February 24, 1849, Mr. Sherman married 
Mary Price, of the town of Rush, Monroe 
County. She was born September 26, 1823, 
and was the daughter of George Price, a 
native of Frederick, Md. Her grandfather, 
Philip Price, was an early settler in Mary- 
land, where he resided until 1801, when, ac- 
companied by his family, he moved to New 
York State, making the journey, according to 
the custom of the times, with ox teams. He 
settled first in Lyons, then in Hopewell, 
and afterward came to Halford, now Avon. 
Later he went to the town of Rush, bought a 
large tract of timber land, and built his log 
house, living the primitive life of the wilder- 
ness, five miles away from his nearest neigh- 
bor and with only bridle paths to connect him 
with civilization. Here he died in 1826. 
The maiden name of his wife was Susanna 
Layman. She was a native of Maryland, and 
was the daughter of Philip Layman. George 
Price, the father of Mrs. Sherman, was very 
young when he came to New York; and, 
being the third son, much of his life was 
spent with his parents. He died at the age 
of seventy years. His wife's name was 
Elizabeth Martin. She also was born in 
Maryland, and was mother of eleven children. 

Mr. and Mrs. Sherman have three children 
— Amanda J., wife of Horace L. Bennett, of 
Rochester; Frances C, wife of John A. 
Munson, of Savannah, Wayne County; and 
Walter H., who married Harriet C. Mitchell, 
.and resides in Rochester, N.Y. 




kORTIMER N. COLE, 'of the firm 
of Cole & Andrus, dealers in 
hardware and carriages, Castile, 
N.Y., was born in Devonshire, 
England, September i, 1853. His great- 
grandfather, Philip Cole, who was a farmer in 
England, died in his eighty-seventh year, 
having reared thirteen children — Thomas, 
William, Abraham, Philip, John, Samuel, 
Ann, Joseph, Mary, Jane, Eliza, Susan, and 
Hannah. Thomas, the eldest of the family, 
was born in England, and there spent his 



life, engaged in the manufacture of boots and 
shoes. He was eighty-six years of age at the 
time of his death; and his wife, Mary Joshlin, 
passed away at the age of sixty-two. They 
left six children — Samuel, Alexander, Eliza- 
beth, and Elias, who came to America; and 
Maria and Joseph, who remained in England. 

Samuel, the father of the subject of this 
sketch, received his education and spent the 
early part of his life in his native land, where 
he married Ann Rudd. In 1854 he came to 
America, and settled in Perry, where his wife 
died in 1873. She left two children — Morti- 
mer N., and his sister, Elizabeth M., who 
was born in Perry, and died when twenty-two 
years of age. Samuel Cole's second wife, 
Lida Gray, was born in Castile, December 
10, 1838, daughter of Richard and Mary 
(Coleman) Gray. Samuel Cole is a Republi- 
can, and both he and his wife are members of 
the Methodist Ivpiscopal church. They live a 
retired life in their pleasant home in Perry. 

Mortimer N. Cole was educated at Perry 
Academy, after which he entered the employ 
of R. E. Merdorff, of Perry. Here he re- 
mained as clerk for five years, at the end of 
which time he was engaged in the same ca- 
pacity by C. P. Andrus, a merchant of Perry, 
with whom he served a term of seven years. 
In 1885, in connection with D. S. Andrus, 
he bought the hardware store of Davidson 
Brothers at Castile. They have enlarged 
their business and extended their trade, until 
now they occupy a spacious store on the cor- 
ner of Main and Washington Streets in Cas- 
tile; and here they display a fine line of 
hardware, wagons, stoves, and furnaces, in 
connection with which they have a large ware- 
house for carriages. 

In 1877 Mr. Cole married Gracia Andrus, 
daughter of C. P. and Clarissa (Billings) 
Andrus. C. P. Andrus was born in Shafts- 
bury, Bennington County, Vt., September 8, 
1822, son of David and Mary (Parks) Andrus 
and grandson of Isaac Andrus, a native of 
Connecticut, who after his marriage had re- 
moved with his family to Bennington County, 
Vermont, the journey being made with ox 
teams. Isaac carried on farming, besides 
which he kept a tavern for many years. He 



648 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



died at an advanced age, leaving a large fam- 
ily. His son David, who was born in Con- 
necticut, March 29, 1779, continued the hotel 
business at Shaftsbury for forty years, during 
which time he made frequent trips to Cayuga 
and Wyoming Counties in this State, assist- 
ing the early pioneers in moving their fam- 
ilies to their new homes. While here in 
1 8 10 he bought one hundred and sixty acres 
of land where the village of Wyoming is now 
located, and in 18 12 removed his family 
hither. His uncle Isaac had previously set- 
tled in that section, and kept a small log 
tavern. Having some trouble with the Ind- 
ians, and feeling the effects of the war, David 
shortly returned to Vermont with his family 
for safety, sending instructions to his uncle 
to sell his land. He engaged in farming in 
Vermont until 1833, when he removed to the 
town of Castile, Wyoming County, N.Y., and 
buying a farm on the west side of Silver Lake 
resided there until his death, February 8, 
1861. His wife, Mary Parks Andrus, born 
January 9, 1787, died March 2, 1839, leaving 
a family of nine children. 

C. P. Andrus was educated in Vermont, 
and in 1834 came to Castile, spending his 
summers in farming and his winters in teach- 
ing. In 1846 he bought ninety acres of land 
west of the 
there made 

rissa Billings, whom he married in that year 
She was the daughter of Asa and Nancy (Ga- 
lusha^ Billings, natives of Vermont. Nancy 
Galusha was the daughter of John Galusha, 
the fifth Governor of that State. Asa Bill- 
ings was a Whig and an active politician in 
Vermont. He died at the age of fifty-six, 
leaving a family of ten children. Some time 
after his marriage Mr. Andrus engaged in the 
livery business, and later in the grocery busi- 
ness, from which he retired at the end of 
twenty-seven years. He is a stanch Republi- 
can, and has held several offices in the town. 

Mr. and Mrs. Mortimer N. Cole have one 
child — Lawrence A., born P"ebruary 26, 
1883, who is now in college. Mr. Cole is a 
Republican, and is at present Supervisor of 
the town of Castile, a member of the Ancient 
Order of Workmen, of the Select Knights, 



lake in the town of Castile, and 
a home for his young wife, Cla- 



and one of the fire department of Castile. He 
is Secretary and Superintendent of the Cas- 
tile water-works and President of the Elitsac 
Manufacturing Company. Mrs. Cole is organ- 
ist at the Baptist church, of which society she 
is a member. Mr. Cole is among the most 
successful business men of Castile. His 
pleasant and genial manner, as well as his 
good judgment and interest in the public wel- 
fare, have won for him the good will of all. 




RANK B. DODGE, M.D., of Mount 
Morris, is an. able representative of 
the medical fraternity of Livingston 
County. He was born on November 7, 1857, 
in the town of Leicester, in this county, son of 
James L. and Mary E. (Budrow) Dodge, and 
comes of New England antecedents, his great- 
grandfather Dodge having been born and 
reared to maturity in the State of Connecticut. 
A few years after marriage that ancestor re- 
moved to Western Massachusetts, settling in 
the town of Hawley, where he bought a farm, 
and among the rocks and rills of that hilly 
country engaged in general farming during the 
remaining years of his earthly existence. 

His son Thomas, from whom the Doctor is 
descended, was born in New London, Conn. , 
April 16, 1793, and was but an infant when 
the family removed to Massachusetts, he being 
carried in the arms of his mother, who made 
the journey on horseback. He was educated 
in Hawiev, and assisted in tilling the home 
farm until 18 16, when he wended his way on 
foot to the Western frontier, proceeding as far 
as Chautauqua County, N.Y. , where he was 
employed during the winter season in chop- 
ping wood. In the spring he began to jour- 
ney homeward, walking as far as Canandaigua, 
when he came across a farmer who was on his 
w-ay to Albany with a load of wheat, and with 
him he secured a ride. After a short visit 
at the parental homestead Thomas again 
started for New York State; but this time 
he was accompanied by a fair young bride, 
whom he had induced to leave her parents, 
and with him establish a home in the wilder- 
ness. Purchasing a tract of heavily timbered 
land in the town of Leicester, Livingston 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



649 



County, he cleared an opening and proceeded 
to build a log cabin in which to begin house- 
keeping. There being no sawed lumber in 
the vicinity, he split shakes to cover the roof, 
and hewed planks for the floor. The furniture 
was home-made, and of the humblest descrip- 
tion, stools taking the place of chairs. He 
was brave of heart and strong of constitu- 
tion; and in the years that followed he cleared 
and improved a valuable farm, erected a good 
set of frame buildings, making the homestead 
which he had reclaimed from the wilderness 
his abiding-place until his decease, April 14, 
1876. In 1817 was solemnized his union with 
Phoebe Forbes. She was a native of Buck- 
land, Franklin County, Mass., being the 
daughter of Jotham F"orbes, who was a soldier 
of the Revolutionary War, and a pioneer of the 
town of York, in this county. Her husband, 
Thomas Dodge, was also a soldier in the War 
of 1812. She bore him five children; namely, 
Jotham, Amelia Louisa, James L. , Thomas 
A., and Kate. 

James L. Dodge was born in the town of 
Leicester, N. Y. , July 24, 1825, and, after 
receiving a good education in the place of his 
nativity, commenced his career as a teacher, 
being thus engaged for si.x winters, one of 
which he taught in Ohio. He afterward en- 
gaged in agriculture, and, having succeeded to 
the ownership of the old home farm, has since 
resided there, following that pleasant and 
healthful occupation. He has been twice mar- 
ried, his first wife, Mary E. , the daughter of 
James and Louisa Budrow, was born in Leices- 
ter, August 4, 1830, and remained with her 
parents until the time of her marriage, No- 
vember 7, 1 85 1. She passed to the higher 
life November 15, 1865, leaving four children 
— Fred B., F"rank B. , Mary, and Thomas E. 
The maiden name of the second wife of Mr. 
Dodge, to whom he was united November 14, 
1866, was Lucy B. Blakeslee. .She was born 
in the town of York, daughter of Seneca and 
Lucy (Hull) Blakeslee, and of this union four 
children have been reared ; namely. Bertha, 
Harry, Irving, and Robert. In politics Mr. 
Dodge is a sound Republican, and he and his 
wife are consistent members of the Baptist 
church. 



Frank B., son of James L. and Mary E. 
Dodge, received his elementary education in 
the district school, and was afterward a stu- 
dent at the Genesee Normal School, from 
which he was graduated in 1877. He began 
the study of medicine with Dr. F. H. Moyer, 
of Moscow, and, after attending lectures at the 
College of Physicians and Surgeons at Balti- 
more, received his diploma from that institu- 
tion with the class of 1880. Dr. Dodge spent 
a year in Baltimore as Resident Physician at 
the City Hospital, and then located his office 
at Mount Morris, where he has since been en- 
gaged in the active practice of his profession, 
having won in a marked degree the esteem and 
confidence of the community. 

In 1884 Dr. Dodge was united in marriage 
with Miss Anna Chamberlain, a native of 
West Sparta, and a daughter of Harlan G. 
Chamberlain, of whom a sketch appears in 
another part of this volume. Two childre;i 
have come to bless this union — Eloise and 
Mary. The Doctor is a member of the Liv- 
ingston County Medical Association, of the 
Central New York Medical Society, and of the 
Western New York Medical Association. He 
is also a prominent Free Mason, being Master 
of Mount Morris Lodge, No. 122, A. F. & 
A. M. Both he and his excellent wife are 
valued members of the Baptist church. In 
politics Dr. Dodge is a stanch supporter of the 
principles of the Republican party, and a 
member of the Republican Town Committee. 
During President Harrison's administration he 
was a member of the Board of Pension Exam- 
iners. He takes an intelligent interest in 
everything pertaining to the welfare of the 
town in which he lives, being especially inter- 
ested in the education of the young, and is 
now President of the local Board of Education. 




|AJOR WILLIAM WALBRIDGE, 
who was born in Attica, N. Y. , 
November 21, 181 2, is the oldest 
native resident of the town, where 
he is now passing his declining )-ears in pleas- 
ant retirement. His father, Justus Walbridge, 
was a native of Massachusetts, having been 
born in Brimfield in 1778. In 1804 he visited 



650 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



this section of New York, but did not make 
a permanent settlement here until 1808, when 
he again came to this count}-, and bought one 
hundred and twenty-eight acres of land of Ben- 
jamin Nelson. This land was heavih" tim- 
bered; but he labored with persistence until 
he had improved a valuable homestead, and 
had become one of the most substantial and 
influential citizens of the town. Unlike the 
larger part of the pioneer settlers, he was a 
man of some means, and not only paid cash for 
his land, but loaned money to new-comers and 
neighboring friends. 

In 1 8 10 Justus Walbridge married Eunice 
Osborne, a native of Oneida County, who came 
here with her parents in 1804, her father, a 
Baptist minister, having been called to preach 
in Attica. Four children were born to them, 
the following being their record: William is 
the subject of this brief sketch. Harriet died 
^t the age of seventeen years. Reuben, born 
in 1 81 7, died in 1852, leaving a widow and 
two children, who are now living in Iowa. 
Malvina, widow of Paulinus Chaddock, lives 
on her farm in Middlebury. ]Mr. Walbridge 
passed to the life beyond in 1840; and ]Mrs. 
Walbridge, who subsequently became the wife 
of W'illard Thompson, of Massachusetts, died 
in 1876, and her body was laid to rest in the 
new cemetery in Attica, beside that of her first 
husband and two of their children, who had 
preceded her to the better land. 

William Walbridge lived at home with his 
parents, attending the district school and 
working on the farm, until he attained his 
majority, when he married Lois Lindsay, a 
daughter of Caleb Lindsay, a history of whose 
life may be found in connection with the 
sketch of ]\Iartin Lindsay. The pathway of 
Major and Mrs. Walbridge has been bright- 
ened by the birth of seven children, as fol- 
lows : Henry W. , a farmer, who has two 
children; Myron E. , a resident of Attica, who 
has a wife and two children ; William M., a far- 
mer and stock dealer, residing near his father, 
who has a wife and six children; Harriet E., 
who is the wife of Michael Laricker, of Attica ; 
Ellen H., the wife of Oscar D. Hamlin, of 
Batavia, who has three children; John; and 
Frank E., who is married and had one daughter. 



The first few years after their marriage the 
Major and his wife lived on the parental home- 
stead, which joins his present property on the 
south. In 1838 he bought the farm where 
they now reside, the area of which was for- 
merly much larger than now, he having owned 
at one time two hundred and two acres. Hav- 
ing improved the land until it was all in a 
pioductive condition, he has sold portions at 
different times, and is now the owner of a fine 
estate of sixty-eight acres. His unique and 
attractive dwelling, built of cobblestones, was 
erected thirty-six years ago. Major Walbridge 
has always taken an active and intelligent in- 
terest in the welfare of his town and county. 
He has served with fidelity as Assessor and 
Supervisor, and has held the offices of High- 
way Commissioner and Town Collector. He 
has always been a sound Democrat, and an 
influential man in his party; and he has been 
a member of the Masonic fraternity for more 
than forty years. 



RUSSELL STONE, a well-known 
farmer and lumber dealer of Livonia, 
his native town, was born on April 19, 
1S58. The first of the family who 
settled in Livonia was his grandfather, Joel 
Stone, who came here in 1804. He was a 
native of Connecticut; and the journey from 
that State to Livingston County, New York, 
occupied three weeks, coming as he did by 
slow stages, the rough wagons which conveyed 
his family and household goods over the lonely 
and almost untravelled highways of a sparsely 
settled country being drawn by oxen. The 
hundred acres of wild land which he took up 
had to be cleared of the forest growth, and a 
log house built of the felled trees. With that 
energy which is the characteristic of the man 
who dares to enter a new field of effort, the 
work of establishing a home was steadily car- 
ried forward. The pioneer farmer and builder 
at length died beneath the roof of the house 
his hands had fashioned. 

His son and namesake, Joel, who was born 
in the humble cottage of the pioneer farmer, 
acquired a more liberal education than the 
average country youth of that time and section 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



6si 



usually boasted, attending both the district 
schools and Canandaigua Academy. He was 
a farmer and spent his life on the old home- 
stead ; but he was also a civil engineer and 
surveyor, and was for several years Supervisor 
of the town. He married a relative of the 
same name, Miss Anna Stone, by whom he 
had five children — LucyM., Estella, J. Rus- 
sell, Ellis, and Frank. The first-named died 
at eighteen years of age. Estella died in 
1871. Ellis was married twice, his first wife 
being Hattie Mar.sh, of Rochester, who be- 
came the mother of one son, Howard. His 
second wife was Miss Jennie Short, a daughter 
of Truman and Delia (Stevens) Short. There 
was one son born of this second marriage, who 
bore the name of Truman in honor of his ma- 
ternal grandfather. Frank Stone married Miss 
Alberta Fowler, of Livonia. Their three 
children were: Elmer, Marion, and Lucy. 

J. Russell Stone was educated, as was his 
father, in the district schools and Canandaigua 
Academy. He has been a farmer and lumber 
dealer ever since he entered the arena of inde- 
pendent life, and has been successful in both 
lines of business. His residence, which is 
one of the handsomest and most attractive 
homes in Livonia, was completed in 1881. 
He owns, besides the village property, a hun- 
dred and sixty acres of land near the old place. 
In 1882 he was married to Miss Nellie E. 
Carey, the daughter of fhibbard G. and Mary 
(Hurlburt) Carey. They have two children — 
Albert and Mabel. In religious faith Mr. 
Stone is a Presbyterian. He has always been a 
Republican in politics, and his first Presidential 
vote was cast in 1880 for James A. Garfield. 




ASHINGTON \V. WHITNEY, a 
}s\j farmer residing in the town of 
Eagle, Wyoming County, N. Y., 
where he was born on the i8th of November, 
1827, is of New luigland ancestry, his father 
and grandfather both having been natives of 
New Hampshire. The latter, Joshua Whit- 
ney, bought a farm in Eagle, and established 
his home where his descendants are now liv- 
ing. His son and namesake, Joshua, who was 
born in 1795, was a diligent student at the 



district school, and, after finishing the course 
there, taught school for some time. Upon 
attaining his majority, he purchased land in 
Pike, which he cleared and sold, investing the 
money received in a farm, where his son, 
Washington W. , was born. This he sold in 
turn, and he moved to East Pike. Mr. Joshua 
Whitney died at his son's home in the seventy- 
fifth year of his age. His wife, who formerly 
was Miss Elmira Fuller, was born in 1800, 
her native home being on the banks of the 
beautiful Genesee River. Of the nine children 
born of this union there are two now living 
— -Washington W. , at whose home the mother 
died; and Mary C, Mrs. Mead. 

Washington W. Whitney, when a young man, 
purchased thirty acres of land from his father, 
and at the death of the latter became the 
owner of the paternal estate, where he now 
lives, his farm consisting of two hundred and 
ten acres. In 1852 he was married to Miss 
Susan Clements, who was born August 14, 
1833, the daughter of Mr. Samuel Clements, 
a Vermont farmer. Three children were born 
to Mr. and Mrs. Whitney — Frank J., Wilber, 
and Jennie. Frank J. married Miss Lucy 
York, and they have five children, namely: 
Maud, who is now Mrs. Edward Gillespie, and 
the mother of one child, Pearl; Carle; Mary- 
ette; Edith; and Walter. Jennie, who mar- 
ried Mr. John Griffin, has one son, Charles 
W. Grififin. Wilber Whitney, the second 
child, is at home. All of the family connec- 
tion are engaged in farming; and they are 
joined in the bonds of a common political 
faith, being warm Republicans. 

Mr. Washington W. Whitney served as a 
volunteer in the Federal army during the last 
two years of the War of the Rebellion, and 
was in eighteen prominent engagements, in 
several of which he was severely wounded; 
and indeed he still suffers from the result of 
the exposure incident to campaigning. A taste 
for military life seems to be hereditary in 
the Whitney family; for, besides the four 
brothers who fought with chivalrous valor in 
the Civil War, Mr. Whitney's grandfather and 
three of his uncles served under the American 
flag during the Revolution. Joshua Whitney 
was one of the Assistant Surgeons during the 



652 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Civil War, but did more in the line of inflict- 
ins wounds tlian healine; them, as he was 
usually on the field of battle as a soldier rather 
than a surgeon. One brother lay down his 
life for the cause of American freedom and a 
perpetual union, and each one served with 
honorable distinction. 

Civic affairs have since that period engaged 
Mr. Whitney's attention; and he has effi- 
ciently filled the offices of Overseer of the 
Poor, Assessor, and other places of trust. 



-AMES RIGGART, one of the long- 
established residents of the town of 
York, Livingston County, N.Y., was 
born in Ireland, June 11, 1828, and 
was twenty-five years old when he embarked 
for America. He was young and full of cour- 
age; and with wife and three months' old 
baby the long voyage of five weeks and three 
days on the close, confined ship were passed 
in patience and with that animation which 
springs from a hope in the future. On his 
arrival he came to the town of York, and for 
six long years worked by the month for wages. 
He then rented land for two years; and after 
that he was able to purchase the same farm, 
which contained ninety-six acres. He re- 
mained there for six years. Then he came 
back to York, and bought a farm of one hun- 
dred and thirty acres, where he continued to 
reside until about three years ago. At that 
time, 1891, he resolved to locate himself and 
his family in a home which was more in ac- 
cordance with his circumstances of financial 
prosperity. Accordingly, he has erected a 
fine large dwelling-house, with all modern 
conveniences, in which they now reside. Mr. 
Kiggart now has in all one hundred and 
eighty-five acres of land under cultivation. 
Mr. Biggart was married to Miss Elizabeth 
Thompson, the daughter of Mr. William 
Thompson, of North Ireland. They have had 
six children — William J., deceased, at the 
age of forty-two; Duncan, who also died, aged 
twenty-eight; James; Elizabeth; Jane; and 
Emma. James married Miss Emma Town- 
send; and they have two children — Georgie 
A. and Mabel E. Elizabeth married Mr. 



Earl E. Hudson; they reside in Genesee 
County, and have one child — George D. 
Hudson. Jane was married to Frank Shan- 
non; they reside in York, and their only 
child is christened Bertha. Emma married 
Hamilton Rippey, a resident of York. 

Mr. Biggart's father came from the old 
country to the Dominion of Canada, but re- 
turned to Ireland, and died there, being too 
strongly attached to his early home to make a 
contented emigrant. Endowed with the ster- 
ling qualities of industry, perseverance, and 
honesty, which have been so often reproduced 
on this American soil to the great advantage 
of the State and nation, Mr. James Biggart 
stands as a representative of what Ireland's 
sons can achieve when given the opportunity. 
He is a member of the Presbyterian church. 
In politics he has always voted the Republi- 
can ticket, and he has creditably filled the 
office of Commissioner of Highways. 




LBP2RT O. SKIFF, a prominent citi- 
zen and merchant in Pike, Wyoming 
County, was born in the town where 
he now lives, on January 2, 1839, 
being a great-grandson of Stephen Skifif, who 
came to Pike in 18 16. Stephen's parents, 
Benjamin and Elizabeth E. Skiff, were of 
Puritan descent. They moved from the town 
of Kent, Litchfield County, Conn., to Fort 
Spring in the Wyoming valley, Pennsylvania, 
and were witnesses of the terrible Wyoming 
massacre, in which so many unfortunate set- 
tlers met fearful deaths. The Skiffs escaped 
of a friendly Indian, and re- 
as possible to Connecticut, 
died at Hartwick, N.Y., to 
which place they had moved. His widow 
passed the latter part of her life at Pike, and 
was buried in the cemetery at East Koy, N.Y. 
Their fourth son, Stephen Skiff, entered 
the Continental army at sixteen years of age, 
and served for seven years in the Revolution. 
He was in General Sullivan's expedition up 
the Genesee valley. He married Adah Bates, 
who was born May 24, 1762, and died P"ebru- 
ary 2, 1849. Seven children were born of 
this union. Samuel B., the fourth child, was 



through the aid 
turned as soon 
Benjamin Skiff 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



6S3 



born in Connecticut, January 4, 1790. He 
came to Otsego County, New York, when he 
was a young man ; and there married Esther 
Pride, born May 30, 178S. In 1813 they 
came to Pike, N.Y., and settled on a farm 
now in the possession of their grandson, John 
A. Hopkins. Here they spent the rest of 
their lives. Their log cabin stood upon the 
bank of the creek, three miles south of the vil- 
lage and in the midst of a vast forest. Mr. Skiff 
cleared a large tract of this land, and left a 
farm in a good state of cultivation at his death. 
There was quite a family settlement of Skiffs 
here, for six brothers owned adjoining farms. 

Samuel B. and Esther (Pride) Skiff had 
three children, of whom the eldest, Micajah, 
was the father of Albert O., of Pike. Mica- 
jah Skiff was born in Otsego, January i, 
1816. He married Miss Mary S. Hopkins, a 
daughter of Alfred and Huldah Hopkins, of 
Hartwick, Otsego County. Miss Hopkins's 
birth date was March 16, 1817; and her mar- 
riage to Mr. Skiff was solemnized on April 
17, 1835, in the town of Pike, which was then 
in Allegany County. In 1857 they moved 
from the old homestead to the village of Pike. 
Four children were born to them, one of 
whom was the subject of this sketch. 

Albert O. Skiff, having attended the dis- 
trict school of the neighborhood during his 
early years, entered the Pike Seminary, and 
later graduated from the Poughkeepsie Busi- 
ness College. At twenty-two years of age 
he was a farmer, but early in the Civil War 
he enlisted in the ranks of the Ninth New 
York Volunteer Cavalry. At the expiration 
of a year he was promoted to be Sergeant. 
He re-enlisted December 19, 1863, as a vet- 
eran, received a commission as First Lieuten- 
ant in the Fifteenth New York Cavalry, and 
was promoted to be Captain in February, 
1865. On the fifteenth day of May, 1865, 
Captain Skiff was discharged. During three 
years and eight months of service he passed 
through fifty-five engagements with the 
enemy, and received a severe wound at the 
time of General Lee's surrender at Appo- 
mattox, Va., April 9, 1865, he being one of 
General Custer's troopers who received the 
flag of truce. Captain Skiff has the distinc- 



tion of being the last person wounded in the 
Army of the Potomac, and he carries visible 
marks of the last battle scars of the war upon 
his face and neck to-day. One of the bad 
effects of this wound has been the serious im- 
pairing of his hearing, which has prevented 
him from accepting more important town 
offices, often and heartily tendered him, than 
that of Town Clerk, which he has held for 
several years successively. He has held the 
office of village President, also is a charter 
member of Garfield Post, No. 229, and has 
been a Trustee of Pike Seminary since 1884. 
He was united in marriage to Celestia E., 
daughter of Lester H. and Nancy Sweet, Sep- 
tember 23, 1868. Mrs. Skiff was born June 
20, 1843, at Hume, Allegany County, N.Y. 
Her parents came to that place from Oppen- 
heim, Fulton County N.Y., residing there 
until 1856, when they removed to Pike, Mr. 
Sweet at that time being a retired wealthy 
farmer. Mrs. Skiff was educated at the Pike 
Seminary, and afterward devoted part of her 
time to teaching. A talented woman, she has 
been an intelligent helpmeet to her husband. 
Since the war Mr. Skiff has conducted a vari- 
ety store, in which boots and shoes are a spe- 
cialty, keeping the best-made stock. He has 
held the office of Postmaster for the past four 
years, but is now devoting his time to his 
store and to his duties as Notary Public and 
United States Claim and Pension Attorney. 
As citizen as well as soldier Captain Skiff 
has an honorable reputation. 



(©rr-LEXANDER McFARLAND, a for- 
/-Ll mer resident of Caledonia, Livingston 
/j[^V County, N.Y., son of a worthy 

^ — ' Scotch settler, was born in Mont- 
gomery County, February 14, 181 2, at the 
time when this country was drifting into the 
second war with Great Britain. He pursued 
his elementary studies in his native county, 
and learned the trade of tanner and currier, at 
which he worked for some years; but, desir- 
ing a more liberal education, he entered 
Rochester University, where he was an ear- 
nest student, and where he received a mental 
training that served him well in later years. 



654 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



On leaving the university he returned to his 
trade, and establishing a tannery in Caledonia 
was engaged in that business for some years. 

Here he met his future wife in the person 
of Miss Margaret Simpson, a resident of the 
town. They were married, and in 1850 
moved to Michigan, where Mr. McFarland 
engaged in the lumber business, then the 
leading industry of that State. He was suc- 
cessful in his business pursuits, and took up 
his residence in the city of Flint, of which 
thriving community he became so prominent a 
citizen that he was elected Mayor, holding 
the office several years. He was President of 
the Citizens' National Bank of that place 
from its incorporation until the close of his 
life. He died at the age of seventy years, 
greatly respected for his high personal quali- 
ties, which had endeared him to many. His 
career was typically American. Entirely un- 
aided, dependent upon his own resources, he 
made his way through the world and won a 
place of distinction among his fellows, besides 
providing a comfortable home for his family. 

Mr. and Mrs. McFarland reared four chil- 
dren, as follows: Jeannette, who died in 
Flint, Mich.; Mary, now a resident of F"lint, 
Mich.; Alexander, named for his father, also a 
resident of Flint; and Anna, now Mrs. Barks. 

Anna McFarland received her education in 
the public schools of Flint, and came from 
that place to Caledonia, N.Y., the former 
home of her parents, in 1883. In 1885 she 
was united in marriage to John H. Barks, of 
Caledonia; and they have since continued to 
reside in the village. Mr. liarks has been 
the foreman of the fire company for several 
years, and is a popular man in Caledonia and 
the vicinity. He is a member of the Order 
of Maccabees, and in politics is a Democrat. 
Mr. and Mrs. Barks have two children — John 
McFarland and Robert W., both bright boys 
of great promise. 



-OSEPH GEORGE, a retired farmer and 
hotel keeper, residing at Frink's Cor- 
ners, in the town of Sheldon, is a 
practical, intelligent man, whose dili- 
gent application to business in the years of 



his manhood's prime has placed him in easy 
circumstances for the days of his waning ener- 
gies. He was born in Belgium in 18 17, and 
came to this country in 1834 with the other 
members of the parental household. 

His father, Peter George, was born in Bel- 
gium in 1777, and in the year 1809 married 
Anna Kettle, who was born in 1783. After 
the birth of their nine children they left their 
native land, June 16, 1834, to come to Amer- 
ica, being fifteen -days on their journey to 
Havre, whence they sailed on a merchant 
ship for New York. Arriving in that city 
after a voyage of forty-two days, he proceeded 
by rail to Schenectady, over the first railway 
built in this country, the cars, then called 
fire-wagons, being the first they had ever seen. 
The journey was continued to Buffalo by the 
canal, thence to Wyoming County, where 
said Peter George bought one hundred and 
sixty acres of land, making the payment of 
fourteen dollars an acre out of his store of 
twenty-five hundred five-franc pieces which 
he had brought with him. He labored per- 
severingly and successfully to improve his 
farm and support his family, residing on his 
place until his demise in 1847. His widow 
survived him seventeen years, dying at the 
age of eighty-five years. One of their chil- 
dren has since passed to the higher life; 
namely, Catherine, who married Mr. Rohr. 

The subject of this sketch was reared to 
agricultural labor, and in the days of his 
youth picked up a fair education, and was 
especially fond of mathematical studies. 
After his marriage with Hannah George, his 
cousin, he settled near the parental home- 
stead, on fifty acres of unimproved land, for 
which he paid two hundred dollars, beginning 
his wedded life in a log shanty. He cleared 
his land, raised good crops, and seven years 
later built a substantial frame house, at a 
cost of five hundred dollars. Mr. George sub- 
sequently paid three hundred and fifty dollars 
for another fifty acres of adjoining land; and 
this entire farm is now owned and occupied 
by his son, Nicholas. In 1857 Mr. George 
bought his present homestead of fifty-four 
acres, including the tavern; and nine years 
later he removed here. For about fifteen 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



65s 



years he kept a public house, which was 
known far and wide as one of the best in the 
vicinity; and even now, although practically 
retired from active business, he occasionally 
entertains travellers. 

Mr. George met with an irreparable loss in 
the death of his wife in 1883, in the fifty- 
eighth year of her age. Their union was 
blessed by the birth of thirteen children, and 
of those living we record the following: John, 
a veteran of the Civil War, is in the Soldiers' 
Home at Bath, N.Y. ; J. Nicholas, on the 
home farm, has seven children; Elizabeth, 
wife of Joseph Lindsay, of Bennington, has 
four children; Anna, wife of Mike Domenisy, 
has two children; Jane, wife of Fred Schwab, 
has five children; Margaret, wife of Joseph 
Wochtery, has two children; Theresa is the 
wife of James LaFuey; Mary, wife of Peter 
Wochtery, has one daughter; Joseph died at 
the age of three years from a burn; William 
lives at home with his father and his sister 
Catherine, who is the housekeeper. Mr. 
George has served his fellow-townsmen as 
Assessor, Constable, and as Collector, faith- 
fully performing the duties of each position. 
Politically he is a sound Democrat, and re- 
ligiously is a Catholic, 



WILLAR 
prospi 
of Li 



lRD W. wheeler is a 
sperous farmer and grain dealer 
.ivonia, in Livingston County, 
New York, his native town. The birth date 
and birthplace of his grandfather, Peter 
Wheeler, are alike unknown. His home, 
however, during a part of his life, if not all 
of it, was Vermont, in which State his son, 
Warner Wheeler, was born. The family had 
probably lived in New England for several 
generations, and were doubtless of English 
ancestry. 

In 1807 Warner Wheeler turned his back 
on the green uplands and picturesque dales of 
his native State, and started on a tramp trip 
westward, seeking a new home and better op- 
portunities for advancement in prosperity. 
He walked all the way to South Livonia, 
where he bought a few acres of land, and set- 
tled. Gradually accumulating money, he in- 



vested it in land until he was the proprietor 
of one hundred and sixty acres. This he 
cleared, planted, and improved by buildings, 
displaying great industry and practical sense. 
Here he spent the greater part of his life, 
which extended over a period of eighty-six 
years. His wife was Miss Lorinda Baker, a 
daughter of Mr. Timothy Baker, of Livonia. 
Three daughters and one son were born of this 
marriage; namely, Maria, Willard W., Jean, 
and Delia. 

Willard W. Wheeler was educated in the 
district schools, and has followed his father's 
example in being an energetic and prosperous 
farmer, his acres numbering two hundred and 
ten. For fwenty-five or thirty years he has 
also been engaged in the grain business in 
Livonia. In i860 he was united in marriage 
to Miss ¥A\za McDonald. They have no chil- 
dren. Mr. Wheeler has been a zealous Re- 
publican ever since the formation of that 
party. 




(i, lAJOR JACOB W. KNAPP, who 
died a few years since at his home 
in Warsaw, N. Y. , where he had 
spent the larger part of his entire 
life, having been born in this town August 20, 
1813, was a descendant of sterling pioneer 
stock, his father, grandfather, and several 
other members of the Knapp family having 
settled in this section of the county in the 
early part of this century. 

His grandfather, William Knapp, was born 
in Canaan, Columbia County, N.Y., January 
4, 1758, and died in Warsaw in 181 7. He 
married Olive Rowley, who bore him ten chil- 
dren — Daniel, Olive, William, John R. , 
Mima, Sally, Elsther, Orson S. , Bethiah, and 
Harley. Daniel, the eldest child, was the 
first one to make his way to this part of the 
State. He had previously spent a short time 
in Orville, Vt. , coming from there to Warsaw 
in 1806, and bringing with him a part of his 
numerous family, he having been thrice mar- 
ried. He and two of his brothers, William 
and John R., were engaged in the War of 
i8i2, the two former as officers. All of the 
children rounded out a full period of years; 



6.^6 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



and Esther, who married Abel Taylor, of At- 
tica, lived to the venerable age of ninety-four 
years. 

John R. Knapp, the fourth child named 
above, was born in Canaan, N. Y. , July 7, 
1787, and removed from the place of his na- 
tivity to Rutland, Vt., where he was united in 
wedlock to Melinda Wilson. In 1S12 he 
joined his father and brothers in Warsaw, 
bringing his family and goods with teams, 
often cutting a path through the woods. For 
thirty years he lived in Warsaw, then removed 
to Marion, Ohio, where the death of his wife 
occurred in 1848, when fifty-seven years old. 
She bore him si.\ sons and three daughters, of 
whom the following are now living: William 
L. , a retired wagon manufacturer in Howell, 
Mich. ; and John R. , Jr., who was a Lieuten- 
ant in the late Civil War, and has since held 
a position in the Second Auditor's office in 
W^ashington, D.C. On June 24, 1849, Mr. 
Knapp was married to Lydia Bradfield ; and of 
their union one son was born, James B. 
Knapp. The father died at his home in 
Marion, March 8, 1864; and his widow still 
occupies their Ohio home. 

Jacob W. , son of John R. Knapp, was edu- 
cated in W'arsaw, and in early life learned the 
blacksmith's trade, which he followed for some 
years, but afterward established a grocery busi- 
ness in the town of Warsaw, and from 1852 
until 1 861 was the village Postmaster. Dur- 
ing the recent civil conflict his valuable ser- 
vices as a brave commanding officer won him 
his title of Major. Through his efforts Com- 
pany D, of the famous First New York Dra- 
goons, was recruited, in September, 1862; and 
he was elected Captain of the company, serv- 
ing as such until January, 1865, when for his 
brave conduct he was promoted to the rank of 
Major, being subsequently in command of the 
regiment more than half of the time In De- 
cember, 1864, while still a captain, he led the 
regiment into battle, and won distinction as 
a commander; and his intrepid charge at Cul- 
peper, Va. , is noted in the war records. 
Three of the sons of Major Knapp — Augus- 
tus, Lucien, and Thomas, all now deceased — 
were members of his regiment. 

In 1837 Major Knapp was united in mar- 



riage to Miss Elvira Putnam, of War.saw, a 
daughter of Edward and Rachel (Hutton) Put- 
nam ; and their happy wedded life extended 
over a period of fifty-one years. Three daugh- 
ters and four sons were born of their union, of 
whom the following are not living: Augustus, 
Lucien, Thomas, John R., and Margaret. 
The surviving are : Miss Caroline Knapp; and 
Harriet, the widow of Orson ^C. Knapp, who 
died April 16, 1877, leaving three children — 
Clarence Wilson, F"rederic H., and Edward 
M., the first of whom is engaged in the laun- 
dry business, while the other two sons are stu- 
dents at Hobart College, in Geneva. The 
sisters occupy the family- home on Geneseo 
Street. Orson C. Knapp was also a soldier in 
the late Rebellion, having enlisted as a pri- 
vate in the Thirty-third Ohio Volunteer In- 
fantry, and being afterward promoted through 
the various grades to the rank of Captain, hav- 
ing command of Company I. He was for- 
merly Indian Agent at I'ort Klamath, Fla., 
and after the close of the war was a soldier in 
the regular army until the fall of 1870, when 
he resigned; and in the following December 
his nuptials with the daughter of Major Knapp 
were celebrated. In politics the Major was 
always a stanch Democrat, and for more than 
forty years was a Justice of the Peace. He 
and his family were communicants of the 
Episcopal church. 



'OHN H. BROWN, who materially 
assists in maintaining the reputation 
of this section of Livingston County 
as one of the finest agricultural and 
fruit-growing regions of the Empire State, is 
one of the most enterprising and progressive 
farmers of Mount Morris. He is a native of 
New York, having been born May 18, 1853, 
in the town of Andover, Allegany County. 
His father, John W. Brown, was a native of 
Truxton, Cortland County, being one of a 
family of eleven children. His parents were 
for many years residents of Cortland County, 
going from there, however, to Allegany 
County, and thence to the State of Wisconsin. 
John W^ Brown was bound out when a boy 
of eleven years to a farmer, with whom he 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



657 



lived until reaching his majority, receiving 
for compensation of his services his board and 
clothes and twenty-five acres of land. The 
land was in Truxton ; and he carried it on 
until 1842, when he removed to Allegany 
County, settling in the town of Andover. 
Buying a farm he carried on mixed husbandry 
some sixteen years, then migrated to South 
Dansville, Steuben County, where he engaged 
in the lumber business, renting a saw-mill, in 
which he manufactured the lumber. In 1862 
he enlisted in Company F, One Hundred and 
Forty-first New York Volunteer Infantry, but 
after a few months' service in the army was 
discharged for physical disability. Return- 
ing to Steuben County, he once more became 
a farmer, residing there until 1869, when he 
sold his farm, and wended his way to Michi- 
gan. Locating near Bay Rapids, Osceola 
County, he purchased a farm, on which he has 
since been actively engaged in general farm- 
ing. The maiden name of his wife was Eliza 
Perkins. She was born in Andover, Allegany 
County, being a daughter of Nathaniel and 
Lucetta (Stewart) Perkins. The latter was 
descended from a family noted for its lon- 
gevity, her mother, Mrs. Stewart, having 
lived to the remarkable age of one hundred 
and eight years. John W. and Eliza (Per- 
kins) Brown reared three children, as follows: 
Edgar W., who fought in defence of his coun- 
try during the late Civil War, serving for 
three years and three months in the same 
regiment to which his father belonged; Ben- 
jamin F. ; and John H., the special subject of 
this brief sketch. 

John H. Brown was bred to the life of a 
farmer, and received from his parents many a 
lesson in diligence, honesty, and thrift, which 
have been his guiding principles through life. 
He came to Mount Morris when but a youth, 
and entered the employ of Edward L. Ament, 
whose daughter he afterward married. He 
remained in the service of Mr. Ament two 
years, and then took charge of the farm, which 
he has since successfully managed. In 1882 
he turned his attention to the growing of 
choice fruits; and this branch of his industry 
he has gradually enlarged, until he now has 
a magnificent orchard, containing six thou- 



sand peach-trees, three hundred pear-trees, 
besides an abundance of apple, plum, and 
cherry trees, and the various small fruits, the 
whole embracing forty-four acres of land and 
netting him a handsome annual income. 

On September 22, 1872, was solemnized 
the marriage of John H. Brown and Henrietta 
Ament, a daughter of Edward L. and Mary 
(Barnhart) Ament, a sketch of whose lives 
may be found on another page of this volume. 
The union of Mr. and Mrs. Brown has been 
brightened and blessed by the birth of two 
children — Mary Ament and Edward A. 
Politically, Mr. Brown is a solid Republican, 
and supports the principles of that party by 
voice and vote. Socially, he is a member of 
Belwood Lodge, No. 315, Independent Order 
of Odd Fellows, and of Mount Morris Tent of 
Maccabees. Both Mr. and Mrs. Brown are 
conscientious and sincere members of the 
Presbyterian church, and hold a high place in 
the esteem of their numerous friends and 
acquaintances. 



"jTimVARD LEWIS AMENT was for 
F? many years an important and useful 
"^^ II • citizen of Mount Morris, where he 
was extensively engaged in general farming. 
He was born in Schenectady, N.Y., on De- 
cember 12, 1795. His father, Eldrit Ament, 
was, as far as known, a life-long resident of 
the Empire State. 

Mr. Ament was reared and educated in 
Schenectady, living there until sixteen years 
old, when he came to this county, locating in 
Dansville at a time when the country was in 
its primitive condition. He had much native 
mechanical ability, and learned the cabinet- 
maker's trade, which he followed for several 
years, carrying on a profitable business. He 
subsequently bought a farm in Steuben 
County, where he engaged in cultivating the 
soil until 1854. Disposing of his interests 
in that place, Mr. Ament then visited Living- 
ston County with a view to making a perma- 
nent settlement here, and in the town of 
Mount Morris bought a farm, a portion of 
which is included in the limits of the present 
village of this name. With the energy and 



6s8 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



sagacity that had characterized his previous 
efforts in agriculture, Mr. Anient began the 
cultivation of his land. He continued pros- 
perously engaged in this occupation until his 
decease in November, 1877. 

The wife of Mr. Anient was Mary Barnhart, 
a native of Dansville and the daughter of 
Frederick Barnhart. She died in 1872, five 
years before her husband, at an advanced age. 
Six children were born of the union of Mr. 
and Mrs. Anient, the following being a brief 
mention — Nelson B. died at the age of forty- 
three years; Chandler W. died when forty-one 
years old; Cornelia; Henrietta A. became the 
wife of John H. Brown, of whom a sketch 
appears elsewhere in this biographical volume; 
Rhoda died at the age of twelve years; and 
Frances had a short earthly life of nine years. 
Mr. Anient was a well-read and intelligent 
man, and took a warm interest in the enter- 
prises calculated to build up his township, 
and in political matters uniformly cast his 
vote with the Republican party. Both he 
and his wife were valued members of the Pres- 
byterian church, and they are remembered 
as having been held in deserved respect and 
esteem. 



(sJVUGUSTUS FRANK, a banker in War- 
A'A saw, whose financial acumen is recog- 
yJjA nized throughout the county, was 
— ' born in that village, July 7, 1826. 
His paternal grandfather, Andrew Frank, was 
of German birth, and came to America in 
1756 with his widowed mother and an elder 
sister. The F"rank family had been noted for 
many generations for learning and philan- 
thropy, and many of this name had been eminent 
professors and men of position. The sister, 
Catherine, married Mr. Oliver Mildeburger, 
of New York; and Mrs. Frank made her home 
with her during the latter part of her life. 
Andrew, who grew up under the Colonial gov- 
ernment of Connecticut, became an agricultu- 
rist and manufacturer in that State, which 
occupation he followed with increasing pros- 
perity. He married Miss Elizabeth Shipman, 
of Norwich, Conn., whose family was then, as 
now, distinguished in that State; and for many 



years they lived in Canaan, where Mr. Frank 
died, leaving four sons and two daughters. 
The whole care and responsibility of the fam- 
ily devolved now upon the widowed mother, 
who discharged faithfully and conscientiously 
the sacred duties of maternity. She lived 
until the maturity of her son, Augustus 
Frank, father of the subject of this sketch, 
who was a child of eight years at the time 
of his father's death. Throughout the long 
period of his successful life he remembered 
the early training of his mother with grateful 
commendation. Four years after the father's 
death the Franks moved to Granville, Wash- 
ington County, New York, where the older 
sons engaged in business and where the 
younger members of the family pursued their 
studies. Augustus taught for a short time 
after completing his education. Having de- 
cided upon medicine as a profession, he en- 
tered the medical college of Dorset, Vt., 
from which he graduated. It was during 
these years that he fought in the War of 
1812. In 1814 he moved to Victor, Ontario 
County, where for three years he practised his 
profession, and from thence came to Warsaw 
(then in Genesee County), and formed a part- 
nership in professional practice with Dr. 
Chauncey Sheldon. Dr. Frank was the sec- 
ond physician in Warsaw, and their practice 
extended over long distances and necessitated 
long and lonely rides through the wild terri- 
tory of the surrounding country. The whole 
country was thinly settled at that time. 
Rochester was a hamlet and Buffalo a small 
village. The dwellings were plain and the 
roads rough, and there were few school-houses 
or churches. The first church west of the 
Genesee was erected in Warsaw in 18 17, and 
no one took a deeper or more active interest 
in its building than Dr. Frank. 

Soon after the professional partnership of 
Doctors Sheldon and Frank, they also en- 
gaged in a mercantile venture; and the firm 
became widely known throughout the country, 
where there were very few stores. This con- 
nection was dissolved in 1822, from which 
time Dr. Frank gradually discontinued his 
practice, and devoted himself entirely to mer- 
cantile transactions. He purchased real es- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



659 



tate, erected buildings for sale; and probably 
so large an amount of village property passed 
through the hands of no other citizen. He 
was identified with the Whig party from its 
organization, except at the time that he sup- 
ported the Free Soil candidate in 1848. 
Through the appointment of his personal 
friend, Governor Seward, he became Associate 
Judge of Wyoming County, which office he 
filled until its abolition by the Constitution 
in 1846. Dr. Frank was a strong and effi- 
cient opponent of American slavery, and took 
a prominent part in the Warsaw antislavery 
society formed in 1834. He was a delegate 
to the first meeting of the State society, 
which was held in Utica and was dispersed 
by an enraged mob; and the first meeting 
of the antislavery Society received similar 
treatment. At Warsaw in 1836 a series of 
resolutions were adopted, together with a 
"Declaration of Sentiments," for the informa- 
tion of those who were ignorant of the princi- 
ples of the society; and one thousand dollars 
were pledged for the establishment of a free 
press for the dissemination of the same. Dr. 
Frank aided largely in furnishing these funds. 
He was a strong advocate of temperance at a 
time when drinking was fearfully prevalent. 
In 1827 he became a member of the Presbyte- 
rian church; but his charities were not re- 
stricted to it, and his contributions were 
liberal toward the support of religious and 
benevolent institutions in general. 

His first wife, to whom he was married 
September 12, 1816, was Miss Jerusha H. 
Baldwin, of Dorset, Vt. They had three chil- 
dren, two sons, who died young, and one 
daughter, Henriette, who outlived the mother. 
This daughter was born September 12, 181 7, 
and was educated at Ingham University, 
LeRoy, and married Edward A. McKay, a law- 
yer, who was for many years connected with 
the National Bank Department at Washing- 
ton, D.C. Mrs. McKay died in 1877. 

Dr. F" rank's second marriage was with Miss 
Jane Patterson, of Londonderry, N.H., Au- 
gust 25, 1825. She was the youngest daugh- 
ter of Deacon Thomas Patterson, and was born 
August 30, 1795. She was a woman of deep 
piety and a most lovable personality, and few 



who experienced her cordial and graceful hos- 
pitality have ever forgotten the charm of her 
presence. Her death on February 19, 1867, 
made a long-felt void in church and commu- 
nity. Her children were: George W., born 
November 29, 1830, an energetic business 
man; Elizabeth W., the wife of the Rev. 
Joseph E. Nassau, pastor of the Presbyte- 
rian church in Warsaw for many years ; and 
Augustus Frank, the eldest child, born July 
17, 1826, the original of this memoir. 

Mr. Augustus Frank's early life was spent 
in mercantile pursuits, but for some years 
past he has been engaged in the banking busi- 
ness. He married Agnes, the daughter of 
Mr. William W. McNair, of Groveland, Liv- 
ingston County, N.Y. The only son of this 
marriage died in 1871. They have one 
daughter, Mary L. Frank. 

Mr. Augustus Frank as banker holds a posi- 
tion of influence and trust in the community 
in which he lives, and his sound judgment 
as a financier is universally acknowledged. 




ILLIAM ELLIOTT, who was for 
many years a well-known resident 
of the town of Leicester, was born 
in County Antrim, Ireland, in 1799, and was 
the son of James Elliott, a native of the same 
country, but of Scotch ancestry. James El- 
liott learned the trade of linen weaving, and 
worked at a hand loom. He was also some of 
the time engaged in farming, and spent his 
entire life in his native land. He married 
Nancy Knox, who was also of Scotch descent 
and a life-long resident of County Antrim, 
where both she and her husband were mem- 
bers of the Presbyterian church. Mr. and 
Mrs. James Elliott had three children — 
James, Nancy, and William. Nancy spent 
her entire life in Ireland. James emigrated 
and settled in Maine, where he reared his 
family, and spent the remainder of his days. 
William Elliott received his education in 
his native country, where he lived until 1828, 
when with his wife and three children he 
came to America, embarking at Belfast in a 
small sailing-vessel, and after a voyage of 
eight weeks and three days landing at Quebec, 



66o 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



where they remained for four months, whence 
they came to Livingston County. Mr. Elliott 
entered the employ of Esquire Wadsworth as 
a gardener, and there remained three years. 
He then purchased a farm in Nunda, which 
he occupied four years. At the end of that 
time he sold out, and moved to the town of 
Groveland and later to Geneseo, in each place 
living on a rented farm. In 1853 he pur- 
chased a farm in the town of Leicester, and 
there spent the remainder of his days, passing 
away when eighty-five years old. Mr. Elliott 
was a great reader, making the most of his 
opportunities to secure a good education, and 
in young manhood was a member of a society 
known as the Book Club. He was exceed- 
ingly careful in the selection of his books, 
and consequently was more than usually well 
informed. 

William Elliott married Jane McLain, who 
was born in the same county as her husband, 
and was the daughter of James and Nancy 
McLain. Her parents were natives of Ire- 
land and of Scotch extraction. Mrs. Elliott 
was the mother of ten children — James; 
Thomas; Nancy; Jane, who married James 
Chalmers, of the town of York; Nancy; 
William, who is a resident of Green Lake 
County, Wisconsin; John: Maria; Adam; 
and Sarah A. Thomas, John, and Sarah A. 
Elliott now reside on the old homestead. 
Thomas, the eldest now living, was born in 
County Antrim, September 12, 1825, and was 
in his third year when he came with his par- 
ents to America. Until his father's death he 
assisted him on the farm, and since that time 
he has been associated with his brother John. 
He has never been married. John Elliott was 
born in Nunda, September 16, 1835, and was 
married August 19, 1872, to Sophia Mc- 
Laughlin, who was born in Vergennes, Vt., 
and was the daughter of Alexander and Nancy 
(Elliott) McLaughlin, natives respectively of 
Scotland and Ireland. Mr. and Mrs. John 
Elliott have two children — Mary, who is the 
wife of Henry McLain, of Tecumseh, Mich. ; 
and Helena. Mr. William Elliott and his 
wife were honored members of the Presbyte- 
rian church, and reared their children in the 
same faith. 



-EREMIAH BECKWITH, a retired 
farmer and a successful breeder of 
blooded stock at Avon, Livingston 
County, N.Y., was born on May 6, 
1833, his birthplace being the very farm that 
he now owns and occupies. But, although he 
is a native and a life-long resident of the Em- 
pire State, he is of Connecticut ancestry; for 
both his father, Seth Beckwith, and his 
grandfather were natives of the "■ Land of 
Steady Habits," or, to use a less complimen- 
tary but more familiar nickname, the "Nut- 
meg State." Grandfather Beckwith spent all 
his days in Connecticut; and perhaps his son 
Seth would have done the same, but he 
learned the shoemaker's trade at an early age, 
and, being thus provided with the means of 
earning a living in any civilized community, 
he was encouraged to roam about and "see 
the country." After some wandering he 
penetrated the wilds of the Genesee country, 
and brought up at Lima, where he followed 
his trade for some years, and finally decided 
that this region was good enough for him; so 
he bought an extensive tract of timber land, 
which included the farm now owned and occu- 
pied by the subject of our sketch. From shoe- 
making to farming was an easy transition in 
those days — in fact, every shoemaker was a far- 
mer, although every farmer could not be a shoe- 
maker: and so Seth Beckwith went manfully 
and skilfully to work to clear and otherwise 
improve the vast tract which he had purchased. 
At that time the farmers of this region not 
only had to do a good deal of work before 
their lands were made fit for cultivation, but 
they had to go a good way to find a market 
for their produce when they were able to raise 
more than was required for home use. There 
were no railroads, no canals, and mighty poor 
highways. ^ Hence it took a good deal of 
time, and required a good deal of power to 
travel about the country, as may be imagined 
from the fact that ox teams were used in 
going to church. Mr. Beckwith cleared a 
large proportion of his land, erected good 
frame buildings, and passed the rest of his 
days on the farm which he had taken from the 
wilderness. The maiden name of his wife 
was Thankful Seymour. It is hardly neces- 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



661 



sary to add that she was of good old New 
England stock. Her native place was Con- 
necticut. She died in 1846, when her son 
Jeremiah was thirteen years of age. The lad 
received his education in the district schools, 
and was a farmer from boyhood until he re- 
tired from active labors in the field about ten 
years ago. The success he has met with in 
agriculture may be cited as one more example 
of the important fact, which is being generally 
recognized nowadays, that it pays to concen- 
trate your attention upon one business at an 
early age and stick to it, not wander around, 
trying at everything and not succeeding at 
anything. Jeremiah Beckwith has made a 
record as a farmer and as a raiser of live stock 
of which he may well be proud; for he has 
not only proved his ability to "hold his own 
in any company," as the saying is, but has 
been awarded many premiums, which furnish 
convincing proof that he could not only equal 
but surpass the best of his friendly competi- 
tors when given "a fair field and no favor." 
He retired from active farming in 1885, ^"^ 
since then has had the farm worked on shares, 
but has continued to raise live stock, although 
now in a comparatively small way; and at the 
present writing he owns a small herd of Jer- 
seys, which is acknowledged to be one of the 
finest herds of that breed in this section of 
the country. 

Mr. Beckwith is a man who knows how to 
"enjoy life" in a very worthy sense of that 
much abused term. He is a great reader, is 
thoroughly informed on the important sub- 
jects of the day, and is one whose opinion is 
of value, because it is the opinion of an 
experienced, intelligent, and unprejudiced 
man, who appreciates the fact that there are 
two sides to every question, and is not to 
be guided entirely by "hearsay" evidence. 
Being a life-long resident of the town and 
ranking among the most successful of its 
farmers, of course he is very widely known, 
and it is hardly necessary to add that he is 
equally widely respected; for a man of fixed 
convictions, who has the courage to act on 
them, nn matter what the circumstances may 
be, is bound to be well thought of in any civ- 
ilized community. 



/pTTo 



EORGE B. CHASE, a resident of 
\ 5 1 Arcade, is an enterprising journal- 
ist, and is the editor, proprietor, 
and founder of the Wyoming County Herald, 
a lively and well-conducted newspaper. He 
was born at Pavilion, Genesee County, July 
23, 1867; and both his father and grandfather 
were natives of Allegany County, where the 
latter was reared to agricultural life. From 
there he moved to Genesee County, and pur- 
chased a farm of James Sheldon, which was a 
part of the great Holland tract. Here he 
labored diligently among the other early set- 
tlers of that section, whose persistent efforts 
in opening these vast and fertile districts 
have produced such marvellous results; and 
after a long and useful life he died in 1869. 
His wife, whose maiden name was Rebecca 
Winne, was born at Guilden, Albany County, 
and died at the old homestead, leaving five 
children, as follows: Elizabeth, now deceased, 
who married Ebenezer Towner for her first 
husband and for her second Plumley Strout ; 
Emeline, also deceased, who was the wife of 
William Harris; Mary, who died young; 
Alida, who resides at LeRoy, and is the wife 
of James Lawrence ; and Henry Chase, the 
father of George R. 

Henry Chase was born at Grove, in Alle- 
gany County, and obtained all the education 
possible at the district schools. He came 
into possession of the home farm at the death 
of his father, and successfully conducted it 
until his decease, which occurred when he 
was forty-three years old. He married Jen- 
nie, daughter of Norman and Hannah (Haw- 
ley) Meldrum, the former of Caledonia, 
Livingston County, the latter from Allegany 
County. Mr. Meldrum was a stone-mason by 
trade, but on his removal from Allegany 
County to Caledonia bought a farm, and 
passed the remainder of his life in agricultural 
pursuits. He reared the following children: 
Jennie, who became the mother of the subject 
of this sketch; Norman, a captain in the Civil 
War, whose son John was also a Lieutenant 
of artillery; Cornelia, who now resides at 
Rush, Monroe County, the wife of James S. 
Warren; Maggie; and George. Another son, 
Gideon, also a soldier in the Civil War, was 



662 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



taken prisoner at the age of sixteen years, and 
died while in captivity. George B. Chase's 
uncle Norman was City Treasurer of Denver, 
Col., where he became very prominent in pol- 
itics, afterward being appointed Secretary of 
State, which office he held for nine years, 
when he was elected Lieutenant Governor and 
re-elected to the same position, and on retir- 
ing was appointed Surveyor-general, and is at 
present Receiver of Public Moneys in that 
State. The grandmother still resides at the 
old homestead in Genesee County, and is a 
member of the Presbyterian church. 

Mr. Chase's parents reared a family of six 
children, namely: George B. ; James; Norris; 
Henry; Charles, v/ho died young; Louise; 
and John. 

George B. Chase made the most of the pos- 
sibilities offered him for an education in the 
common schools, and whatever he learned was 
carefully retained in his well-trained memory 
for future use. Labor became a part of his 
life at an early age; and when but thirteen he 
began to learn the carpenter's trade, at which 
he worked until the death of his father. That 
sad event occurred when he was but fourteen 
years old; and though so young he carried on 
the farm for a time, until he commenced to 
learn the printer's trade at the age of sixteen, 
in the office of the LeRoy Gazette^ where he 
worked one year. From there he went to 
Caledonia, where he was employed as a jour- 
neyman on the Advertiser^ remaining only a 
short time, an advantageous opening having 
presented itself in the purchase of the Scotts- 
ville Union, then a monthly. This he ad- 
vanced to the dignity of a weekly journal, 
conducting it for two years, gaining valuable 
experience, if not a great amount of profit. 
His next move was to Rochester, where as a 
journeyman printer he worked on various 
newspapers, going from there to Buffalo, 
where he was employed on the Neivs in the 
same capacity for one year, thence to a job 
printing-office as foreman for six months, from 
which place he went to Perry, remaining with 
the Neivs of that town for eighteen months. 
Finally, in April, 1891, he embarked in busi- 
ness for himself once more, starting the Bliss 
Herald, a four-page paper, which he conducted 



until October of that )'ear, when he estab- 
lished the Silver Springs Herald, also a four- 
page sheet; and in 1892 he enlarged them 
both to eight-page papers, later consolidating 
them under the name of the Wyoming County 
Herald, which he has brought to a successful 
footing. The Herald was first published in 
this consolidated form at Bliss upon a hand 
press; but after a few months the business 
warranted the expense of improvement, and 
he put in a large Cottrell job and book press, 
which greatly facilitated the publication of 
the Herald, besides giving opportunities for 
attending to job work. In 1894 he moved 
part of his plant to Arcade, adding more 
machinery, and has now the largest and best 
job printing establishment in Wyoming 
County. Under Mr. Chase's management the 
Herald has developed from a four-page sheet, 
with a circulation of less than two hundred, 
to a well-arranged and handsomely printed 
eight-page journal, with a regular circulation 
of fifteen hundred, besides having a large 
local sale; and as an advertising medium its 
facilities are unequalled in that section. He 
makes a specialty of furnishing law supple- 
ments to other journals, and does an extensive 
job printing business. Mr. Chase is a Re- 
publican in politics, and has been a Notary 
Public for some time. He is a member of 
the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the 
Maccabees, and other societies. He is a hard 
worker, and is strictly honest in all business 
transactions, treating with kindness and cour- 
tesy all with whom he comes in contact. 

On November 25, 1891, Mr. Chase was 
united in marriage to Miss Addie M., daugh- 
ter of William McKenzie, of Perry, where she 
was born. Her father is now superintendent 
of a street car line in Cleveland, Ohio. She 
was one of two children, and is now the 
mother of one child, ]\Iildred, and is a mem- 
ber of the Baptist church. 




was 



ON. JAMES H. LOO:\IIS, banker, 
a prominent resident of Attica, W)- 
oming County, N.Y., was born in 
this village, June 4, 1823. He 
a son of Timothy Loomis, a native of 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



663 



Windsor, Conn., and a grandson of George 
Loomis, a farmer of the same locality. In 
the year 18 16 Timothy Loomis, then being in 
his twenty-seventh year, set out with his 
young wife for the wilds of Western New 
York. This journey was in reality their wed- 
ding trip, as Mr. Loomis had but just married 
Miss Sophronia Collar; and there was a very 
original flavor of enjoyment in the expedition 
which was to bring them to a new home. 

Mr. Loomis was a tanner by occupation. 
He possessed a little stock of money, with 
which he was able to buy out a small establish- 
ment already successfully started in that line, 
and went on with the business for twenty-five 
years. Mr. Loomis was a man well thought 
of in the community, as a person of sterling 
business qualities and actively interested in 
public enterprises. He died July 12, 1841, 
aged fifty-two years, having been twice married. 

His first wife, Sophronia Collar, died in 
1823, leaving two sons — George, since de- 
ceased; and James H., the chief character 
of this sketch, then but a few weeks old. 
His second wife was Miss Eliphael Collar, a 
sister of the first wife. One other child was 
added to the family after this union, a son, 
named Timothy, who became one of the mer- 
chants of Attica after coming to manhood, but 
died in 1871, being forty-five years old and 
unmarried. The second Mrs. Loomis sur- 
vived her husband nineteen years, dying in 
i860; and their remains now rest in the beau- 
tiful Forest Hills Cemetery. 

James H. Loomis attended the district 
school and the academy of the town, supple- 
menting the course by studying for three 
months at Wyoming, then considered one of 
the best schools in Western New York. He 
afterward taught several years in the academy. 
He was but sixteen when he took charge of 
his first school; and in later years he gave the 
school-house a bell, to make up, as he gener- 
ously said, for the deficiencies of his admin- 
istration. At the age of nineteen he suc- 
ceeded his father in the tanning, leather, and 
shoe manufacturing business; but eight years 
later he sold out, and engaged in the hardware 
business, continuing in this enterprise from 
1852 till 1872. Five years previously he had 



begun a banking business for himself, carry- 
ing on both at the same time, the banking 
business proving a success which is somewhat 
noteworthy, considering his youth and that it 
was undertaken and developed by himself 
alone. Mr. Loomis has been a stanch Repub- 
lican from the beginning of the organization, 
he having helped personally to establish the 
Republican party, being a delegate to the 
Free Soil Convention at Syracuse. He has 
served as Supervisor of the town several terms, 
was also United States Assessor from 1869 
to 1870, and State Senator from 1878 to 1882. 

Mr. Loomis was married October 14, 1845, 
to Miss Janette Howe, of Attica, daughter of 
Jacob and Azuba (Sprout) Howe, who mi- 
grated from Massachusetts to Attica in 1804. 
They had a family of three sons and three 
daughters, of whom Judge Alonzo Sprout, of 
California, is the only survivor. Mrs. 
Loomis died in 1858, at the age of thirty-four 
years, leaving three sons — George, James, 
and Charles E. George, who is employed in 
the bank, married Miss Aggie Potter, daughter 
of D. Milton Potter, of this town; and they 
have one daughter, named Florence. James 
Hervey, Jr., the second son, died unmarried 
at the age of twenty-two. His death, due 
to cerebro-spinal meningitis, was a sad blow 
to the community, but especially to his 
father, as he was a young man of great prom- 
ise, with pronounced business qualifications. 
Charles E. has also, like his brother George, 
been for some time connected with the bank, he 
holding the position of partner and Cashier, 
the name of the firm being Loomis & Sons. 
Mr. Charles E. Loomis married Miss Amy 
Wicks, a daughter of the Rev. John Wicks, of 
Attica. They have two sons, Charles and 
Van Wick, boys of two and three years of age. 

Mr. James H. Loomis was again married 
on April 25, i860, to Miss Harriet S. Ellen- 
wood, of Pembroke, N.Y. She was a daugh- 
ter of Eli and Sophia Ellenwood, of the same 
town. By this marriage is one daughter, 
named Janette E. Mrs. Harriet S. Loomis 
died February 13, 1892, at the age of sixty- 
one years. The daughter, who is a graduate 
of Wells College, now efficiently presides 
over her father's home, the pleasant residence 



664 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



on Prospect Street, which has been occupied 
by the family for forty-two years. 

George Loomis, D.D., the eldest child of 
Timothy Loomis and Sophronia, his wife, was 
born June 29, 1817. He was a Methodist 
clergyman, and devoted to the cause of educa- 
tion. He was graduated at the Wesleyan 
College, Middletown, Conn. For a long time 
he was principal of the Geneseo Wesleyan 
Seminary of Lima, N.Y., but left that posi- 
tion to go out as chaplain for seamen to the 
port of Canton, China. After three years he 
returned, and took the position of principal of 
the Women's College at Wilmington, Del. 
Later he was called to the Presidency of the 
Allegany College at Meadville, Pa. This 
position he held with honor for fifteen years. 
The last ten years of his life were spent in 
carrying on a young ladies' school at Clif- 
ton Springs, N.Y., a place which has been 
noted for its sulphur springs. The school 
was considered an established success. Dr. 
Loomis died while in the prosecution of his 
work, February 26, 1886, at the age of sixty- 
nine, leaving a wife, two sons, and a daugh- 
ter, who reside in Rochester, N.Y. 

Rev. Dr. Loomis was popular in the pulpit; 
but he gave his principal time and thought to 
the interests of education, and as an educator 
his memory will long continue. He was a 
man of commanding appearance, over six feet 
in height, his brother James being only a 
trifle less, both possessing that youthfulness 
of spirit which defies bodily age. Mr. James 
H. Loomis, surviving his brother George, 
represents a family of uncommon worth and 
ability. Inheriting the strong virtues of his 
ancestors, he has shown what might be done 
by many others, with honor to themselves, in 
the private walks of life and in the broader 
arena of political activity. Mr. Loomis has 
been an Elder and an active member of the 
Presbyterian church for over fifty years. 



T^OLONEL TIMOTHY B. GRANT, 

I Ky for many years a leading merchant in 

^^Hs Dansville, and now Secretary and 

Treasurer of the George Sweet 

Manufacturing Company, and also Corporation 



Treasurer, was born at Easton, Washington 
County, N.Y., August 2, 1819. His father, 
Peter Grant, was probably born in Dutchess 
County, where he passed his early years in 
agricultural pursuits. The Colonel's family 
trace their antecedents back to four brothers 
who came from Scotland, one going West; 
and it is supposed that General U. S. Grant 
was a distant relative of their family. Our 
subject's father removed to Easton, N.Y., 
where he purchased a farm, but spent his last 
years in Rensselaer County, N.Y., where he 
died at the age of seventy-five years. The 
maiden name of Colonel Grant's mother 
was Hannah Banker, a native of Rensselaer 
County, New York; and she reared thirteen 
children, four of whom still survive — Har- 
riet, wife of John E. Birch, now of Allegany 
County; Timothy B. ; Washington; and 
Alexander. June 24, 1S94, the Colonel had 
the misfortune to lose a sister, Maria, who, 
had she lived until August of the same year, 
would have been ninety-three 3'ears of age. 
The Colonel's mother passed her declining 
years in Rensselaer County, where she died at 
the age of seventy years. 

Our subject left his parental roof at a little 
over thirteen years of age, and began work in 
a store at Schaghticoke, Rensselaer County. 
He remained there three years, and in 1836 
commenced work at Rochester in a hardware 
store. He continued to apply himself closely 
to his duties, gaining business experience 
which served him well in his future career. 
In 1846 Colonel Grant went to Dansville, and 
established a hardware store in the town upon 
the site now occupied by the Edwards' store, 
which is devoted to the same business. In 
this he was associated with Mr. Brown, the 
firm being Brown & Grant. They remained 
in partnership until 1870, when the latter 
disposed of his interest to his son, and retired. 
Colonel Grant continued with Mr. Brown, 
Jr., for a time, when he purchased the latter's 
interest, and carried on the business alone 
until 1887, and then sold to Mr. Edwards, the 
present owner. He was thus engaged in busi- 
ness about forty-one years in one location. 
During the great fire in 1854, his main store 
was destroyed among many others. Another 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



66s 



store which they were running at the time 
was saved, and in this they continued business 
until their new block was completed. 

After retiring from the hardware business 
Colonel Grant accepted the position of Secre- 
tary and Treasurer of the George Sweet Manu- 
facturing Company, whose plant is situated at 
Cummingsville, a section of Dansville. Colo- 
nel Grant is now the only survivor of his 
early business contemporaries. His business 
career embraces a period of over fifty-four years. 

In 1S46 Colonel Grant married Delia A. 
Smith, of Rochester, who died in 1848. For 
his second wife he married Caroline A. 
Smith, of Dansville, daughter of Samuel W. 
Smith, a merchant and one of the oldest citi- 
zens of the town. By Colonel Grant's second 
marriage he had two children. Lansing B. 
married Miss Ida Hartman, daughter of Henry 
Hartman, of Dansville, and died aged thirty- 
six years. His wife died November 29, 
1894. They had one child, Lansing Fred. 
Hylie married Bernard H. Oberdorf, a sketch 
of whom appears elsewhere. 

Colonel Grant has been Town Clerk for 
about twenty-five years, holding that office 
fifteen years without opposition. He has 
also held his present office of Corporation 
Treasurer at different periods, in all about 
eighteen years. He is now Secretary and 
Treasurer of the gas company. In his 
younger days Mr. Grant was a member of the 
Rochester fire department, and was forced to 
resign in consequence of injuries received in 
the performance of his duties. H; then 
turned his attention to military affairs, was 
elected Captain of the Canaseraga Light In- 
fantry, and commanded the Company for four- 
teen years, from 1848 to 1862. During this 
time he was elected Colonel, but at the same 
time held command of his company. He was 
active in organizing and was a member of the 
examining board at Elmira during the Rebell- 
ion. The above-named company was cele- 
brated in its day as one of the most proficient 
and well-drilled military organizations in 
New York State, and the Colonel had much 
to do in accomplishing this result. He is 
a member and has been Vestryman of St. 
Peter's Church. Although he is now seventy- 



five years old, his step is still elastic, and his 
intellect is bright and active. He is an ex- 
tensive reader and an intelligent and interest- 
ing conversationalist on many subjects. He 
has been a liberal contributor to all worthy 
objects and an earnest promoter of any and all 
movements that would be of benefit to the 
general community. 




bian 



;ENAT0R BLAKESLEE, of the 
town of York, Livingston County, 
whose ninety-fifth year was made 
memorable by a visit to the Colum- 
Exposition in Chicago, was born in 
Wallingford, Conn., on March 25, 1799. 
His father, Joseph Blakeslee, was also a na- 
tive of the same town, and was born in the 
same house. His uncle, Samuel Blakeslee, 
was a Drum-major in the War of the Revo- 
lution, and filled the office of Colonel at 
Buffalo in the War of 181 2. Joseph Blakes- 
lee was a farmer, and lived in Connecticut all 
his life. He married Miss Mary Andrews, 
also a native of Wallingford, and they had 
six children; namely. Orator, Moreney, 
Wealthy, Dacey, Mary, and Senator, the sub- 
ject of the present sketch being the only sur- 
vivor of the family. One sister lived to the 
age of ninety years, and all were married and 
had families. 

Senator Blakeslee received his education in 
the district schools of Connecticut; and after 
he became old enough to travel he went west- 
ward from his early home on a prospecting 
tour, and finally in 1837 bought a farm in 
York, Livingston County, N.Y., where he 
settled down, the farm comprising about one 
hundred and seventy-five acres, situated in the 
southern part of the town. Having made his 
residence there so long ago, he was satisfied 
to remain on the familiar spot till a few years 
ago, when he bought an addition to his estate, 
consisting of five acres of land on the oppo- 
site siile of the roadway. Here he erected a 
new residence, and has settled down to spend 
the remainder of his life. 

Mr. Blakeslee married his first wife in 
1826, and moved to the town of Litchfield, 
Conn., where he resided eleven years. 



666 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



Mrs. Blakeslee died in 1839. They had 
four children — Moreney, Joseph, Lyman, and 
Sarah. Notwithstanding the beauty of their 
native town, one of the oldest and most pict- 
uresquely situated in the State, the first and 
second named preferred a home with a broader 
prospect for development, and so trusted their 
fate to the future of the great lake-bordered 
State of Michigan. Mr. Blakeslee's second 
wife was I\Iiss Lucy Hull, of Connecticut; 
and they brought up two children, both 
daughters, Lucy and Marietta, who live in the 
vicinity of their father's home in York. 
Marietta is the wife of Mr. George W. 
Greene. Mr. Blakeslee married for his third 
wife Miss Lucy Kendall Hopson, who still 
makes his home pleasant. 

Mr. Blakeslee has long been known as one 
of the most prominent business men in Liv- 
ingston County. He was for a long time a 
Director of the Mount Morris Bank, and has 
been a Director of the Genesee Valley Bank 
for thirty years. He is a Deacon in the Bap- 
tist church of the town, having been a member 
of that denomination for over sixty years. In 
politics he was first a Whig, and is now a 
Republican. His first Presidential vote was 
cast in 1820 for John Quincy Adams. 
1893, at the age of ninety-four years, 
Blakeslee was an interested visitor at 
World's Fair, even taking passage on 
Ferris Wheel on two different occasions, 
appreciatively viewing the beauties and won 
ders of the White City on the lake shore. 



In 
Mr. 
the 
the 
and 



(sTX LBERT SWEET, a leading business 
A^ man of Dansville, N.Y., and one of 

/j|^\ the directors and managers of the 

— ' Sweet IManufacturing Company, was 
born in Dansville, N.Y., June 2, 1847, son 
of George and Ruth (Dunn) Sweet and grand- 
son of Thomas Sweet. The latter was a na- 
tive of Connecticut, and came from there to 
Dutchess County, New York, being among 
the early settlers of that county. Later he 
went to Camillus, Onondaga County, pur- 
chased a farm, and resided there for the rest 
of his life. He had nine children. 

George, who was the fifth child, was born 



in Dutchess County, and accompanied his par- 
ents to Onondaga County, where he received 
his education in the district school, and be- 
came accustomed to farm life and work. At 
the age of twenty he came to Springwater, 
Livingston County, and later removed to 
Dansville, somewhere in the forties, obtain- 
ing work in a machine-shop. Having a nat- 
ural aptitude for mechanics, he soon mastered 
the details of the work, and became a profi- 
cient at his trade. Resolved not to remain a 
journeyman all his life, he practised economy, 
and in course of time purchased the factory, 
which he carried on successfully for over forty 
years, when he retired from active work, 
though retaining an interest in the factory to 
the time of his death, which occurred June 
19, 1S94, at the age of seventy-six. His 
wife, Ruth, was a daughter of John Dunn, a 
prosperous farmer of Avon. She reared four 
children — Albert, the subject of this sketch; 
Elvira, who married J. C. Whitehead, of 
Dansville; Fanny; and Emma. Mrs. George 
Sweet is still living at the old homestead, at 
the age of si.xty-nine, a lady of charming per- 
sonality and sweet disposition. The house, 
which was built by Mr. Sweet in 1867, is still 
one of the most attractive residences in the 
village. 

Albert Sweet acquired a fair store of use- 
ful knowledge in the Dansville Seminary, and 
at the age of twenty engaged in the grocery 
business, forming a partnership with Thomas 
E. Gallagher under the firm name of Sweet & 
Gallagher. He continued so employed for 
five years, but in 1873 purchased an interest 
in the Sweet Manufacturing Company, and 
has ever since been prominently connected 
with this concern, which ranks among the 
leading industries of the thriving village. 
The firm is engaged in the manufacture of 
reapers, mowers, and other farming imple- 
ments,- and has an enviable reputation for the 
quality of its products and its "square" 
methods of dealing. The business has grown 
to large proportions since George Sweet with 
his hard-earned savings first purchased the 
little factory near Cummingsville, one mile 
south of the village of Dansville. 

Mr. Sweet's wife was before marriage 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



667 



Miss Elizabeth Edwards. A sketch of her 
father, Alexander Edwards, a native of Bath, 
Steuben County, N.Y., may be looked for on 
another page of this volume. Mr. and Mrs. 
Sweet have one son, George, who, after 
receiving his preparatory education at the 
Dansville New School, entered Cornell Uni- 
versity, where he is now qualifying himself to 
become an architect. Mr. Sweet is a man of 
influence in the affairs of his town and vil- 
lage. He served as Supervisor in 1881 and 
1882, was Postmaster of Dansville from 1886 
to 1890, and has served some years on the 
School Committee. He is a member of the 
Masonic Order, belonging to Phoenix Lodge, 
No. 1 1 s, A. F. & A. M., and also to the Royal 
Arch Chapter. In political affairs he sup- 
ports the Democratic party; and both he and 
his wife attend the Presbyterian church, of 
which Mrs. Sweet is an active member. Mr. 
Sweet's business and social standing in the 
community well illustrates the value of earnest 
and well-directed effort. In this he has fol- 
lowed in the footsteps of his father, who at- 
. tained a high degree of business success and 
acquired a well-earned competence. Both 
Mr. and Mrs. Sweet occupy a high place in 
Dansville society, and their pleasant home is 
often the scene of a generous hospitality to 
their numerous friends. 



'AMES H. BACKUS, a retired railroad 
engineer residing at No. 89 Main 
Street, Attica, N. Y., was born at 
Stafford, Genesee County, in 1823. 
His father, John M. Backus, was a native of 
the town of Marcellus, Albany County. He 
was born in the year 1800, and at the age of 
seven years was brought by his parents to Gen- 
esee County when there was but one house in 
the city of Batavia. The grandfather was a 
farmer, and followed that vocation through 
life. He was twice married, and raised a 
small family. 

Mr. Backus's father was trained to agricult- 
ural pursuits, which he also followed as a voca- 
tion. The maiden name of his wife was Sally 
Sutton, daughter of Jeremiah Sutton, of 
Batavia, formerly Marcellus. They were mar- 



ried in Stafford about the year 1821, and had 
six sons and five daughters. Francis P. 
Backus was a soldier in the Civil War, and 
died of disease contracted in service. One 
son, James H., of Attica, and three daughters 
are the only surviving members of the family. 
The parents removed at length to Michigan, 
where the father purchased his third farm. 
After residing there for some time, both died 
in 1875, within one week. Their remains are 
resting at Prairieville, Barry County, in that 
State. 

Mr. James H. Backus began railroading in 
1840, fifty-five years ago, being first employed 
on the construction of the New York Central 
Railroad, and after its completion entering the 
locomotive works of the company at Tona- 
wanda. He began running on the Batavia 
section about 1851, and continued at the throt- 
tle considerably over forty years, being com- 
pelled by impaired vision and failing health to 
retire permanently from the road in March, 
1892. With but one exception, he was then 
the oldest engineer in the State. Mr. Backus 
during his long experience as a locomotive 
engineer has necessarily passed through many 
exciting scenes. In 1848 he was severely in- 
jured, his engine having jumped from the 
track, causing him to lose a limb; but, as 
soon as able, he was at his post again. He 
was always a most efficient and trustworthy 
employee, and of exceeding value to the com- 
pany, never having been censured or even 
blamed for a single fault during his long 
service. 

Mr. Backus was married on October 3, 
1856, to Miss Mary Murphy; and they have 
but one child left, a son, Byron, who was mar- 
ried to his second wife in September, 1894, 
and is now with his father in the livery busi- 
ness. The only daughter, who was highly edu- 
cated and accomplished, a skilful pianist, and 
a very estimable young lady, exceedingly de- 
voted to her parents, died at the age of twenty- 
six, on July 29, 1887. Mr. Backus some 
years ago purchased the farm in Stafford upon 
which his parents resided previous to their 
removal to the W'est, and which he afterward 
sold for ten thousand dollars, realizing a very 
handsome profit. He has occupied his present 



668 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



comfortable residence since 1S69; and, havinj; 
erected and fitted up a good livery stable upon 
an adjoining lot, he and his son conduct a 
first-class business, by courtesy and readiness 
to accommodate winning a liberal patronage. 



-ERKIMIAH W. CHANDLER, a well- 
to-do and highly respected citizen of 
the town of Nunda, is a thorough-going 
farmer who is carrying on mixed hus- 
bandry after the most approved modern 
methods. Mr. Chandler was born March 28, 
1839, in the town of Castile, Wyoming 
County. His grandfather, William Chandler, 
was born and bred in Cayuga County, and 
lived there several years after his marriage. 
He subsequently migrated to Livingston 
County with his family, and for some time was 
engaged in the pioneer labor of clearing off a 
portion of the land. After partly improving a 
homestead, he removed to Ohio, where he 
bought another farm, on which he spent his 
remaining years. 

Walter D. Chandler, son of William, was 
born and educated in Cayuga County, and, 
wliile living with his parents, acquired a prac- 
tical knowledge of the various branches of 
agriculture. When his father removed to 
Ohio, he stayed in this county, and soon after 
bought a farm on the State Road, three miles 
north of Nunda, where he pursued his chosen 
vocation for some years. He afterward 
changed his place of residence to the town of 
Castile; and there he passed his remaining 
days, departing this life in 1847. He married 
Chloe Church, daughter of Richard Church ; 
and she survived him nearly half a century, 
dying in June, 1893, at the advanced age of 
eighty-two years. Seven children were born 
of their union; namely, Susan, Maria C, 
Ruth E., Jeremiah W. , Emeline, Walter D. , 
and Phoebe J. All are now living, with the 
exception of Susan and Walter; but few of 
them have remained in the vicinity of their 
birth, their homes now being in different parts 
of the country. 

Jeremiah W. Chandler received a substantial 
common-school education in the town of Cas- 
tile, and, on arriving at years of discretion, 



engaged in farming pursuits. In i860, in 
partnership with his father-in-law, Albert H. 
Prescott, he bought one hundred acres of land 
on East Hill, where he lived for about twelve 
years. He then moved into a house owned by 
Mr. Prescott; and in this he resided until 
1888, when he bought his present fine prop- 
erty. In i860 Mr. Chandler and Miss Abbie 
A. Prescott, the daughter of Albert H. and 
Eliza (Brown) Prescott, were united in mar- 
riage. Their domestic hearthstone has been 
brightened by the birth of eight children, 
namely: \\'alter H., a resident of Nunda, who 
married Esther Johnson, and has two children ; 
Blanche E., the wife of Herbert S. Barker, 
who has one child, a boy named Ray; Grace 
M. ; Ruth A., the wife of Frank Seager, who 
has one child, Blanche; Susie E. ; Arthur 
W. ; James C. ; and Jessie H. 

Socially, Mr. Chandler and his pleasant 
family are held in high consideration ; and 
their happy home is noted for its generous hos- 
pitality. In his political views Mr. Chandler 
has always been a warm and active supporter 
of the principles advanced by the Republican 
party; and his first Presidential vote, cast in 
1 860, was given to Abraham Lincoln. He is 
an active member of the Farmers' Alliance. 



M 



K. P. S. GOODWIN, one of the lead- 
ing physicians of the town of Perry, 
Wyoming County, N. Y. , was born 
September 30, 1S62. His father, 
Charles L. Goodwin, who is of English de- 
scent, was born October 9, 1821, at Akron, 
Ohio. When still very young, he was em- 
ployed as contractor for the Warsaw Salt Com- 
pany, and later in life moved to Florida, where 
he now resides in Plabroke, and is extensively 
engaged in the fruit business. His fi\c chil- 
dren are : Martha, who married S. Morbra, of 
Ohio; Cynthia R., who lives in Thompson, 
Ohio; Mattie, who married William Davis, 
and lives in Ohio; Charles, who resides in 
Greigsville, N. V. ; and P. .S. , the subject of 
this sketch. 

P. S. Goodwin was educated at Western Re- 
serve University, Cleveland, Ohio, receiving a 
diploma from that institution February 25, 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



669 



1885, and the following July came to Perry 
Centre and began practising. After eight very 
successful years in that place he removed to 
Perry, where he bought a large residence 
on Main Street, and continued his practice 
with an ever-increasing circle of patrons, 
both in the village and in the suiinunding 
country. 

In 1 886 Dr. (ioodwin niarried llaltie L. 
Ball, who was born November 30, 1865, at 
Perry Centre, daughter of Charles S. and Har- 
riet (Seymour) Ball. Charles S. Bali was a 
native of Perry Centre, born July 13, 184.5, 
son of Daniel and Jane ]•]. (Iliggins) J_<all, 
and grandson of Jabez antl Abigail (Bristol) 
Ball. Jabcz liall was born in Connecticut, 
May 30, 1 780, and by trade was a carpenter 
and joiner. March 11, 1807, he married Abi- 
gail liristol, born January 27, 1791 ; and soon 
after their marriage they came to Wyoming 
County, and bought a farm in the town of 
Perry, where they spent the rest of their lives. 
Jabez died when seventy-two years of age, and 
his wife passed away at the age of eighty-nine. 
They had nine children — Alanson, Reuben, 
Daniel, Almira, Samantha, Chloe, Mary J., 
Phebe, and Dorcas. Daniel, the third son, 
was born in the town of Warsaw, Wyoming 
County, March 3, i8iy. in 1842 lie married 
Jane K. iliggins, who was born June 16, 1820, 
and died in March, 1894. After his marriage 
he followed the shoemaker's trade, and was 
also Postmaster for twenty-eight years. l<'or 
twenty-one years he was Justice of the I'eace, 
and has been Trustee of the Congregational 
church. lie still lives, and enjoys the au- 
tumn (jf a useful life. His two children were: 
Charles S., the father of Mrs. Goodwin; and 
M. Ball, who died at the age of si.xteen. 
Charles S. ISall was De])uty I^jstmaster and 
clerit, also book-kee])er for his father, and at 
one time was occupied as clerk in a drug store 
at Perry. He now follows the trade of carpen- 
ter and joiner at I'erry Centre. His wife died 
at the age of forty years, leaving one daughter, 
who is the wife of the subject of this biog- 
raphy. 

Dr. (ioodwin is a member of Consolation 
Lodge, No. 404, A. F. & A. M., of Perry; 
and both he and his wife are members of the 



l^resbyterian church. He is a stanch i^epub- 
lican, and is ever active in town affairs. His 
large practice in I'erry occupies the greater 
l)art of his time; and in addition to this he has 
many patients at tlie Centre who were formerly 
]5atrons of Dr. I'iudges, the well-known and 
highly esteenied physician whose practice ])i. 
Goodwin bought out when the former removed 
to I-Iornellsville, N. Y. It is often said that it 
is the busiest people who find the most time to 
devote to others; and this is most jilainly 
demonstrated in the life of Dr. (ioodwin, who, 
in spite of his large practice, is always ready 
to interest himself in all that pertains to the 
welfare of the town or his fellow-men. 




\CA^/ Il.l.iAM GOULD McNINCH, an 
eneigetic, thrifty, and well-to-do 
farmer of Ossian, comes of Scotch 
ancestry, and is the descendant of one of the 
earliest settlers of the county. His grantl- 
father, William McNinch, Si-. , was born in 
Scotland, and was reared to a farmer's life, his 
father having been a small landholder there. 
Immigrating to the United .States when a young 
man, he settled in Livingston County, l)eing 
one of the fust to take up land in the town of 
Conesus. lie married Hannah I'ickles, a na- 
tive of Pennsylvania, who bore him one child, 
William, the father of the subject of this 
writing. After the death of the grandfather, 
his widow formed a second marriage, becoming 
the wife of a Mr. Carter; and of her second 
union eight children were born. She spent 
the last years of her life with her eldest son, 
the only child of her first marriage. 

William McNinch, Jr., was boiii in Cone- 
sus, Livingston County, October 7, 181 2, and 
was but two years old when his mother re- 
moved to West Sparta, where he lived nntil of 
age. He then began working by the month, 
continuing thus employed for si.x years. In 
1839, in company with one of his step- 
brothers, he engaged in general farming. In 
1843 he removed to the town of Ossian, where 
he purchased a farm on which he lived some 
ten years before he bought his present fine es- 
tate, which contains one hundred and si.xty 
acres of as fertile and productive land as there 



670 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



is in this locality. On October 4, 1841, he 
was married, and has reared four children, of 
whom the following is chronicled: William 
G. is the subject of this brief sketch. I.ouis 
J. married Mary Hosier. Louise is the wife 
of Garrett Smith, of Dakota. Harriet is the 
wife of John Passage. 

William Gould McNinch was born in Al- 
mond, Allegany County, N. Y. , July 28, 1842, 
but acquired his education in the public 
schools of this county, his parents having re- 
moved here when he was quite young. Like 
many of the farmers' sons, he followed in the 
footsteps of his ancestors in regard to choosing 
bis life occupation, and has devoted his atten- 
tion chiefly to the pursuit of agriculture, re- 
maining with his father until twenty-seven 
years of age. He had in the mean time, how- 
ever, bouglit a farm, and for four years worked 
both his father's and his own land. He sub- 
sequently purchased one hundred and si.xty 
acres of his present farm, to which he has 
since added another purchase of fifty-five 
acres, so that his homestead now includes two 
hundred and fifteen acres of land. This he 
devotes to general farming, in which he has 
met with rare success, the excellent results of 
his methods of work being so apparent to even 
the most casual observer that he is considered 
one of the model farmers of this section of 
the county. Mr. McNinch is a wide-awake, 
progressive man, and in his political views is a 
stanch supporter of the Republican party, the 
same political organization that his father has 
always supported. In their religious belief 
the McNinch family are regular worshippers at 
the Presbyterian church, toward the support of 
which they give generously. 

An important event in the career of Mr. Mc- 
Ninch was his union with Annetta Grey, 
which was celebrated in 1867. Mrs. Mc- 
Ninch is a native of Ossian, being the daugh- 
ter of the late Andrew and Jeanette Grey, who 
were prominent among the pioneer settlers of 
the town. Mr. and Mrs. McNinch have been 
blessed by the birth of three children, namely: 
Carrie, who married James Covert, a well- 
known farmer, and the representative of an 
old and honored family of Ossian ; Grey; and 
Lester. 



■AMES L. EDMUNDS, a late well-to- 
do farmer and prominent citizen of Por- 
tage, Livingston County, N. Y. , who 
died April 28, 1893, esteemed and re- 
gretted by a large circle of friends and ac- 
quaintances, was a native of Dutchess County. 
His father, Henry, and his grandfather, Ken- 
nedy Edmunds, were born and reared as 
farmers, the latter owning and operating a 
large farm, upon which he lived until his de- 
cease. Henry Edmunds moved from Dutchess 
to Livingston County in the month of April, 
1856, and settled upon a farm of eighty acres 
in the town of Portage, which was in a high 
state of cultivation, and contained good and 
substantial buildings. Here he resided for 
the remainder of his life. He was married 
three times, his first wife being Sally Orton, 
who died young and without issue. His sec- 
ond wife was Eliza Wing, by whom he had 
two children; and, she dying, he wedded Jo- 
hanna Wing, by whom he had four children — 
Ellen, James L. , Eliza, and William H. 

James L. , the subject of this sketch, whose 
birth occurred on February 4, 1826, was edu- 
cated in the district schools, and was reared to 
agricultural pursuits. In 1848, while still a 
young man, he went to California, arriving 
there in the very midst of the excitement of 
the gold fever, and remained about three years. 
Upon his return East, he came to Livingston 
County, and settled in Portage in 1855. In 
1845 he married Mary M. Grififin, daughter of 
Bartholomew and Sarah (Filkins) Griffin, of 
Dutchess County. Mr. and Mrs. Edmunds 
reared four children — Dona, Frederick, Ar- 
thur, and Carol. Dona married Milton Griffin, 
and resides in St. Paul, Minn., where Mr. 
Griffin is Professor of Languages at Hamlin 
College; they have two children — Lawrence 
and Marion. Frederick married Levancha 
Dryer, of Victor, N. Y. ; he is a lawyer, and 
was formerly Postmaster of that place, after- 
ward becoming one of the pioneers of the 
Cherokee strip. Arthur married Almy Will- 
iamson, of Cameron, N. Y. , and is now a ranch- 
man in Kansas; he has one child, John. Carol 
married Henry Averall, and resides at Portage. 
Mrs. lidmunds survived her husband, and 
still lives at the old homestead, one of the 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



671 



handsomest houses in the village. Mr. Ed- 
munds was a man of rare worth, a true friend 
and exemplary citizen. He was for many 
years a member of the Methodist church at 
Dalton, as was his wife. He had served three 
terms as Assessor of Portage. Previous to the 
election of Abraham Lincoln he was a Demo- 
crat, but had ever since been a stanch adherent 
to the principles of the Republican party. 




jHARLES A. TOAN, one of the lead- 
ing business men of Perry, Wyoming 
County was born in Aurora, Cayuga 
County, N.Y. , July 4, 1861, son of 
John S. and Hannah (Kendall) Toan. He 
was educated in the district schools of his 
town, and at the age of si.xteen began his busi- 
ness career as clerk for W. A. Ogden, at 
King's P'erry, Cayuga County. He remained 
there four years, at the end of which time he 
went to Silver Springs, where he assisted in 
the erection of a salt plant, of which he was 
afterward Superintendent. Later he accepted 
a position with the Silver Lake Ice Company 
in Perry. Mr. Toan married Hattie Davis 
Smith, who was born in Perry, February 22, 
1864, and is the daughter of Marvin and Mi- 
randa (Millspaugh) Smith. (See sketch of 
Clarence M. Smith.) 




demons. 



kRS. REBECCA C. WHITEMAN, 
of Dansville, was born in Sparta, 
Livingston County, N.Y., in 
1824. Her father, Telemachus 
a native of New York, came from 
Rome, Oneida County, to Sparta during his 
childhood to live with a sister, who resides in 
that place. Here he remained until he 
reached his majority, when he started out to 
earn his own livelihood. By industry and 
economy he was at last able to purchase a 
small estate, which was enlarged by frequent 
additions to an expanse of four hundred acres. 
Mr. demons was one of the first settlers of 
this locality, and cleared the dense forest 
growth from the land upon which he built his 
house. As the population of Sparta increased 
and the evolution from hamlet to town was in 



progress, his recognized abilities placed him in 
a prominent position in the community. He 
was Justice of the Peace for many years, and 
was held in universal respect and esteem. 
After some years he sold his estate in Sparta, 
and moved to Dansville, where he bought a 
house and lot, although the last four years of 
his life were spent beneath his daughter's 
roof, where filial tenderness and care 
smoothed the rough places of infirmity, and 
brightened the dimness that shadows the long 
stretch of more than fourscore years. 

Mrs. Telemachus demons, whose maiden 
name was Rhoda Roberts, belonged to a Jersey 
family who were among the early settlers of 
Springwater. ■ Twelve sons and daughters 
were born to these parents, seven of whom are 
still living — Mary; Lydia ; Rebecca, of whom 
this biography is written; Samuel; Abner; 
George; and Eliza. The mother died in 1884, 
at eighty-three years of age. Both Mr. and 
Mrs. demons were in the communion of the 
Methodist church ; and the former took an ac- 
tive jjart in church work, being a class leader 
for many years 

Rebecca Clemons was married in 1845 to 
Reuben Whiteman, whose father was a farmer 
in Sparta. Jacob Whiteman was a native of 
Pennsylvania, but was of German parentage. 
He removed to Sparta in 1824, and remained 
there until his death. Mr. Reuben Whiteman 
was educated in the district school ; and after 
coming of age he became a land owner in 
Wayland, Steuben County, where he farmed 
until 1852, when he came to Dansville, and 
established a lumber yard, of which he con- 
tinued the head until his death in 1888. He 
was prominent in the business circle, and 
favorably known throughout the entire commu- 
nity in which he lived. Five children have 
been born to Mrs. Whiteman, two of whom are 
still living — Alonzo J., who married Julia 
Nettleton, of St. Paul ; and Clara J., who mar- 
ried A. Lester Gibbs, and has one child. 

The domestic life of Mr. and Mrs. \Vhitc- 
man was an ideal one. Both sprang from old 
families, evidently inheriting the sort of acs- 
theticism that makes attractive homes; and in 
their costly and beautiful residence in Dans- 
ville are everywhere seen the traces of Intel- 



672 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



lectual cultivation. ]\Irs. Whiteman's superior 
intelligence, together with her charm of man- 
ner, make her the fit mistress of this handsome 
mansion, a most gracious hostess and a leader 
in the social life of the picturesque little city 
of the Genesee valley. 




1828. 



LEXAXDER REID, a farmer and mer- 
chant, one of the prominent residents 
of York, Livingston County, was 
born in this town, November 22, 
His father, who also bore the name 
Alexander, was a native of Ayrshire, Scot- 
land. He left his native heath for the broad 
continent of America in 1819, and after a 
voyage of thirteen weeks landed in New York. 
From that city he sailed up the Hudson River 
to Albany. He was not alone in this new 
land, for a company of friends from his native 
country were with him ; and they drove in 
wagons from Albany to Genesee County, where 
they made quite a settlement in what was then 
Caledonia. 

Alexander Ried, Sr. , bought for himself a 
farm of about ninety acres at Fowlerville, in 
the present town of York, and immediately set 
to work to improve the land and set up build- 
ings. Time was required to get the fields 
ready for ploughing, and then to sow and reap, 
before the crops could be exchanged at the 
markets for the other comforts of life which do 
not grow from the soil. The grain and prod- 
uce were taken in those days on flatboats 
down the river, and this must have been an 
entertaining journey for the backwoodsman. 
Mr. Reid spent the remainder of his life in 
this new home, his death occurring here at the 
age of fifty-eight years. He married Mrs. 
Jane (McKerrow) Xichols, who was born in 
Scotland, but was married in this country. 
She had one child, Jane Xichols, by a former 
marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Reid had one child, 
Alexander Reid, the subject of this sketch. 
Mrs. Reid died in the town of York, at the 
age of sevent3-four years. 

Alexander Reid, the younger, the narrative 
of whose life is here given, was educated in 
the district school and at Temple Hill Acad- 
emy in Geneseo. When a young man he 



started in mercantile business at York, and 
was occupied in that enterprise for nearly 
twenty-five years. He then sold out his inter- 
est, and bought a farm of ninety acres. He has 
also about ninety acres in another farm in York, 
and has since devoted his time to farming. In 
i860 Mr. Reid was married to Miss Ellen J. 
Bryce, the daughter of James and Sarah C. 
(Dickey) Bryce, of the town of York. Her 
father, James Bryce, came from Scotland with 
his parents when a boy of fourteen, and resided 
at the homestead on which his father had set- 
tled during the rest of his life. He died at 
the age of seventy-six years. His wife, Mrs. 
Sara C. (Dickey) Br\"ce, survived him several 
years. Her parents, Mr. and Mrs. John 
Dickey, who were among the early settlers of 
York, came here from Londonderry, N. H. , in 
the same way as other pioneers — with an ox 
team and covered wagon. The exhilaration 
afforded by such a trip is the aim of many 
summer health-seekers in modern times on 
northern hills and mountain sides every year. 
John Dickey was of Scotch-Irish descent, and 
was a son of Matthew and Janet (Wallace) 
Dickey, of Londonderry, X.H. He carried 
the mail on horseback many years from Mos- 
cow to the town of York. He and his wife 
brought up a large family, mostly boys; and 
they early in life emigrated to the West. 

Mr. Alexander Reid has held many offices 
of trust, and has probably settled more estates 
than any one else in this section of the country. 
He has been Justice of the Peace for many 
years. He was the Clerk of the to\vn for eight 
years, and was Assessor of the place when the 
memorable lawsuit on account of taxation was 
going on with the Delaware & Lackawanna 
Railroad, in which it will be remembered the 
latter was defeated. Mr. Reid has been a Re- 
publican since the formation of the party. 
His first Presidential vote was cast for Major- 
general Winfield Scott in 1852. 



W. TEWKESBURY, a well-known 
and much respected citizen of Perry 
Centre, X. Y. , was born in that part 
of the original Genesee County 
which is now Livingston County, July 23, 




BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



673 



1820, son of Samuel and Phebe W. (Shepard) 
Tewkesbury. His grandfather, Jacob Tewkes- 
bury, who was a native of Tewkesbury, Eng- 
land, upon coming to America settled in 
Hopkinton, Mass., where he married Anna 
Lee, sister of General Lee, of that State. He 
bought five hundred acres of land, and engaged 
in farming and in working at the trade of 
cooper. His death occurred at the age of 
ninety years; and he left a family of eight 
children — Betsey, Martha, Mary, Anna, Sam- 
uel, Jacob, Thomas, and William. 

Samuel was born in Hopkinton, December 
22, 1794, and, like his father, was a farmer 
and cooper. In 1816 he set out with five other 
settlers, each with a pack on his back, for 
Rochester, N. Y. , which at that time was 
scarcely a village; and its inn, kept by A. 
Reynolds, was but a log house in the wilder- 
ness. From Rochester they continued their 
journey as far as the Ohio River; but, being 
better pleased with what they had seen in New 
York State than with any other land over 
which they had journeyed, they returned and 
settled in Wyoming County. Samuel Tewkes- 
bury bought fifty acres east of Perry Centre, 
and here he started his cooperage. In 1818 he 
married Phebe W. Shepard, who was born De- 
cember 2, 1797, daughter of Otis and Grace 
(Everett) Shepard, her father being a farmer 
in Connecticut. Samuel Tewkesbury lived to 
be seventy-three years old, his wife having 
died when she was but forty-nine. He was a 
member of the Baptist church, and in politics 
a Whig. Of his three children but one, 
S. W. , the subject of this biography, grew to 
maturity. 

S. W. Tewkesbury is a graduate of Wyoming 
Seminary. At the age of seventeen he began 
his career as a teacher, which profession he 
followed for several years, afterward engaging 
in commercial pursuits. In 1842, on Decem- 
ber 21, Mr. Tewkesbury was united in mar- 
riage to Mary Benedict, a native of Manches- 
ter, Vt. , where she was born September 8, 

1 82 1. She is the daughter of Truman and 
Hannah Benedict, who settled shortly after her 
birth in the town of Perry, N. Y. , where they 
spent the remainder of their lives. Mr. Bene- 
dict lived to be sixty-three years of age, and 



his wife died when she was si.\ty-five. He 
was a stanch Republican, and in 1843 and 
1844 was a member of the legislature. Their 
three children were; Charles, Mary, and 
William. 

Mr. and Mrs. Tewkesbury ha\'e had si.x chil- 
dren. Emma E. married Lee Gross, and lives 
in Grand Rapids, Mich. Byron B. married 
Addie S. Nichols, and lives on a farm adjoin- 
ing the homestead. Mary married Alfred 
Kershaw, and died, leaving one son, Charles 
¥.. Kershaw. The other children died at an 
early age. Mr. Tewkesbury was a member of 
the Assembly in 1874 and 1875, and has 
shown much interest in public affairs. His 
wife is a member of the Universalist church; 
and both are well-known in the community as 
people of high moral principles, useful citi- 
zens, and pleasant neighbors. 




^^ETER CAMPBELL, a veteran of the 
*■ ' Civil War of 1861-65, ^ citizen of 



_£> Caledonia, the north-west corner 
town of Livingston County, was born 
in LeRoy, Genesee County, N. Y. , March 25, 
1818. His father, James Campbell, was born 
in Scotland, and came to this country in 1815, 
landing in Nova Scotia. He later removed to 
New York State, and took u\i a grant of one 
hundred and sixty-five acres of woodland, on 
which had been built a log hut. He proceeded 
to clear the land by felling the trees and burn- 
ing the timber. The soil thus prepared for 
the plough soon smiled with its yearly harvest, 
and Mr. Campbell and his growing family long 
lived on the productions of his farm. He 
married Mary Taylor, of Wheatland, daughter 
of Daniel Taylor, a Scotchman, and they 
reared eleven children ; namely, Jane, Peter, 
Christie, Jeannette, Daniel, Margaret, May, 
Catherine, James, Nancy, and Duncan. Dan- 
iel died while confined in the prison at Ander- 
sonville during the war. James Campbell 
died when sixty-one years of age, and his wife 
passed away in her forty-third year. 

Peter Campbell was educated in the district 
schools of LeRoy, and adopted the life of a 
farmer. He enlisted to serve in the Civil 
War at the age of forty-four years, being one 



674 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



of the oldest volunteers at that time in West- 
ern New York. He served under Colonel 
Porter in the Eighth New York Hea\y Artil- 
lery, which lost many men in the battle of 
Cold Harbor, where the commander was killed. 
Mr. Campbell was two years and four months 
in the service, being mustered out at Fort 
McHenry, Md. He has never enjoyed good 
health since that time, and now receives a 
pension from the government. In 1846 he 
came to Caledonia; and here he bought 
ninety-four acres of land, twenty-eight of 
which he afterward sold. He is still occupied 
with agricultural pursuits. 

Mr. Campbell has never married. He has 
been a member of the Presbyterian church at 
Wheatland for over forty years, and is also a 
member of the McNaughton Post, Grand Army 
of the Republic, of Caledonia. He has always 
supported the platform of the Republican 
party since its organization, his first Presiden- 
tial vote, however, having been cast for \\"ill- 
iam Henry Harrison in 1840. Mr. Campbell 
is a man of energy and perseverance, and is 
interested in all matters pertaining to the wel- 
fare of the town in which he resides. 



nn\R. GEORGE W. SHEPHERD, for 
I =\ many years a highly successful medi- 
^I^Sy cal practitioner in Dansville, N. Y. , 
now retired, was born at Albany, 
September 28, 1816. His grandfather, Will- 
iam Shepherd, who was an Englishman by 
birth, came to America when a young man, 
and made his home in Albany. He was a sea 
captain, and followed that vocation until his 
death. 

His son, George Shepherd, who was born in 
Albany, one of six children, was reared and 
educated with a view to entering mercantile 
life, but forsook the paths of trade, and, going 
to Otsego County, settled in a town called 
Butternuts, where he purchased a farm, and for 
some time engaged in its cultivation, but sub- 
sequently removed to Schenectady, where he 
lived in retirement until his decease, which 
occurred at the age of fifty-four. George 
Shepherd was twice married, the Doctor's 
mother being his second wife. Her maiden 



name was Sarah Hanson. She was of Sche- 
nectady; and she reared si.x children, as fol- 
lows: Richard, George W. , Robert, Nicholas, 
Mary C, and Sarah L. Mary C. is living with 
Henry D. Varick, of Poughkeepsie. Sarah 
L. was twice married, her first husband being 
Mr. Elrey Palmer, of Canada, and her second 
Edward Goodman, a lawyer of Hartford, 
Conn., where she still lives. Mrs. Sarah 
Hanson Shepherd spent her latter years in 
Otsego County, and died there in 1829. 

George W. , second son of George Shepherd, 
passed his early boyhood on his father's farm 
in Otsego County, and at the age of thirteen 
went to Schenectady to attend school. At the 
time of his father's decease he was employed 
in a drug store at Albany, where he remained 
a few years, and then went South. After pass- 
ing the winter, he returned, and for a time 
continued to travel. In 1838 he entered the 
drug business in Montgomery County. Later 
he sold out his business, and began the prac- 
tice of medicine in New York City, remaining 
there, however, but a .short time, after which 
he practised his profession for four years in 
Ontario County, whence he came to Dansville 
in 1846. He continued to practise with suc- 
cess, both pecuniarily and professionally, for 
many years, at the same time attending to the 
duties of clerk in a drug store, and thus fol- 
lowed a life of activity until his retirement 
about the year 1879. His present beautiful 
home was erected by himself. 

In 1840 Dr. Shepherd married Julia A. Mc- 
Bride, daughter of Robert McBride. Her 
father was a contractor on the Erie Canal, and 
constructed all of the mason work from Albany 
to Buffalo. He reared a family of ten chil- 
dren. The Doctor has five children. His 
son, Henry V., married Ann Fitzpatrj.ck, a 
lady of Chicago; and they had four children, 
two of whom are living. James McBride, who 
now lives in Indianapolis, and who served 
some time in the United States anny, married 
Mary Meikel, at Indianapolis ; they have 
two boys — William and Edward. Edward, 
third son of Dr. Shepherd, is a member of the 
firm of Crerar, Adams & Co., in Chicago, who 
are dealers in railroad supplies; he married 
Julia Reed, of that city, and they have two 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



67s 



children — -Fred R. and Julia E. Susan B. 
Shepherd, who died in 1894, married P'rank 
Shepard, a farmer of Pavilion, and had two 
children — Ralph B. and Marjorie B. Mary 
L. is unmarried. 

Dr. Shepherd cast his first Presidential vote 
for General William Harrison, being then a 
Whig, but is now a Republican in politics. 
He united with the Presbyterian church in 
1848, and joined the present church in 1857. 
He has been an Klder for many years, and also 
superintendent of the Sunday-school. He was 
largely instrumental in the erection of the new 
church. 




^P:TP:R passage, a venerable and 
respected octogenarian, owning and 
occupying a well-stocked and well- 
equipped homestead in the town of 
Nunda, N. Y. , is a good representative of the 
industrious and able agriculturists of Living- 
ston County. He has been a hard working man 
all his life until recently, not only as a farmer, 
but for a number of years as a carpenter, he 
having learned that trade when a young man. 
Many of the mills in this vicinity were built 
by him. He was born in Herkimer County, 
in this State, January 12, 1812. 

His father, George Passage, was bcirn at 
Greenbush, Albany County, N.Y. , and, when 
very young, removed to Herkimer County, 
making the trip with wagons. He was a 
farmer by occupation, and owned and improved 
a comfortable homestead in the town of his 
adoption. He married Margaret Helmer, the 
daughter of Adam Helmer, and they reared 
the following children: Henry; Peter; John, 
who is now a resident of Illinois; Adam ; PLve, 
who married a Mr. I'o.x, of Michigan; and 
Lany, Mrs. Spoon, now deceased. The 
maiden name of the wife of Adam Helmer was 
Bellinger. 

Peter, the second son of George Passage, 
was reared and educated in the place of his 
birth, and while an inmate of the parental 
home became well acquainted with practical 
farming. In the month of January, 1838, Mr. 
Passage drove from his home to Nunda, where 
he bought a tract of land. Returning to Her- 



kimer County, he remained there until after 
his marriage in 1842, when, accompanied 
by his bride, he again journeyed to this 
county, and settled on the land he had previ- 
ously purchased, and where he continues to 
reside. He had sent his furniture by canal to 
Rochester, and from that place he brought 
it with a team. Very little of the timber had 
been cut from his farm, the region hereabouts 
being in a wild and unsettled condition ; but 
two log cabins had been erected, and in one of 
these he and his young wife began housekeep- 
ing, living in it for four years. He had then 
got a good start in his agricultural labors, and 
built a substantial frame house, which is still 
in a good state of preservation. He performed 
the larger part of the manual labor of clearing 
and improving his land himself; for, notwith- 
standing the fact that competent men with 
teams could then be hired to work from sun to 
sun for the modest sum of one dollar, he 
could not find the necessary dollar to pay them. 
His good wife ably seconded all of his efforts, 
and not only did they raise the flax from which 
their garments were made, but with her own 
hands she carded, spun, and wove the cloth, 
and fashioned the clothes for her family, be- 
sides milking the cows and making the butter. 
The maiden name of his trusted companion 
was Harriet Ward. She was a daughter of 
Abram and Rosanna (Earnest) Ward, of Lan- 
singburg, N.Y. Mrs. Pas.sage died July 27, 
1894, at the age of seventy-six years and ten 
months, she and her husband having lived 
together for fifty-two j'ears. 

Mr. and Mrs. Passage reared four children 
— George, Rosanna, Ward, and Walter. 
George married Charlotte Lyons ; and they are 
the parents of four sons — Lewis, Flinn, Neal, 
and Don. Rosanna married Harrison Colton ; 
and they have two children — Walter and Har- 
riet. Ward married Emma Coon, of Wiscon- 
sin, and they arc the parents of five children; 
their home is now in British Columbia. 
Walter, the youngest child, died at the early 
age of eighteen years, when his prospects for a 
happy future were most bright and joyous. In 
politics Mr. Passage is a straight Republican, 
having been an adherent of that party since its 
formation; but he cast his first Presidential 



676 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



vote in 1840 for William H. Harrison. Both 
he and his wife were for many years esteemed 
and conscientious members of the Methodist 
church of Dalton, with which he is still 
connected. 




McNair, 



iBEN O. McNAIR, banker of Warsaw, 
N. Y. , was born in Kalamazoo, Mich., 
in 1858. His grandfather, Hugh 
was born near Philadelphia, and 
settled in New York in 1796. Mr. Hugh Mc- 
Nair was a civil engineer, and was connected 
with the Phelps & Gorham Land Company. 
For many years he was County Clerk, and dur- 
ing the latter part of his life was County Judge 
and a member of the legislature. He erected 
the first dwelling west of the Genesee River at 
a time when there was but one mill in the city 
of Rochester. He was twice married; and his 
second wife, who was Miss Elizabeth Tate 
Boyd, daughter of Dr. Boyd, a Presbyterian 
clergyman for many years in charge of the 
pastorate at Allentown, Pa., left two children, 
namely : Clements, who was engaged in min- 
ing in the West, and who died in the prime of 
life; and David H., the father of Eben Mc- 
Nair. Mr. Hugh McNair lived to be quite an 
old man. His grave is in the old country 
churchyard at Dansville. 

David H. McNair was born in Canandaigua, 
N.Y., in 1819. He married Julia A. F. Wil- 
cox, of Detroit, whose parents, Charles and 
Elmira Wilco.x, were both natives of Connect- 
icut. Six children were born to David and 
Julia McNair, two of whom — an infant daugh- 
ter and Orlando, a boy of nine years — died 
many years ago. Those living are the follow- 
ing: Julia W. , the wife of William M. Tenny, 
of Minneapolis, Minn. ; David W., an unmar- 
ried man, who lives in Warsaw, and is con- 
nected with the bank ; Eben O. McNair, of 
whom this biography is written ; and Marie 
L. , at Minneapolis, who is a graduate of El- 
mira College. 

Eben O. McNair was educated at a select 
school in Washington, D.C. , and when a lad 
of fifteen went into the banking house of Jay 
Cooke & Co. at the national capital, in whose 
employment he remained for about seven years, 



being promoted from one office to another until 
he was made paying teller. At twenty-one 
years of age he came to Warsaw, and entered 
upon the duties of Cashier in the bank, of 
which he became a partner in 1880. In 1882 
he married Miss Laura B. Snow, a daughter of 
Mr. Robert Snow, whose reputation for legal 
ability was widely known. She has one 
brother, Scott Snow, living in Brooklyn. 
Mr. and Mrs. McNair have a family of five 
bright and interesting children — Eben O., 
aged eleven; Laurence A., who is nine years 
old; Augustus F. , two years younger.; Pau- 
line, aged three; and baby Julia, who has not 
yet begun to count her birthdays. 

Mr. McNair, who traces his lineage back to 
the seventeenth century, shows other evidence 
I of his ancestry than the prefix of his surname, 
his thrift and good judgment being stronger 
claim to the "leal and true" blood of his 
Scottish forefathers. Mr. and Mrs. McNair 
live in their handsome brick residence on Park 
Street, at the head of Elm, which was built in 
1889. Both husband and wife are communi- 
cants of the Episcopal church, in which Mr. 
McNair has been Vestryman and Warden for 
years. In political faith he is a Republican. 




ARLEM G. CHAMBERLAIN, an ex- 
tensive and skilful farmer, owning 
and occupying a valuable estate in 
Mount Morris, is a well-known loyal 
and respected citizen. He is a native of Liv- 
ingston County, having drawn the first breath 
of life March 20, 1838, in the town of West 
Sparta. His father, Harlem G. Chamberlain, 
Sr. , was born, it is thought, in Vermont, 
being a son of John Chamberlain, a native of 
New England, who emigrated to the Empire 
State, and settled in Cayuga County. John 
Chamberlain's wife, whose maiden name was 
Lvdia Horsford, was also of New England 
birth. After the death of her husband she 
made her home with her son, Harlem G., liv- 
ing with him until her decease. 

The father of the subject was reared to years 
of discretion in New England, and when a 
young man came to this State to select a home. 



BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 



677 



He purchased eighty acres of timbered land 
situated in West Sparta, and there erected a 
log cabin, in which he and his bride began 
their wedded life, occupying that humble 
structure until after the birth of nine of the 
eleven children that constituted their family 
circle. For many years after their settlement 
there were no railways in the county, neither 
canals on which their products might be trans- 
ported, in consequence whereof the surplus 
grain had to be teamed to Rochester, the most 
convenient market and milling-point. He 
cleared and impioved a good farm, replaced 
the log house with a substantial frame resi- 
dence, built a good set of farm buildings, and 
resided there a number of years. He subse- 
quently bought a farm of one hundred and 
si.xty acres at Union Corners, in the town of 
Mount Morris, where he engaged in general 
agriculture until his demise, at the age of 
seventy-three years. He married Anna Bush, 
a native of Cayuga County; and she survived 
him, living to the age of seventy-five years. 
She bore him nine children; namely, Emily, 
Orsamel, Amplius P., Albert O. , Alonzo B. , 
Lavina B. , Lucetta L., Harlem G., and Lu- 
cinda R. 

Harlem G. Chamberlain, of whom we write, 
received a practical education in the public 
schools, and during his boyhood and youth 
made himself useful on the old homestead, 
where he lived until after the death of his hon- 
ored father. Removing to the village of 
Mount Morris, Mr. Chamberlain soon after 



bought a farm within the town limits, and, 
although attending to its cultivation and im- 
provement, continued a resident of the village. 
In 1877 he disposed of that property, and 
bought the farm where he now resides. It 
contains one hundred and ninety-three acres of 
productive land, which he has brought to an 
excellent .state of culture, and which yields 
him an abundant annual crop of the cereals 
common to this section of the country. Mr. 
Chamberlain has an honorable war record, hav- 
ing as a member of Company F, One Hun- 
dred and Thirty-si.xth New York Volunteer 
Infantry, one of the most active regiments, 
taken part in twenty-three engagements. His 
army life extended from August, 1862, until 
his honorable discharge at the close of the 
war, in June, 1865. An important step in 
the life of Mr. Chamberlain was his marriage 
with Emma A. Sherwood, a native of Tioga 
County, Pennsylvania, and the daughter of 
the Rev. Abijah Sherwood, a noted Baptist 
preacher. The domestic life of Mr. and Mrs. 
Chamberlain has been made bright by the 
advent of four children in their household, 
their names being: Anna, Fanny, Ella, and 
Carl. Although taking no prominent part in 
politics, Mr. Chamberlain, as did his father 
before him, votes the straight Republican 
ticket at the general elections. Socially, he 
belongs to the Mount Morris Lodge, No. 122, 
A. F. & A. M. Mrs. Chamberlain is an ear- 
nest Christian woman, and an esteemed mem- 
ber of the Baptist church. 



^ 



INDEX. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 



Acomb, Mrs. Klizal)eth . . . 617 

Adams, Ira 53 j 

Adams, John H 267 

Aitken, Rev. Thomas .... 1 14 

Allen, Albert A 291 

Allen, Cyrus, M.D 140 

Allen, Hezekiah 81 

Allen, Mrs. Louisa Prine . . . 502 

Alverson, Frank J 369 

Alvord, George P 366 

Alvord, Martin \'. B. . . .193 

Anient, Edward L 657 

Andrews, Martin P 279 

Andrus, David 187 

Angier, John 301 

Arnold, Harvey 303 

Arnold, Colonel Henry L. . . 1S2 

Arnold, Norman C 327 

Atwell, George W 156 

Austin, Miss Catharine M. . . 204 

Austin, Warren G 629 

Ayrault, Allen 112 



Backus, Andrew J 228 

Backus, James H 667 

Bailey, John Otis 2S0 

Bailey, William 360 

Baker, Leverett S 116 

Baker, Shelby 3S6 

Ballsmith, William 465 

]iarber, Aaron 334 

Barker, Newton S 20 

Barker, Orlondo W 58 



PAGE 

Barnard, John, Sr 570 

Barnett, Robert 266 

Barnum, Grove 400 

Barron, Abel C 403 

Barross, Franklin K., M.D. . . 541 

Bartlett, Myron E 545 

Bates, Rev. Alfred K 135 

Batterson, David 382 

Beach, Mrs. Cornelia C. . . . 310 

Beardslec, Mrs. Maria .... 536 

Beardslee, Nathan S 260 

Beckwith, Jeremiah 660 

Beebe, Mrs. Caroline R. . . . 630 

Beebe, Verlett C 223 

Begole, William 360 

Belden, John r(^ 

Benedict, Charles J 100 

Bennett, Joseph Y 272 

Bennion, Owen 387 

Bentley, Gideon 474 

Bentley, Wilber M 563 

Bergen, Samuel ig 

Biggart, James 652 



X 



Brockway, Levi 

Brodie, Thomas 

Brodie, William A 

Brookins, Mrs. Ellen A. Mills 
Broughton, Lyman C, M.D. 

Brown, John H 

Bryson, John M 

Bunnell, A. O 

Bunnell, Major Mark J. . . 
Burkhart, A. P., M.D.S. . . 

Burrell, Edward 

Burroughs, Andrew J. . . . 

Burtis, John H 

Buttervvay, Andrew W. . . 

Buxton, Joseph C 

Buxton, Mrs. Juliann . . . 



Calkins, Levi B. . 
Campbell, Peter . 
Campbell, Peter . 
Canning, William 
Capwell, Roy P. . 



Blake, Calvin 113 

Blakeslee, Senator 665 Carr, Samuel B. . . . 

Blank, Elmer H 565 j Carroll, Charles H. . . 

Blum, John 69 | Chamberlain, Harlem (;. 



Bogart, Robert W 130 

Bonner, Frank J 232 

Bonner, Samuel ^01 

Bosley, B. Richmond .... 450 

Bradbury, Mrs. Elizabeth A. . 304 

Brewer, Henry S 621 

Bristol, Albert G 269 

Bristol, Joel W 409 

Bristol, William 139 



Chamberlin, Lewis J. 
Chandler, Jeremiah W. 
Chase, George B. 
Chase, Dr. John A. . 
Clapp, Franklin J. . 
Clapp, George W. . , 
Clark, Isaac A. . . . 
Clarke, Carl G. . . . 
Cleveland, Orlando C. . 



I'AGK 

44 
437 
414 

5' 

22 Z 

656 
39 

537 

'3« 
108 

99 
326 

553 

333 
611 

172 



265 
444 
673 
160 

>5 
431 
344 
676 

505 
668 
66 r 
49 
574 
102 

556 

64 

610 



68o 



INDEX 



PAGE 

Cleveland, Mrs. Ruth E. . . . 296 

Close, Lewis M 118 

Clough, Silas F I3« 

Coe, John C 484 

CofiBn, Benjamin S 53 

Cogswell, William 1S6 

Cole, Chester A 169 

Cole, Mortimer N 647 

Coleman, Lyman S 1 11 

Colt, Major Henry V 31 5 

Cooley, Alonzo B 224 

Cooky, Gilbert M 206 

Cooley, Noah I47 

Cooper, Henry K 337 

Countryman, Herbert I. . . . 609 

Covert, Freeman F 376 

Covey, Howdin 319 

Cowan, Dr. James W 466 

Cowdin, Marshall J 618 

Coy, Benjamin 166 

Craig, John, M.D 125 

Crapsey, Hiram 183 

Creveling, Edward R 566 

Creveling, John 149 

Crisfield, James E., M.U. . . 223 

Crossett, Lloyd W 489 

Crouse, James H 1 78 

Culbertson, Captain Samuel . . 348 

Culbertson, Samuel C 117 

CuUings, Robert J I73 

Cummings, Walter H 634 



D 

Dalrymple, Amos 126 

Dalrymple, John W 37 

Dann, Nathaniel 3°9 

Davidson, Frederic 102 

Davidson, John N 520 

Davis, Chester W 500 

Davis, Dexter S 597 

Davis, Luman A 377 

Davis, Orin, M.D if^l 

Decker, John C 514 

De Forest, William H. ... 175 

Denton, E. Fitch 404 

Dibble, Charles T 499 

Dieffenbacher, Edward L. . . 376 

Dodge, Frank B., M.D. ... 648 

Donnan, John A 358 

Dooer, George D 429 



I'AGE 

Dorrance, Mrs. Juliet Lee . . 333 

Drake, Marsena 370 

Dudley, Harwood A 184 

Dunbar, James W 542 

Duncan, Joseph M 375 

Dunn, Austin B 150 

Durfee, Ernest A 573 



Edmunds, James L 670 

Edwards, Ale.xander .... 594 

Ellicott, George S 316 

Elliott, William 659 

English, Horace 575 

English, Mrs. Sarah A. . . . 577 

Ewart, George S 92 

Ewart, George T 107 

Ewart, Samuel 210 

Ewell, William H 26 



Fargo, Benj.imin F 162 

Fargo, Walter B 204 

Farman, Elbert E 477 

Farman, George W 284 

Farnham, Reuben H 506 

Ferris, William A 38 

Fielder, Frank 301 

Fisher, .Mrs. Lucy W 636 

Fisher, Samuel 619 

Fitzhugh, William D 343 

Flowers, Thomas W 214 

Fontaine, Zephir 551 

Foote, Mrs. Joanna 69 

Foss, Bertrand G 64 

Foster, C. Herbert 154 

j Fowler, George G 495 

i Fowler, Nathaniel H 293 

'-"Fraleyr'^rfs- Harriet G. . . . 45S 

Frank, Augustus 658 

Frazer, James B 310 

Fridd, George 463 

Fiomholzer, Ferdinand, M.D. . 611 

Frost, Fred W 123 



Gage, Albert P 199 

Galentine, Jacob S 494 



Gallagher, Thomas E 132 

Galligan, Timothy 505 

Gardner, Charles J 642 

Gardner, Henry P 292 

Gardner, N. Adolphus .... 557 

Gardner, Parley 393 

Geiger, Elias H 77 

George, Joseph 654 

Gerry, Thaddeus 446 

Gilbert, Alfred C 329 

Gilbert, Arthur S 329 

Gilbert, Horace C 290 

Goodwin, Dr. P. S 668 

Grant, William 29 

Grant, Colonel Timothy B. . . 664 

Gray, Edgar L 507 

Gregory, Walter E., M.D. . . 216 

Green, William A 278 

Greene, Cordelia A., M.D. . . 543 

Griggs, Clarence E., M.D. . . 496 

Grimes, John D 152 

Groves, William H 643 



H 



Hagey, Jacob M., M.D. ... 104 

Hall, J. Thompson 60S 

Hall, William E 486 

Hamilton, Melvin R 638 

Hamilton, Wilson W 623 

Hanby, John 607 

Harrington, Augustus .... 586 

Harrington, George 583 

Harrison, Henry 92 

Hartman, William H 355 

Haskins, Warren P 612 

Hathaway, Mrs. Edna S. . . . 624 

Hawley, William H., Jr. . . . 4S2 

Helmer, John D 423 

Hewitt, Peleg W 148 

Hickey, Rev. James A. ... 456 

Hillman. John D 631 

Hollenbeck, Andrew .... 282 

Horton, Elliott W 137 

Hoskins, Ammi H 454 

Howden, John 326 

Howe, Samuel A 288 

Howes, Beckley 318 

Humphrey, Mrs. Hannah Adams 646 

Humphrey, L. Hayden .... 497 

Humphrey, William E. ... 544 



INDEX 



68 1 



Humphrey, Wolcott J 644 

Hunn, George W 457 

Hunt, Artemus L., I\I.D. ... 129 

Huston, Ale.xander 249 

Hyman, Michael D 443 

I 

Ives, James W 495 

J 

Jackman, George W 195 

Jackson, James H., M.D. ... 22 

Jacobs, Samuel H 196 

Janes, Nelson 389 

Jenks, Eri S 402 

Jerome, Henry N 177 

Johnson, Charles M 269 

Johnson, Emerson 86 

Johnson, J. Samuel 592 

Johnson, William V 321 

Jones, Charles 46 

Jones, Grilifith 52 

Jones, James W 226 

Jones, Peter D 367 

Jones, Richard M 135 

K 

Karcher, John 510 

Kavanah, Matthew H 413 

Keeney, Earle D 613 

Kelsey, Ezra A 34 

Kennedy, Richard W 307 

Kenney, Elijah 40 

Killip, William W 570 

Kittredge, Rev. Josiah E. . . . 66 

Klein, John 91 

Knapp, Isaac Burrell .... 161 

Knapp, Major Jacob W. . . . 655 

Knibloe, Mrs. Alice B 542 

Knibloe, Wells E 142 

Knowles, Calvin 517 

Kramer, William 246 

Krebs, Gustav 393 

Krein, George L 120 

Kuder, Andrew 490 

L 

La Boyteaux, Dr. A 365 

Lacy, Daniel 455 



Lake, Jerome A. . . 






419 

427 


Lake, Orrin D 




Lathrop, Henry C. . . . 




553 


Lawrence, Colonel Abram B. 




635 


Lawrence, Mrs. Rhodina K. 




1.3 


Lawrence, Theodore W. . 




288 


Letchworth, William P. . 




394 


Lewis, Joseph D. ... 




171 


Lewis, William F. . 






620 


Lindsey, Martin . . 






40 r 


Logan, John . . . 






416 


Loomis, Charles E. 






642 


Loomis, James H. . 






662 


Loomis, Mrs. Julia M. 






487 


Lord, Henry H. 






294 

242 
280 


Low, William P. . . 






Lucas, George F. 






Lusk, Zera J., M.D. . 






380 


Luther, Asa A. . . 






136 



M 



Main, James A 

Markey, John .... 
Markham, Augustus . . 
Markham, William G. . . 
Martin, William N., M.D. 
Mason, Charles R. . . . 

Mason, John E 

Matteson, George . . . 
Matthews, Mrs. Cynthia A. 
Matthews, Edward G. . . 
McCall, Archibald C. . . 
McCartney, Matthew . . 
McCormick, Christopher . 
McCurdy, John T. . . . 
McElroy, Frank .... 
McFarland, Alexander 
Mclntyre, John R. . . . 
McLeod, Ronald .... 
McMaster, Richard . . 
McMillan, Daniel . . . 
McNair, Charles B. . . . 
McNair, David .... 
McNair, Eben O. ... 
McNair, Henry J. . . . 
McNair, William R. . . 
McNaughton, John H. 
McNeil, Frank J. ... 
McNinch, William G. . . 
Melven, Gilbert .... 
Menzie, Dr. Robert J. . . 



209 

28 

144 

220 
512 
637 
452 
46S 

445 
600 
608 
460 
261 

370 
268 

653 
347 

382 

59 
583 
436 

42 
676 
391 
387 

71 
528 
669 
493 
585 



Merchant, Allen 190 

Merrell, Robert L 529 

Miller, Barkley 95 

Miller, Frederic W 424 

Miller, Hugh 472 

Miller, Jonathan 602 

Miller, Samuel S., M.D. . . . 339 

Mills, Dr. Charles J 342 

Mills, Hiram P 60 

Mills, Myron H., M D. . . . 9 

Milne, Jolin M 34 

Mitchell, Thomas W 559 

Moody, William W 159 

Moray, Jonathan B 65 

Morgan, Mrs. Cora A. ... 441 

Morgan, David B 238 

Morgan, Guy P 638 

Morrill, Mrs. Cordelia W. . .313 

Morris, James G 295 

Munger, Porter T. B 68 

N 

Nash, Edwin A 390 

Nash, Enos A 357 

Nevins, Byron A 346 

Newman, John H 474 

Newton, Aurora D 624 

Newton, Charles D 208 

Nichols, Burton C 325 

Nichols, Charles H 82 

Nichols, Hiram F., M.D. . . 55 

Nichols, Samuel R 89 

Norris, Fred 106 

Northway, Frank A 214 

Norton, William H 78 

Noyes, Leonard 528 

O 

Oberdorf, Bernard H. . . . ^lo 

Oberdorf, W. S 53' 

Older, Mrs. Marietta B. . . 85 

Olin, Mrs. Mary Jackson . . 432 

Olmsted, Theodore F 185 

Olp, John 153 

Olp, Joseph P 205 

Orton, James S 234 

Osgood, V'irling 622 

P 

Paine, Delos 105 



682 



INDEX 



PAGE 

Paine, William H 52 

Palmer, George Miles, M.D. . 250 

Palmer, William J 43 

Parker, A. Orla 527 

Parker, Elbert D 552 

Parker, Gad C 569 

Parsons, Levi, D.D 453 

Parsons, Nelson D 459 

Passage, Peter 675 

Patchin, Ira 3^1 

Patterson, Robert G 265 

Pease, Mrs. Mary W 16 

Peck, Allen W 271 

Peck, James B 53' 

Peer, Frank S 47° 

Ferine, Francis Marion, M.D. . 115 

Perkins, John 34° 

Perry, Edward C, M.D. ... 257 

Phillips, S. D 21 

Pierce, Edward A 577 

Piffard, David 229 

Plumley, Eugene 518 

Pratt, Joseph W 355 

Prentice, Charles 603 

Preston, Arthur M 17 

Putnam, George S 320 

R 

Rae, Robert, M.D 4°° 

Rafferty, James 579 

Ranger, Wesley 524 

Reid, Alexander 672 

Reid, James Edwin 21S 

Ribaud. George L I74 

Rice, Sylvanus 255 

Richardson, Orville N. . . . 558 

Richardson, William H. ... 565 

Rippev, Hiram B 423 

Rippcv. Jeremiah C 320 

Rippey, Joseph N 18S 

"oberts, James W 420 

Robison, Matthias ..... 560 

Romessci , George 19 

Rood, David P 485 

\Rorbach, Colonel John . . . 412 

Rose, Norman W 534 

Rowe, Charles H 632 

Rowland, Marvin C, M.D. . . 4S1 

Russell, William 143 

S 

Sackett, Homer 322 



PAGE 

Sackett, Orange 378 

Sanders, Chauncey K 26 

Schlick, Captain Jacob A. . . 103 

Scott, John L 243 

Sharp, Henry L 166 

Sharp, Henry P., M.D. ... 330 

Shattuck, T. Nelson .... 442 

Shearman, Mrs. Sarah Norton . 342 

Sheldon, Merrick 554 

Shepard, Charles 262 

Shepherd, Dr. George W. . . 674 

Sherman, Howland 646 

Short, Josiah C 406 

Short, Lemuel C 568 

Short, S. Truman 287 

Shall, George M 442 

Sierk, Henry 425 

Simonds, Frederick .\ 83 

Simpson, Thomas 20S 

Skiff, Albert 652 

Skiff, George S., M.D 237 

Skinner, A. F 256 

Slocum, Nelson 604 

Smith, Adelbert A 380 

Smith, Burley 307 

Smith, Clarence M 45 

Smith, Frank B 78 

Smith, Dr. George W 163 

Smith, Henry 522 

Smith, Hiram 34° 

Smith. Irving B 488 

Southall, Edward W., M.D. . 84 

Sowerby, John 196 

Sowerby, Thomas C 207 

Spennig, William T 347 

Spink, Captain Elon P. . . . 530 

Spittal, James 3°° 

Stebbins, Carlos L 241 

Steele, David 277 

Stewart, Alexander W. ... 522 

Stewart. Charles A 466 

Stewart, Neil 230 

Stewart, William 522 

Stone, J. Russell 650 

Stone, Truman L 547 

i Stowe, James A 599 

Strang, John R 43° 

; Strasenburgh, Frederick A., M.D. 524 

Strivings, Silas L 127 

Sullivan, Rev. Francis .... 274 

Sutfin, Charles L. G 213 

Sweet, Albert .....".. 666 



Tallman, Jacob 512 

Tallman. Major Walter B. . . 283 

Tanner. Commander Zera L. . 299 

Taylor, Rufus K 399 

Tewkesbury, S. W 672 

Thayer, L. Lockwood .... 244 

Thompson, William O. ... 578 

Thomson, Adelbert L 351 

Thomson, Coridon S 614 

Thornton, Obed 124 

Tilton, Reuben J 464 

Toan, Charles A 671 

Toan, Charles H 181 

Tolles, Edward D 532 

Tomlinson, George .... 233 

Tousey, William 90 

Tozier, Orange L 428 

Turrel, Jared D 293 



V'allance, Robert 


217 


Van Allen, Washington I. 


598 


Van Arsdale, James H. . . 


80 


Vanderbelt, John O. ... 


509 


Van Dorn, Peter 


546 


Van Dusen, Myron .... 


56 


VanGorder, Greenleaf S. . . 


520 


Van Nuvs, Webster B. . . 


142 


Van Orsdale, William N. . . 


170 


Vincent, Jeremiah H. . . . 


358 



w 

Wade, Frank E 594 

Wade, Stafford 259 

Wadsworth, Alfred I74 

Walbridge, Major William . . 649 

Walker, Daniel J 128 

Ward, Rev. George K. ... 93 

Warner, Benajah M 4' 

Warner, Hiram B 392 

Watson, Mrs. Eliza 5 '4 

Welker, J. Valentine .... 95 

Waller, Dwight C 405 

Welles, Mrs. Eliza 449— 

Wells, Darius H I97 — 

Wemple, John H I77 

West, Lovette P 373 

Wheeler, John D 165 



INDEX 



683 



PAGE 

Wheeler, Willard W. . . .• . 655 

Wheelock, Austin VV 200 

Wheelock, Ira T 601 

Wheelock, Jerome S 31 

White, Earle S 368 

Whiteman, Mrs. Rebecca C. .671 

Whitlock, S. Benedict .... 555 

Whitlock, Samuel L 219 

Whitney, George K 2S4 

Whitney, George W 363 

Whitney, Royal 317 

Whitney, Washington W. . . . 651 

Wiard, Henry 239 

Wiard, Matthew 64: 

Wilber, Rev. William T. . . . 567 



I'AGE 

Wiley, Major Henry A. . . . 96 

Willett, John 82 

Williams, Charles F 630 

Williams, Harlon P 229 

Williams, Richard 332 

Williard, Andrew J 27 

Wilner, Marcus W 240 

Wilner, Merriman J 190 

Wilson, Frank 194 

Wilson, Frank H 119 

Wilson, William H 417 

Wing, G. Frank 150 

Wise, William W 189 

Witherel, Jameson N 50S 

Witt, John C 353 



fAtiB 

Wolf, George M 30 

Wood, Dr. Edwin L 198 

Woodruff, Buell D 215 

Woodruff, Oscar 32 

Woodruff, Solomon G 240 

Woodruff, Wayne J 404 

Wooster, William B 249 

Wright, George 352 

Wright, S. Ellsworth .... 72 

Wright, Zalmon 426 

Y 

Yochum, Joseph 155 

Youngs, E. Fred 628 

Youngs, Elijah 627 



5 9 ■■ 9 9 



/ >^ 



-''Zi- f 



PORTRAITS. 



PAGE 

Allen, Seth P 503 

Atwell, George \V 157 

Bailey, William 361 

Barber, Aaron 335 

Belden, John 561 

Bunnell, A. O S37 

Burkhart, A. P 109 

Burrell, Edward 98 

Cole, Chester A 168 

Crisfield, James E 222 

Crouse, James H 179 

Culbertson, Captain Samuel . . 349 

Decker, John C 515 

Edwards, Alexandei .... 595 

Fontaine, Zephir 550 

Frazer, James B 311 

Geiger, Elias 75 

Geiger, Mrs. Elizabeth H. . . 74 

Hanby, John 606 



I'AGE 

Helmer, John D 422 

Jackson, James H., M.D. ... 23 

Johnson, Emerson 87 

Jones, Charles 47 

Jones, Richard M 134 

Killip, William W S7i 

Kramer, William 247 

Krein, George L 121 

Kuder, Andrew 491 

Letchworth, William P. . . . 395 

Markham, Augustus .... 145 

.McCartney, Matthew .... 461 

McLeod. Ronald 383 

McMillan, Daniel 582 

Merchant, Allen 191 

Mills, Hiram P 61 

Mills, Myron H., M.D. ... 8 

Milne, John M 35 

1 Newman, John H 475 



PAGE 

Oberdorf, W. S 539 

Olin, German B 433 

Orton, James S 235 

Parker, A. Orla 526 

Rowe, Charles H 633 

Sackett, Homer 323 

Shepard, Charles 263 

Short, Josiah C 407 

Short, Seneca Truman .... 286 

Sullivan, Rev. Francis .... 275 

Sutfin, Charles L. G 212 

Tanner, Zera L 298 

Thomson, Coridon S 615 

Welles, Mrs. Eliza 448 

West, Lovette P 372 

Wheelock, Austin W 201 

Wiard, Matthew 640 

Youngs, Elijah 626 



.,.^-<2*-*-m 






'J 
1^ 



